How do you overcome the detrimental food avalanche?
Many have seen how a few nights of poor eating can turn into years of unhealthy consumption and weight gain. How do you overcome this?
As a fitness coach for many years, I have also gradually become a mental coach for my clients. During our sessions, I have heard many personal stories about families, relationships, marriages, work, health, etc. After so many years of listening, nothing has truly surprised me except the story of one of my clients, Cheryl. I was impressed by Cheryl’s knowledge about nutrition, exercise, and healthy versus unhealthy habits. She was literally finishing my sentences when we talked about food choices and proper workouts. She knew more about health and fitness than any personal trainer.
So, what was the problem? Cheryl was more than 100 lbs. overweight. Here she was, sitting in front of me, an intelligent and successful woman who knew everything about her body — yet the knowledge wasn’t enough to stop her from hurting her own body. I was stunned because I have always believed that knowledge is power. When you learn on a deeper level about the impact of overeating or excessive drinking on your body (even aside from the added pounds) — the strain on your heart, liver, and joints, and illnesses like diabetes or cancer — how is it possible for you to still allow your body to be hurt by your choices? And in Cheryl’s case, she had completely given up on her own body and health.
Then, Cheryl showed me pictures of herself 10 years prior. The photos showed a beautiful, stunning woman with a figure that every woman would die for. What has happened between now and then? Well, Cheryl’s husband had left her for a younger woman. After a brutal divorce, Cheryl completely gave up on her body. She said, “Tatiana, it started as a small snowball, a night of crying and eating, and it turned into an avalanche. Now, I don’t know how to stop that avalanche.”
I felt Cheryl’s pain through her words. The pain controlled her daily choices, even when she didn’t talk or think about her ex or her divorce. The happy personality radiating from her photos had turned into a bitterly wounded persona. However, Cheryl didn’t need my fitness coaching; she knew exactly what to do. So, I asked how I could help her. She said, “I want to love my body as you do. I don’t want to hurt my body anymore.”
I am not saying that the process of Cheryl loving her body happened overnight. However, I am thrilled to say that Cheryl has been making many small and significant changes. I am not going to describe each step of her progress, but I will share one major step that has made a huge leap for Cheryl. Actually, it was two steps that have significantly impacted her ability to escape from the avalanche. The first was to create her Heavenly Body Vision (my Free download). Cheryl likes spirituality, but it must make common sense because she is very intellectual. She said Heavenly Body Vision is a spiritual work, but it makes so much intellectual sense to her: “This Vision is like my accountability and road guides in one.” The second step happened during one of our coaching sessions when I said, “Don’t rise for your status, but rise for a better vantage point.” That really clicked with Cheryl, as the ability to see her whole life from a higher place allowed her bitterness to melt away. And once her bitterness faded away, she could start loving her body again.
When you rise from the valley to a higher point of view, you suddenly see that the avalanche or storm wasn’t there to ruin you, but to strengthen you to climb higher and higher. Your storm actually pushed you to reach the top of the mountain to get the best vantage point, where you can finally see the other side of the mountain. At last, you can see the sun shining over the horizon. With the new vantage point, Cheryl is no longer trying to stop the avalanche, but rather, she rises above it. She says, “I am no longer going over and over all the conversations with my ex in my head. The whole thing [cheating and divorce] looks completely different from where I am right now.”
Knowing what to eat and how to exercise is not enough to keep our bodies fit and healthy. I am not afraid to say that 80–90% of people know how to take care of their bodies. We know the difference between healthy and unhealthy habits. The problem is that we are too weak from within to resist avalanches or storms.
When it comes to getting in shape and staying in shape, even when we hit roadblocks, it is not about secret diets and magical exercises. It is about the power from within that carries us over the roadblocks. Do you know any more powerful force that will overcome any roadblock, storm, or avalanche than your unconditional love for your body?
Just try to stop any mother who is powered by her unconditional love for her own child. Once you rediscover that power, nothing and no one (not even your ex) will stop you from creating the body you have always desired.
If you want to learn how to rediscover (because everyone has it) this unconditional love, email me here:
heavenlybodyafter40@gmail.com
