5 Essential Mindset Shifts for Long Lasting Health and Weight Loss

Mindset is all about beliefs.

Henry Ford famously said, “Whether you think you can, or you think can't- you're right.”

Many of us have beliefs that have gone unchallenged. They are thoughts (which, by the way, are just a group of neurones firing together) that we think over and over. These thoughts may have served once but no longer serve us. Here are some of our favourite beliefs to challenge

5 Essential Mindset Shifts for Long Lasting Health and Weight Loss

#1 - Your Body is Not The Bin

Hands up if you eat food to get rid of it.🙋‍♀️

Food wastage is seen as a mortal sin because you know, "there are children starving in Africa". This often results in us eating food we don't actually want. We might be full but we feel we have to eat everything on our plate. Or there might be a cake in the fridge that doesn't align with our health goals so we eat it all up so we can start fresh tomorrow. When we do this, our body stores it as excessive body fat and then we have to work extra hard to get rid of it somehow

So permission given -do not eat something just to get rid of it. You can throw it out

#2 - One is Too Many and a Thousand is Never Enough

You've all heard this - "a little bit won't hurt" and "everything in moderation".

This is a useful approach for real food but for many people, hyper-palatable ultra-processed food provides a dopamine hit that is hard to regulate. There is a reason the Pringles ad tells you "Once you pop you can't stop!" The food is designed to be like this. Once you start it IS hard to stop and many times it is easier to have none than some.

Identify the foods that do this to your brain and avoid them. Life is easier without them.

#3 - Eating is Not a Team Sport

Some people want you to share their food whether you want to or not.

If these people are highly insistent then we call them food bullies. They will use all sorts of techniques to get you to eat their food, especially guilt. "Come on. I made it, especially for you..." or shame. "Are you on another diet?" 🙄 At the end of the day what you eat makes no difference to them (unless they decide it does) but it does make a difference to you.

Eating is not a team sport, it is an individual pursuit.

A line I use is "Looks delicious but I'm going to decline. It doesn't agree with me".

#4 - Don't let Perfect be the Enemy of Good

We've all heard the saying "If it's worth doing, it's worth doing properly" but perfectionism stops us from starting.

We're waiting til everything is perfect. We're waiting for a clear run, for a time when there are no functions, parties, or holidays. And so we don't start. This might be starting a morning walking habit but you know you've got an early start in 3 days time. It might be improving your eating but there's a work morning tea next week. It doesn't have to be perfect. It just has to be better than what you were doing.

It is far better to be doing something than nothing.

#5 - I Don't Eat vs I Can't Eat

A question we are often asked is "Am I allowed to eat [insert food]?"

And we get it. Dieting has strict rules. These rules promise weight loss if you follow them which is why we get scared when either there are no rules or we break them. But weight loss isn't about following rules. It's about eating in a way that nourishes your body and helps balance your metabolic hormones.

We have a saying at Real Life Medicine that "You are the boss of you." You are allowed to do whatever you want. Our job is to teach you how food affects your body and then you choose. It's your choice. If you choose not to eat chocolate, then say "I don't eat chocolate". It is far more empowering and assertive than "I can't eat chocolate". "I can't" sets up a deprivation mindset and takes your power away

Remember you are the boss of you!

With love and great health

Dr Lucy and Dr Mary XX

Dr Mary Barson and Dr Lucy are the founders of Real Life Medicine. They help women who have been on every diet under the sun, optimise their health and achieve long lasting weight loss without feeling miserable or deprived.

They do this with their 3 step framework that

• Improves metabolism
• Develops mindset skills
• Provides tools to implement it easily into busy lives

With this comes increased energy, vitality and confidence.

You can avoid chronic disease and stop living life on the sidelines!