The Art of Graceful Transformation

Calm, kind, grateful. These aren’t always the first words that come to mind during a weight loss challenge. These aren’t usually even the first words that come to mind in our day to day lives. Unless you’re a yoga or meditation practitioner and take time each day to slow down, most of our lives are fast paced, stressful, and (many times) about getting what we want when we want it. The need for immediate gratification is so often a part of our culture that, when trying to lose weight and improve our health, it can breed frustration and disappointment when things aren’t easy or don’t happen right away.

            Calm. It may seem counterintuitive to a high intensity workout but stop and think: How do you approach a challenging workout or a long run? Is your head clear and focused or does your mind immediately start saying, “No, no, no, no” or “That’s too hard for me!”? Tackling a challenge with a clear, calm mind could make all the difference. Think about facing what seems like a million burpees (sometimes only a slight exaggeration : )). Saying to yourself, “This is horrible. This hurts. This is hard” won’t do anything but make them horrible, painful, and hard. If you can calm your mind enough to focus on ten at a time or five at a time it could become a much more manageable task. Once you’ve conquered it, you’ll know you can do it (or more) the next time.

            Kind. How do you speak to yourself during a workout and throughout the day? If you’re struggling in the gym that day do you get frustrated with yourself? We are often our own worst critics, bashing our best efforts and tearing ourselves down. What if, when something is difficult, we spoke to ourselves with kindness? What if, instead of getting discouraged when things feel challenging and we’re out of breath, we gave ourselves some acknowledgement for working so hard? This idea is even more important when it comes to food. Treat yourself with kindness if you overindulge or make a poor choice. Forgive yourself, move on, and make your next choice one that is kind to your body.

            Grateful. Have you ever gone running and marveled at the mechanics and intricacies that must come together perfectly to allow you to do so? From the neurons firing in your brain to the tiny muscles and ligaments of your feet, everything must work in synchronicity. How lucky are we that every piece is able to come together to allow our bodies to work as designed? If staying calm and being kind to yourself is difficult, finding ways to be grateful should be easier. For a healthy, functioning body, for the resources to buy healthy food and go to the gym, and for having time available in our lives that we’re able to dedicate to bettering ourselves and improving our health, we can be grateful.  

            How are you approaching this challenge? Is your mindset going to allow you to persevere throughout all 12 weeks, be resilient when faced with challenges and setbacks, and maintain and continue all you’ve worked for this fall? What words are characterizing your transformation? 

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