You may have noticed that we didn’t send you anything the week before Thanksgiving telling you what to eat and how foods count. Believe it, or not this was intentional. Kristin and I were speaking with one another and decided this year we wanted to do something different and what we think is even more important. We wanted to write about ‘giving thanks’ to our bodies.
It’s so easy to take advantage of our bodies, be mean to them, starve them, overwork them, underwork them, and more. So we want to write to you about ways to thank your body. Overthinking about food, obsessing on what to eat, how many calories everything is, and what you need to do to “burn” it off are all ways we don’t think are loving to your bodies.
Here are some ways to give thanks to your body:
Speak kind words to yourself.
If you want to change something, work towards it and stop expecting instant results. You’re kind to others working on their bodies; why not your own?
Start one day at a time starting today. Nothing changes when the clock strikes midnight from December 31, 2021, to January 1, 2022
Remember consistency is key- one day (weekend) of poor eating doesn’t break you, just like one day (weekend) of good eating doesn’t make you. It’s all about consistency.
Eat well-mainly whole, unprocessed foods.
Enjoy the little things like sweets whatever you like (in moderation, of course)
Stop restricting yourself from eating the foods you want. Learn to use self-control around these foods and enjoy them every once in a while or even everyday
Stop putting yourself in a severe calorie deficit to lose weight and start learning how to eat sustainably.
Move!
Go out for a walk, jog, run, weight lift, resistant train, bike, and more!
Listen to your body.
Stop overworking out to compensate for overeating in the past, present, or future. Train 30-60 minutes 5x per week.
Take real rest days!
A leisurely walk or light stretching is about all you need on a rest day (or nothing at all)
Work on getting better sleep- no matter what your weight loss specialist is telling you, it’s NOT just about calorie deficit- sleep matters
Drink enough water- no, you do not need to drink a gallon a day-do what’s right for you.
Work on relieving your environmental stressors
Breathing work, nighttime routines, less screen time, limiting or removing social media can all help eliminate outside stressors.
Work on writing down daily, weekly, monthly affirmations about yourself
These don’t need to be only about your body.
For example, I am kind and considerate of others.
We feel like giving thanks to your body is way more effective than starving, over or underworking out, and saying unnecessary and insensitive things to it. Making yourself and your goals a priority are key to a successful and sustainable life. We ask you this holiday season to work on this. Do you think you can do more of these to give thanks to your body? Let us know!! Have a wonderful and safe holiday season!
Love Kristin and Colleen