It can make you ecstatic, sad, or irritated. It can cause you to feel guilt, stress, and even take over your rational feelings of self-worth. This ‘it’ is a meaningless numerical number; ‘it’ is your weight. Weight is exactly what it looks like on a scale. It is just a number. Sometimes, that number is on a digital scale, medical scale or mechanical scale. Regardless of the method used, the outcome is still the same, it is your weight and it is just a number.
Why do we let this number dictate so much of us? It can make or break our mood, day, month and even phases in our lives. Dwelling on weight is something we have all done and something many of us will continue to do, unless we learn to let it go. Stop letting the meaningless number on the scale dictate how you feel and how you act day in a day out. More important, stop letting your weight predict how healthy you think you are!
In 2005 when I was a junior in college, I spent way too much time thinking about my weight. Honestly, it consumed me and was a phase of my life that lasted much to long. It was also a phase that did not go away over night. I have had to work hard to adjust my thinking pattern regarding that stupid number called weight, and have had to teach myself to let it go. And, I must say, life is so much more stress free not having that thought constantly in my head! I have learned there are a million more exciting things in life to think about instead of how much I weigh and have found that I am happier person because of this.
Weight, in my opinion, is the absolute worst predictor of health. However, there are circumstances where higher weight ranges may pose health risks, but in the end there are other crucial factors that are much more important when it comes to overall health. What is more important is how you are treating your body and how your body feels. Engaging your body in exercise and movement can do wonders for your physical, mental and emotional health. Exercise stimulates your body causing the release of endorphins. This release of endorphins naturally puts you in a more positive mood and feeling great about yourself. Another important factor in this equation is nutrition. Putting quality food into your body will lead it to perform and feel better. Who has ever felt upbeat and great about their body after eating excessively processed food? Not me, and I am sure others have had the same experience. Filling up on quality nutrients naturally makes us feel good both mentally and physically. Keep this equation simple and it will make sense. Move your body, eat properly and think positively about yourself and where you are today. If your body has extra weight to lose, that will come in time and if not, let it go and place your energy and focus elsewhere.
Now that I am off my opinionated soapbox regarding weight, my advice is this; listen to your body, focus on achieving the highest level of health possible. Set fitness goals, achieve them and sweat a lot along the way. Feel good about your achievements and use the power of your mind to think positively about yourself. And the next time that stupid number starts to creep into your mind, tell it to piss off and go sweat some more!
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