Faith finally made it up the corporate ladder to the C-suite after a mighty struggle to balance work and family. Her younger counterparts had zipped up the ladder with ease, but they weren’t moms.
She wouldn’t have done it any other way, but after years of looking after everyone else, she was frustrated. Her doc pointedly said she’d have fewer health issues if she could lose even 20 pounds. She’d accomplished so much in her career, but her weight was the one thing she couldn’t seem to get a handle on.
“I’ve done much harder things,” she said. “How can I fail so spectacularly at my health and weight?”
Like many of us, she struggled to access her power when she needed it most, most often prioritizing others and their needs and ignoring her own. Sound familiar?
Last week, I asked you to identify what creates that disconnection for you. Make a note: When X-situation happens, I often Y-response. If you often crash land in front of the refrigerator, you’re not alone, so let’s walk through it.
Something happens, usually something that has happened before, and it throws our best intentions to the wind. You see the pattern. When you’re feeling your best, you can make good choices, but when you aren’t, it’s just easier to eat to relieve the stress. And that’s the broken pattern to address.
We all need soothing at times, some days more than others. Eating doesn’t work any better than another soother, but it’s easier and more readily available – and you’ve used it a lot, so it’s familiar. It’s something long-trained into us – from parents who just needed a quiet moment to teachers who used to be able to use it as a reward to the candy dish on an office desk. And oral soothing is a real thing – just not the only thing.
Your Superpower is in knowing how to make a more helpful soother readily available. Then you can transition your “go-to.”
What might that be for you?
Honestly, it may not feel as good immediately, but it will in time, and you may discover some things that are even more soothing without the undesired side effects.
The truth is: Long-term weight loss comes down to doing something differently. It’s making that choice your go-to rather than what you’ve done in the past. It doesn’t mean you never get what you love. It means you are more judicious about where, when, and how you have it, choosing the opportunity mindfully and safely.
What will you choose to do differently? How will you explore over these next weeks to find what works for you? Use your Superpower to make sure you have options.
