This blog by Sara Kelly Keenan, a weight loss, fitness and transformational coach was originally published on lifecoachsara.com (http://lifecoachsara.com/entries/general/small-changes-lead-to-transformation)
Tony Robbins says, ““The secret to unleashing your true power is setting goals that are exciting enough that they truly inspire your creativity and ignite your passion.” I agree with this idea, I LIVE this idea and my clients who reach their weight loss and wellness goals LIVE this idea. It is a beautiful concept but it can be easy to get lost in the implementation of it.
Everyone would like to unleash their true power to achieve the body they dream about! Everyone would like to be creatively inspired and ignite their inner passion to achieve physical health! So why does it seem that many people, maybe even most people, fall short of this desired state?
Weight Loss Surgery is a great tool to help us along the way but something I realized, in the years after WLS as the pounds returned along with unhealthy thinking and calorie choices, was that the part of my body that REALLY needed surgery was my brain! Surgery changed my ability to use food in a certain way, but I was still left with two hands and a mouth, both programmed by my mind to look for soothing and comfort by lifting things from the fingers to the lips.
WLS doesn’t prevent us from continuing to harm ourselves with food. If we don’t change our thinking and our beliefs about our lives and the place of food in our lives we will find creative ways to continue to seek comfort through unkindness to the body. How often have you eaten something that you knew would generate “dumping” or vomiting in search of a comforting sensation from food? I know I’ve done this.
One way to change the trajectory of our relationships with food after surgery is to actually consider with the help of another person what we are trying to achieve when we make unhealthy choices and to set small, achievable goals for slowly, kindly changing our relationships with food. Then, once these small changes are cemented in us we make another small change. After a few months who we ARE has changed. We become a healthier mind inhabiting a healthier body. The key is to start small.
Set an achievable, small goal. Live that goal. Embody it for 3 weeks. Then make the next small change. And talk to someone about your thinking and self-limiting beliefs along the way. That will truly set you free from the post-surgical food and high-calorie liquid addictions that are so common.
The clients I have partnered with have taught me that there is no goal too small and that the achieving of small goals over and over again is how we achieve what Tony Robbins describes……the source of power that exists in every human gets excited, inspired and comes to life with each small success. Then, once success is no longer surprising but is expected, inspiration and creativity arise within us and ignite our passion to create a level of health and wellness beyond our wildest dreams. At that point this journey becomes an “inner and outer party!” But it all starts with making a small change and embodying it for 3 weeks.
My journey to lose 170 pounds and become a mountain climber (with a body people think is that of an Olympic athlete) began with cutting myself down from three 800 calorie Starbuck’s drinks per day to three 500 calorie Starbuck’s drinks per day……but it started!! That is the important thing! What small behavior would you like to get started changing today and who can help you change it? A Bariatric support group, a therapist or a certified Life Coach specializing in Bariatric Obesity can help you achieve the body and wellness you desire, help shift your beliefs about yourself, and end the struggle with food. Whatever path you choose make sure you have challenges and accountability. They are a recipe for success.