Best Way to Lose Weight?

It starts with your mind…

You’ve done it before – multiple times I bet…

You lost weight (pick a number – let’s say 20 pounds – 50 pounds – it doesn’t matter).

Eventually the weight crept back on.

This has happened to me over and over and over again since I was a teenager through my 40s…until I finally got fed up enough and decided that I was completely done with the whole yo-yo diet insanity. No more diets!

So for the past 5ish years, I’ve maintained a weight range that I’ve been pretty OK with – comfortable with – by eating real food, Keto/Low carb and a flexible 16:8 intermittent fasting approach – no dieting.

The size I’m at now looks pretty good on me – maybe not 100% ideal if I’m naked and being completely honest, but I can fit into my size 6/8/S-M (depending on the cut and fabric :)) without exploding.

For me, being over 50, menopausal with Hashimoto’s – that’s pretty damn good.

Most importantly I don’t restrict myself. After lots of work, support and research, I’m balanced, healthy and I feel and function better than I ever have.

However, as I’ve been working on some life coaching/mindset mastery training for my business, making new bold goals in that area of my life; I decided to “uplevel” my body composition goals too – to challenge my limiting beliefs and the status quo I’ve settled on…not in a restrictive way, but in a “YES! I can do anything I set my mind to!” way.

I love and accept my body more than I ever have, but I also know I can be even better.

I still have that dream of running on the beach in my bathing suit without a coverup. I know I could do that with my current body, but I’m still a bit too self conscious. I’ve been comfortable (kinda like how I’ve been with my business :)).

Now I want to see what I’m capable of achieving. Not in a Teresa Giudice body builder way (LOL — RHONJ fans? In every scene up until her competition this season she carried her Tupperware of plain chicken and broccoli and drank only water. That’s SOOO not where I’m at!)

My goal is to establish a new – more optimal – ‘set point’ so to speak so that I can live my dream and be my ‘best self’ physically too. I want to show myself what’s possible at 51 and maybe even inspire and help you and more women find the right mindset and balance that works for them.

One of the essential steps when it comes to achieving any goal is having complete clarity and commitment. Once you’re clear on WHAT you want and WHY, then you need to start taking consistent action 100% of the time.

Notice I didn’t say you must be PERFECT all the time – that’s impossible – but you must always decide to take action and be committed to moving forward toward your goals – even if things move slower, go haywire or get tough – they will!

Here’s how this looks (folks on my email list, received a worksheet with this and more exercises, let me know if you want it too and I’ll add you too.):

1. Connect with your future self at your goal. Picture her right now. How does she move throughout her day? What does she eat? How does she eat? What’s her morning like? Her day and evening? It’s like you literally need to step into her shoes and BECOME her.
2. You must connect with this vision of your future self – constantly. Why? Because your old comfortable self will want to take over. There’s a tug of war between your OLD SELF vs. your GOAL SELF – and it’s real – so watch out for it! I counter this by journaling nightly and checking in with my GOAL SELF throughout the day (she’s also on my vision board :)).
3. As you make room in your mind and make the necessary changes in becoming your future self, you have to let go of the current version of you. This doesn’t mean that you change the essence of who you are. But it does mean that you let go of behaviors, patterns and beliefs that your future “GOAL SELF” wouldn’t have.

Here’s an example:

Over the course of a few months of getting much busier in my practice, I moved into the habit of snacking more – usually in the car – on my way home from a busy day – or between clients or before making dinner or after dinner. These snacks were all ‘keto friendly’ of course: a handful of macadamias here, a Keto Bar there, jerky sticks, dark chocolate – whatever.

This habit was the old me – my “OLD SELF”.

Knowing what I know and what I’ve experienced first hand with Intermittent Fasting, there is absolutely no true need to snack. I gain zero health benefits by snacking – because eating in between meals – even Keto snacking – is not only extra calories but it also requires digestion which means that insulin is being released in the process – even if it’s very low carb.

I’ve decided to let this “OLD SELF” habit go, because the new, leaner me.. well… she just doesn’t snack. That’s one big reason she maintains her lean physique so effortlessly all the time. She doesn’t overeat, over-drink, over-stress, emotionally eat or eat out of boredom, or to compensate, or to numb, or to buffer or to avoid feeling her feelings. She can take it or leave it – food, wine – whatever! She enjoys eating just the right amount of nourishing food and an occasional glass of wine. These pleasures don’t drive her life or make her crave more.

My GOAL SELF eats her meals slowly, mindfully until she is satiated (not stuffed). Snacking is completely unnecessary for her.

Does this shift mean I’m slashing calories and restricting myself?

Nope – and there are very subtle and critical distinctions between what I’m doing vs. dieting or restriction/deprivation:

1. I’m committed to my goal, so the changes I’m making aren’t restrictive – I choose them. The person I envision doesn’t eat in her car and pick throughout the day, so as I become “HER”, I choose to release this sub-optimal, habitual behavior.
2. My OLD SELF was doing OK with maintaining her weight, but My GOAL SELF is leaner and 20 pounds lighter. To get there, I need to change something. (Nothing changes if nothing changes.) The lowest hanging fruit (so to speak) is my food intake. (I’ll talk about exercise in a future post.) Insulin needs to be as minimal as possible and there needs to be a reasonable caloric deficit. I need to allow my body to use it’s own fat for fuel (It won’t starve! There’s plenty!) My Keto snacking was creating extra insulin release and probably a caloric excess of 200-500+ calories per day – which just happens to be the optimal daily caloric reduction for balanced (not overly restrictive) body fat burning! My results will determine what I may need to change from week to week.
3. You know I’m a big fan of Intermittent Fasting. It really helps me maintain my weight, it’s freeing and it feels good digestively and mentally – FOR ME (it’s not for everyone!). By tapping into my “fasting muscle” a little more consistently – having my 2 satiating meals a day with no snacks, I gain more of these metabolic benefits. When I get hungry or crave something I just have water, seltzer or tea.

Hunger and satiety hormones adapt fairly quickly if you give it a few days. You learn to observe the urges to eat and let them pass without stress the more you practice. Eventually the urges lessen and fade away.

Stay tuned! I’ll be sharing all of my progress, insights and experiences, tips and tools along the way. The insider emails will have more of the personal details, worksheets and bonuses, so be sure to subscribe, follow me on Facebook and Instagram and tune into my Facebook Live on Tuesdays, Noon EST – ask all the questions you want here, there or wherever you find me!

xo,

Ev