Fight the crazy brain

December 31st, 2011 I once again stood on the scale.  To my excitement it was down three pounds.  Now those of you who know me as a trainer and fitness instructor know I refer to myself as a “glass half full kind of girl” This isn’t always true.  Yes my friends I too am a slave to the scale and ugly negative self-talk!  So as I stand on the scale I think well I lost three pounds but I bet its muscle or water weight.  This is when I decided to share my thoughts on how to deal with the “crazy making mind” that many of us American women suffer from.

The only way to fight this craziness is simply by focusing on the truth!  I have gained and lost these 3 lbs. every month for the past 6 months.  Each time I gain it I’m sure its body fat, but when I lose it I think muscle.  Here is where the truth comes in.  If this were true that means in the last 6 months I have gained 18 lbs. of fat and lost 18 lbs. of muscle.  That is a heap of crap if you know what I mean.  If this were true I would naturally float at the top of my bathtub.  I probably couldn’t hold my arms up to drive let alone do body pump!  I am not looking for sympathy here.  Please don’t respond with your opinion on how my body looks.  I have muscles and I work hard to get them.  This cyclical negative talk has as much to do with my actual body as it has to do with whether or not the bright orb in the sky is shining!

So what is the solution you ask?  Well there is no “solution” but I have some small ideas to set you on a path to a better thought process.  Here are my suggestions

  1. Throw away the scale!  Maybe next year right, lol.
  2. Focus on truth.  For those of us who are logical thinkers just really calculate “is this possible?”
  3. Focus on positive.  It is hard for us to find positive things to say about ourselves so when you are feeling good make a list, hang it on the mirror as close to the scale as possible.
  4. Stop comparing yourself to other women.  The hot girls with perfect bodies at the gym, in the magazines or in your crazy mind.  They most likely don’t feel perfect either.  And if they do wish them a happy life and move on with your “real” one.
  5. Find someone who understands and talk about it!  If you find your friend commenting on how perfect you are and how not perfect they are than this is not the right person.  Find someone who looks opposite of you but really understands the heart of the matter!

This is just a first entry of honest talk and thinking I will be posting this year.  If it helps one woman than it is worth it to me!

Here is to a Happy New Year.  A new year for reaching out to other real women around you and fighting the crazy brain!

 

Kelly Merriman, Your Fitness Friend, and one very REAL woman