Getting Healthy – the first step!

People (very) frequently ask me ‘my secret’ to loosing (a lot of) weight and when I tell them it’s not just diet and exercise – they don’t quite know what to make of it. After 11+ years of being, feeling and looking unhealthy, I had made the decision to be the best version of me possible. And for me, this meant getting my physical health in top condition.

I moved to this beautiful country I now call home in 2001. I felt I had left a big part of my soul behind in India. And though it was entirely my decision to make this move, I terribly missed my family and friends. That combined with massive adjustments to the lifestyle, study pressure, financial challenges etc I resorted to emotional eating and bad food choices.

From 2001 to 2011 before the changes began, I (along with my husband) DONATED a lot of our very hard earned cash to numerous health clubs, food programs like light and easy and weight watchers. Nothing helped significantly and nothing lasted long term. Our goals at the time were simple, loose as much weight as possible before the end of year party or before the holiday to America or before the wedding!!! We aimed for quick results for particular events in our lives. But what we were missing all along is the right mindset to help us be healthy and stay healthy for the rest of our lives. And the right mindset my friends, not diet program or exercise routine, is the first step to anything and everything.

I do not want you to confuse the right mindset with high levels of internal motivation or positive thoughts. It means different things to different people. But the right mindset to me, in this area of my life, meant awareness and openness. I had no plan and no fixed goals in sight when I started my health journey. But two important things had happened for me: 1) I had realised that I COULD NOT go on feeling like this any longer and 2) I will do WHATEVER it takes to make changes.

It started with my son (aged 3+) at the time asking me when he could go running with me like the neighbour and her kid. Something as simple as this, which I could have easily brushed off or given some random answer to- kick started thought processes within me that led me to take the steps that I did.

I challenged and changed my mindset. For the sake of my child and then for my own. I took actions to let go of the excuses and the laziness and boredom and reconnected with my values in life. I allowed myself to accept and embrace my limitations. I perceived and prepared myself for setbacks.

And for this purpose I gathered my tribe. I told them of my intentions and they pledged to provide me with their undying support and ever so strong listening ears. I am lucky enough to have a many different people serving various purposes in my life. All of them with the one common goal of helping me be the best me. And though being healthy is a part of my lifestyle now and I can’t imagine being anything but the best me, this is an ongoing process with everyday making me better, fitter, stronger and more peaceful than yesterday.

When I work with my clients to help them loose weight, I start at addressing their mindset. I help the clients recognise their strengths and limitations (often created by their own minds) and then provide them with simplest of the skills to change their mindset. With a clearer and stronger mindset, the clients are not only able to gain but also maintain a physically and mentally healthy life. My strategies are simple hence highly effective.

If you feel you have tried various formulas to get healthy but haven’t achieved your goals yet, contact me to make a time for a quick assessment to see if my program can benefit you and thereby those around you too.

#health #mindset #motivation #WeightLoss