Ever hear of Dr. Judith Horvath?
Well, neither did I. But I can tell you that I was pretty blown away by what she had to say about the psychological dimensions of losing weight.
Horvath believes- as I do- that losing weight and keeping it off is as much about psychological struggles as it is physical changes. “Food can be used as emotional nourishment, and to calm anxieties”, she says.
Which is one reason that that the summer holiday season — with BBQ’s, picnics and all the tasty frozen treats that come with warm weather — is such a tough time to begin a weight loss program. (It’s no accident that our summer Diet Boot Camp Challenge begins the day after the 4th of July!) Yet summer is one of the two times of the year when people are most focused on making changes to their body and health (the other is the beginning of the year). It’s no accident that all those “New You” displays in the bookstores happen in January and June!
So summer resolutions for many people will involve weight loss and gym memberships. So far, so good. But if you don’t want that treadmill you buy today to become a coat rack by the fall, it’s a good idea to address some of the bigger psychological and spiritual issues underlying weight loss—the stuff I called the “third leg” of the three-legged stool.
Everyone and his personal trainer talks about the first two legs of that three legged stool- diet and exercise. But the one that really stabilizes the whole structure is the one we tend to ignore- the emotional component. “Some people don’t think they can allow themselves to look their best because they feel like they don’t deserve to be a more attractive person”, said Horvath.
Shameless plug: My online Diet Boot Camp program is gearing up for the Summer Challenge! We’ve had fabulous successes before and we plan on having them again. To read more about it, go to Diet Boot Camp. And watch for more information in coming newsletters!
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