Crabby McSlacker has some advice for those of us who are not always cheerful about the things we need to do to lose weight. She thinks the key is to harness our inner crab:
…plenty of grumpy, unenthusiastic, and downright lazy folks like myself have discovered the amazing benefits of good nutrition and vigorous exercise. We can commit to healthy living, and we do it. We may even enjoy certain aspects of it. But often we grumble.
Makes sense, actually. Maybe you enjoy dieting and exercise. Maybe you like skipping desert. Or maybe you don’t.
But you probably have a good reason for wanting to lose weight. And however you approach it — with good cheer or kicking and screaming — if you improve your diet and get your exercise you are going to get the results.
Ever notice how many cheerful optimists announce plans to go completely raw-food vegan, or run a marathon, or lose 50 lbs–and then they just as cheerfully abandon these plans a month later to take up scrapbooking or tend to virtual livestock on FarmVille?
It’s fine to have lofty goals. But if they’re not something you can stick with, what good did it do you? The last thing you need is another disappointment.
Now, let’s say you are considering a new program you saw advertised. How should you approach it?
Just because you want something to be true, does not make it so. Wishful thinking is a natural human tendency… Don’t believe what advertisements say until you’ve done some independent research.
That’s smart. And here’s something else to think about. The program with the biggest sales pitch is probably the least likely to work. Are you really going to “lose 5 pounds a week without diet or exercise?”
And what about succumbing to temptation?
It’s one thing to indulge in a tempting pleasure that you’ve earned and that you know you will enjoy. But if you’re faced with an indulgence you don’t even really want all that much…
If pizza and hot fudge sundaes are your thing, fine. Then save them up for your special day, and have a couple slices of pizza and a scoop of ice cream. But don’t waste all your hard work by indiscriminate snacking. Save it up for the good stuff.
http://www.crankyfitness.com/2010/02/care-and-feeding-of-your-inner-crab.html
