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So who's never said anything like
this before?
- I feel so fat.
- My thighs are disgusting.
- My stomach sticks out.
- My butt is too big.
- I feel huge.
 Most
of us have likely uttered or thought at least one of these
negative self-talk statements
at some point in time. They're self-deprecating thoughts
and comments that Karin Kratina, PhD, RD, clinical advisor
to Green Mountain at Fox Run, says are not feelings, and are
not even truths.
“Fat is not a feeling. ‘I feel fat' is
never about the size of your body,” Kratina points out.
“Even if you are in reality fat, it isn't about
that fatness. Difficult and uncomfortable feelings are felt
as ‘fat feelings.' Some of the most powerful work
you can do in your recovery from eating and weight struggles
is finding out exactly what feelings are behind the fat feelings.”
It's difficult for many of us to challenge and move
beyond these thoughts and comments. Even those of us who have
lost weight find that these thoughts, feelings and beliefs
do not change – the ‘fat feelings' persist.
Changing the Negative Self Talk
The next time you catch yourself ‘feeling fat,'
slow down, tune in, and with respect and curiosity, ask yourself,
“In addition to this experience of ‘feeling fat,'
what else am I feeling?' Watch your mind try to convince
you over and over that your body (and you) is the problem,
that your body is to blame. Do your best to challenge these
fat thoughts.
 One
way to challenge these thoughts is through affirmations, such
as the following from Cheri Erdman's Live
Large!, a book of affirmations for living the life
you want in the body you already have.
“I see myself as acceptable,
lovable,
and beautiful.”
Remember, too, that self and size acceptance isn't
about ‘giving up.' It's about treating ourselves
well and stopping the negative self talk so that we can make
the changes we want, accepting our biological realities in
the process.
“When we accept ourselves
as we are today and gradually proceed to make the changes
we want for ourselves, we have more power to recreate our
lives. When we are self-accepting, we love ourselves for
not being perfect already. The burden of self-rejection
makes it very hard to change our lives.”
~Yogi Desai
This FitBriefing was taken from the e-zine Stay
Attuned by Karin Kratina, PhD, RD and Amy Tuttle, LCSW, RD.
You can subscribe at www.nourishingconnections.com.
For 37 years, Green Mountain at Fox Run has
developed and refined a life-changing program exclusively
for women seeking permanent strategies for healthy weight
loss and health. More than just another weight
loss retreat and spa, Green Mountain combines proven
science with what works in the real world, to offer an innovative
non-diet lifestyle program. Our core weight
loss program offers an integrated curriculum of practical,
liveable techniques that helps women take charge of their
eating, their bodies and their health. Unlike health
spas or adult
weight loss camps, our approach is not focused on just
losing weight but on how to keep it off for a lifetime.
Our participants' long-term weight
loss success is among the highest of any program, as
documented in peer-reviewed scientific literature. Learn more about our women's weight loss program
©2007
Green Mountain at Fox Run, Ludlow, Vermont. This information
is the property of Green Mountain at Fox Run. Permission
to use single copies for personal, noncommercial use is
authorized. For all other purposes, please see details.
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