 Tools for a
Balanced Lifestyle
A Program of Recovery from Weight Related Problems
Going for the 3 increases: Increase of Health; Increase of Happiness and
Increase of Energy
Chapter 1: Getting Started
on Your Balanced Lifestyle
I.
Making Goals Realistic and Livable
In making plans to change
your lifestyle so that you can live a healthier life, you might be caught up
with the "old dieting" mentality.
The Balance Lifestyle in this program is a lifestyle change program.
This is a program of "new" healthy weight maintenance. This is not a guilt inducing
program which monitors you so closely that you feel under severe pressure to
perform or get out. This program is based on the principles of the 12 Steps of
the Self-Esteem Seekers Anonymous Program (SEA's). It is based on the belief
that you are a human being subject to failures, mistakes, imperfections and
potential for relapse. For this reason, there is no pressure to abide by single diet or food
plan, but rather for you to follow one which suits your personality and needs. There is no pressure to participate in a prescribed exercise
program. There is no pressure to act or behave in a certain way. What is
expected is that you will make a commitment to love yourself enough to make the
effort to change the way you relate to food, increase the amount of exercise and
physical activity in your life and the way you deal with your feelings about
yourself, your body and your self image. This program is based on the belief
that our bodies are like bank accounts. The deposits we put in must match the
withdrawals we make or our accounts will bulge from the excess of deposits we
put into them. Our bodies are make to burn up a certain amount of calories and
fat grams per day. If we do not have sufficient exercise and physical activity
to burn off the excess calories we ingest each day the calories and fats will be
stored in our bodies as excess weight. The goal of this program is to balance
the calories and fat intake with the amount of exercise and physical activity
necessary to bring your bodies into a "healthy weight" for yourself
and to maintain this healthy weight once we reach our goal weight. This program
is based on the belief that you will become a healthier person and sustain your
new balanced lifestyle if you become more concerned about your internal needs
and become less dependent on externals to make you happy and content with
yourself. For this reason you are asked to
make a commitment of a minimum of two years to implement your new balanced
lifestyle. You are asked to become self-loving and self-nurturing and not to use
the "old" guilt inducing models of weight management programs which
compel you to comply to their rules or be feel shame and guilt for not being successful in your compliance.
Most of you view your goal
bodies as Swiss Bank Accounts which are svelte, lean and thin. These Swiss
accounts are based on rigid weight charts which do not take into account the
genetic or hereditary structure of your bodies. I have an Italian genetic bank
account which is large boned, wide hipped and prone to enjoyment of the fine
foods of life. I have given up the need to have the Swiss Account and as such
have been able to maintain my Italian Account which is close to 100 pounds less
than what it once was. For the past seven years I have been able to keep the
Italian Bank Account in balance. I have been able to enjoy food, guilt free. I
have been able not to give up my favorite foods. I still enjoy food like I did
in the past. However I balance my deposits with my exercise and physical
activity withdrawals. When I kept my focus on the Swiss Account, I was never
able to accomplish the goal. It was too difficult and required so much sacrifice
that I never enjoyed my life and I never was able to get into balance. Once I
decided to accept the realities of my Italian heritage, I have been able to
enjoy life and be thinner than what I ever had been in my life up to then.
It is imperative that as you
enter this Balanced Lifestyle program, that you become realistic and kind to
yourself. Set your goals not on the Swiss Account but rather on your own
heritage account. Give yourself enough time to accomplish your initial goal to
get your account into a balance. Remember, it took many years to get your
account (body) in the sad state of affairs its is in. It will take a number of
years to get your account (body) into balance. The slower you go at putting your
account into balance, the better you will be able to maintain it once you are
successful.
Related Tools for Coping Readings:
1.
Self-Esteem Seekers Anonymous
2.
Tools for Personal Growth
3.
Tools for Relationship
Click below to get to the next section of
Chapter 1
Chapter 1: Getting Started
on Your Balanced Lifestyle
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