by Heather Robertson
Every journey needs a map
At a recent Weight Watchers meeting, we were discussing how weight loss is a journey. We all have a similar starting point and we all have the same end goal in mind: to reach our goal weight.
But then, somebody compared it to a treasure map. There’s a star to show where you began and a big “X” to mark the spot of your personal finish line. Between the two destinations is a long, winding road. It’s a path filled with many unpredictable (and predictable) obstacles.
This got me to thinking.
Often, especially when we’re first starting our own weight loss journey, or if we’re still not sure how to follow our own map, we might look at someone else’s map. We hope to get some idea of how they reached their destination. And we hope their path can help us better understand our own.
It’s true that we all have a similar starting point (to lose weight and get healthy), and the same end goal, but everything in between is drastically different. Why? Because no two people are the same.
We are all unique individuals. We have different pasts, and a different present. None of us really knows what the future holds, but you can be sure your future won’t be exactly the same as any one else’s.
So the idea that we’re all going to travel down the exact same road at the exact same time and in the exact same way is… well… it’s B.S., that’s what it is.
There’s only one right path
And that’s the path you create for yourself.
It’s the path you can live with. It’s the path that helps you reach your ultimate goal. And while you may have the beginning and ending of your map all laid out, it’s up to you to draw the line connecting the two points.
But how do you draw that line?
First, make sure you’re not spending your energy focused on other how successful other people are at losing weight. Why not take that energy and focus and use it to set and achieve your own goals?
Does that mean you can’t learn from someone else’s experience? No, of course not! Obviously, that’s the reason I started Half Size Me. I wanted to share what I and others have learned with you to give you hope and help as you travel along your weight loss journey.
But if you’re not taking action on what you’ve learned, if your not making those lessons part of your experience, then it’s doing you no good.
In my case, I wasted so much time cycling around the same mental “cul-de-sac” over and over again, never really getting anywhere. I spent countless hours and dollars, reading and listening to all the experts. And while I believe much of the information had value, I almost never put any of it into action.
Then one day, I had my “A-HA!” moment. I realized that if I wanted anything to change, I had to do things in a completely different way.
From that point forward, I sprang into action, And although it took time (almost five years to lose 170 pounds with stops and starts because of my three pregnancies), I finally reached the “X” on my own treasure map.
Focus on you and take action
You are the unique factor in your weight loss and weight maintenance experience.
There is no diet out there that’s unique. There’s nothing special or out of the ordinary about diets. Most of the diets around today are regurgitated from older diets. They may have a new name, or a new cover on the book. Maybe they’ve even thrown in a few new tips and tricks. But inside, it’s the same old story. Some will work. Some won’t.
That all depends on you, because you are unique, and what you bring to your weight loss experience is what makes the difference.
So, don’t beat yourself up if you and a friend started working out at the same time and she’s lost more weight than you. Don’t worry about what somebody else in the meeting room has accomplished. Just be happy for them. And don’t compare yourself to someone who has already reached the destination on their own map.
When you’re plotting out your goals, pound by pound, each one drawing you closer to that beautiful “X” at the end, remember, you draw your own map by doing the work. By taking action on your goals.
And by never, never, never giving up.