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Imagine you want to change professions. You want to become an architect. (If you already are an architect, you want to become an abstract painter).
This is a huge change for you. New mechanics, new language, new perspective. But you know in your heart it’s the direction you want to take.
You’re not sure how it will all end up. In the beginning you’re not sure if you will even get your degree. But there’s something inside of you that wants to find out.
So you go for it.
You apply for the program, enroll in classes and start to learn.
You faithfully attend your classes. You go for 4 weeks straight and start to feel your brain shifting.
At this point, what do you imagine you do?
– Keep going and know that, if you follow the degree path all the way through, you will graduate.
– Wonder why the hell you don’t have your degree yet and quit the program because it’s not working fast enough.
It’s a serious question.
I’m going to guess that a lot of you would keep going and follow the degree path. You know that it takes time to learn everything – especially when you’re changing careers. It’s a no-brainer, right?
Now I want to go back and give you the same scenario, but with one difference.
Instead of changing careers, you want to change your body.
Just like with a career, this is a huge change for you.
New mechanics, new language, new perspective. But you know in your heart it’s the direction you want to take.
You’re not sure how it will all end up. In the beginning you’re not sure if you will even get to your goal weight. But there’s something inside of you that wants to find out.
So you go for it.
You apply for the program, enroll in classes and start to learn.
You faithfully attend you classes. You go for 4 weeks straight and start to feel your body shifting.
At this point, what do you imagine you do?
– Keep going and know that, if you follow the program all the way through, you will get to your natural weight.
– Wonder why the hell you’re not closer to your goal weight yet and quit the program because it’s not working fast enough.
Are you still choosing the same reaction?
Are you giving yourself time in this new scenario?
Do you allow yourself room to learn, give yourself time to practice, fail and reconfigure?
Are you patient and kind to yourself, knowing that you’re making a huge shift that takes time and persistence?
I wish I had been.
It sounds nice, doesn’t it?
For the majority of my life, I haven’t been that person at all.
I would get frustrated when I didn’t see what I wanted to see, when I wanted to see it. I would start to think it wasn’t working; that anything I did wasn’t enough.
I would start to do it halfway. I would workout, but then eat a ton.
I would go a few days “being good” then I would crash over the weekend.
I would constantly look at my face in the mirror and judge if it looked thinner than last week.
Letting go of that micromanagement was tough.
It took time, patience and, most importantly, trust in myself.
But letting go of it was a necessary step.
Because it gave me room to breathe.
Changing your body is like changing your career.
There’s a lot to learn, and a lot to take in. Patterns will change, doors will be opened and things you never knew existed will be discovered.
Like realizing you don’t really like the taste of your favorite ‘cheat’ food, or finding the reason you can’t stop eating when you’re stuffed is because you’re lonely.
It takes time, it takes patience, and it takes persistence. But when you have a clear plan, clear steps to take, and a clear mind, it will happen.
The next time you get frustrated that the weight isn’t falling off fast enough, remind yourself that you’re changing careers.
You’re learning an entirely new way of living. An entirely new point of view with entirely new tools in your belt.
Pushing yourself to go faster won’t help anything. It’s like cramming for a test the next day. Sure, you may get an A. But you won’t remember any of it a week later.
Give yourself the same amount of room as you would to learn a new skill.
If you allow yourself room. If you trust the process, you will graduate. You will get your degree.
Reaching your natural weight is the most important degree you will earn.
