If you have gained and lost weight over and over again over the past 20 to 50 years… that is a lot of practice and wiring of neural pathways.  We do continue to grow at every age and develop new neurons through neurogenesis.  Through diet, exercise, sleep you can not only lose weight, you can keep your brain healthy as well as bones and joints and immune system.  When you feel better you will enjoy life more.

Even though we have the knowledge of what will make us feel better in the long run, it is easy to fall off track. The trick is to build a clear track and when you get off it, don’t make it mean anything about you. Give up the drama. See that track as your guidelines and get back on it.

When I was growing up in Brooklyn, NY the B71 trolley bus line maneuvered a turn onto Sackett from Smith Street.  Often the two trolley poles and ropes which connected the bus to its’ power source above would disengage on the turn and the bus driver would have to get out and put the poles back on the track.  It seemed like a genuine pain in the butt, yet it was part of the driver’s day.  He didn’t make it mean he did anything wrong or curse the wires, he just got out of the bus and fixed put it back on track and got on his way. (In those days all the drivers were men!)

You may hate yourself and make poor choices out of the unconscious conviction that you are not enough and not loveable.  You may be unaware of the extent to which you limit yourself from the negative self-talk to partake of in your head; or you are perfectly clear about the limits you place on yourself yet don’t know what to do to change it.

Habits of treating ourselves with contempt over decades feel normal. Like fish in water and birds in the air.  We are unaware of the toxicity of our thinking.

Today I am doing fantastic.  I am thinking of how magical life is. Our brains are amazing. Our bodies sublime.

This magical thinking is colored by the fact that many people are suffering around the state, country and world.  It is colored by the fact that earlier today, I felt anxious –crappy - sad. My practice of feeling my emotions invites me to look to my body and ask what is it exactly I am feeling and where. It feels like a vague sensation that takes root in the center of my chest and upper stomach. It is a moving, undulating sensation.  My eyes feel pressure and teary.  

I can’t do anything about the fires today; or stopping the disasters facing my brothers and sisters around the world. My feeling - is it sadness? Maybe. It comes and goes and the next step I take is to ask myself, “How can I love myself with this feeling?”  “How can I feel this shitty and still know I am a vital human being.” Then I ask myself, “What can I do today to contribute to my purpose, even with this feeling in my body?”  All this sits side by side, steeping like a cup of tea. 

I am very excited to share with you how you can stick to your weight loss goals and enjoy your vacation too! For those of you who have vacations planned between now and the end of the year, this is your chance to grab a notepad and start creating your own vacation plan today! You want to enjoy your time off and not come home disappointed and 5 digits further away from your goal.

My clients who create and follow vacation plans are amazed when they return home not having gained a pound or even having lost a few. Formerly, they approached their vacations as an escape from life and work and a time to retreat from  mundane activities of daily living. Often this escape included “deserved” indulgences and de-stressing with food.