I want to tell you a story about when I was a child. This is hard for me to share. I am a very private person, but I feel I must share this so I can help more people.
When I was a child between the ages of 3-13, I was chubby. This on the surface does not seem like a big deal. Just look around today there are so many kids that are chubby.
But when I was growing up it was a nightmare. I would get bullied and picked on at school because of my weight. It was really a hard, sad time in my life.
In my teenage years, I discovered Taekwon-Do, fell in love with it, and had a growth spurt. The weight dropped off me.
The problem was, I looked fit and athletic to everyone else.
But when I looked in the mirror I would still see that chubby kid.
My body had changed, but the emotional baggage of childhood stayed with me.
The mind is powerful, and for better or worse, what you believe and think your mind tries to create.
Every time I looked in the mirror, I saw an overweight person, even though I was not, my mind did its best to try make this a reality. It was a real struggle.
It was only when I discovered how to change my mindset that everything becomes so much easier.
Just to be clear, it was not until I was in my 30s that I started to figure this out. I had no coaching or guidance. I had to figure this out for myself.
I really wish I had known about this when I was so much younger, and really wish I had known there are professionals out there that can help with this.
You can’t change the past, but I do wonder if many of the years through my 20s would have been happier if I had a more positive self-image.
Being in the fitness industry now, I wanted to share this story with you, so hopefully, I can help you if you need it.
There is one dilemma I face daily.
It is when I see gym advertisements for these 28-day challenges. One part of me is happy as it encourages people to perhaps get started in exercise, lose some weight, and try to become healthier.
The other part is concerned and worried for the people who do these challenges. Most of these challenges are based on exercises 3-4 times a week and a strict diet so you can drop the kgs quickly. Physically that approach does work. You do lose weight and drop kgs. Your body does change, but in many cases, your mind does not.
The pants size or dress size might be smaller. Even your friends and family might say how great you look.
Unless your mindset has changed and you can now recognize yourself as this new-looking person, when you close your eyes at night and dream, you dream that you are still the same person you were 28 days ago. The same size, the same fitness, the same bad habits.
And the mind does its best to make this reality. This is when the bounce happens. You start putting on weight again and within another 28 days, you are back to where you started.
The problem is your identity of who you now do not change. You still identify yourself as an overweight person before you started the challenge.
Before you can accelerate you must first release the anchors that are slowing you down or keeping you stuck. We almost always play catch up with our mindset. Even when results improve, old beliefs and ways of thinking can pull us back like an unwanted anchor.
Here at Adaptive Strength, we do more than train you’re in fitness. We help with your mindset. We help you identify with the healthy, fit person you are.
It is so amazing. When the mind is right, the body will follow.
If you have has trouble in the past with yoyo dieting and weight loss, and looking for a real sustainable solution, that helps with both the body and mind, then please reach out to us. We are happy to help.
