Losing Weight is About Mental Toughness

Steve Siebold is a tell-it-like-it-is kind of guy.  In his book, Die Fat or Get Tough: 101 Differences in Thinking Between Fat People and Fit People, he says that unless we start changing the way we think, nothing is going to change when it comes to weight loss.  When writing his book, Steve interviewed 500 fit people and 500 fat people and figured out that the differences in lifestyle and keeping weight off were staggering, and that it all related to the power of the mind.

Some of Steve’s key points include:

• In a nutshell, he says unless there is a medical problem or a psychological disorder, getting fat is our fault.  “It’s not partly your fault, it’s completely your fault.”
• Siebold says it’s time to “stop deluding yourself and take control of your health.”
• Fat people feel powerless to change. Fit people believe they can do anything.
• Fat people are controlled by food. Fit people are guided by vision.
• Fat people eat emotionally. Fit people eat strategically.
• For every excuse there is an answer. But if you’re not willing to be honest, forget it.
• Realize that 99% compliance is failure. You wouldn’t cheat on your spouse in a committed relationship, so don’t cheat on something as important as your resolutions.
• Avoid delusion and operate from objective reality. In other words, realize that making a change is going to be hard work, not a walk in the park.
• Stop caring about what other people think of your goals. Psychologists call it “approval addiction” and once you overcome it to any significant degree, you are free of the psychological chains that bind most people from ever experiencing world-class success.

To learn even more about what this tough-talking author says on the topic of losing weight and why we need to stop deluding ourselves about how hard it is to take off pounds, click on the link below:

http://www.canada.com/health/diet-fitness/Shaping+Losing+weight+step+process/7816402/story.html

“It’s not partly your fault, it’s completely your fault,” weight-loss author Steve Siebold says about being overweight.
Photograph by: Liz Lamont, Handout