September seems like a new beginning, an opportunity to get back on the right path, to be healthy and sporty, but above all to lose those kilos that you may have gained while relaxing in the summer. Once the school year begins and the children are already in school, the starting signal is given to try to create a rigorous routine, which most of the time has nothing to do with us or our lives. And as expected, it fails. With this failure, our self-esteem decreases and we feel frustrated, thinking about how little willpower we have. But what if what we impose on ourselves is destined to fail? What if the problem is your diet and not you? This is exactly what I want to talk to you about today: we don’t need any more gratuitous frustrations and, above all, we don’t need to cause you any more damage.
To start September on the right foot, the first thing to discard is that tendency to compensate for excesses and punish yourself and then, this time, “get serious”. Food is not a reward or punishment. The more you reinforce that message of redemption from the sins of gluttony, the greater the anxiety and desire for food will be.
Food must be adapted to our circumstances, and it is normal that on holiday it is not the same as when we are at work. Furthermore, if you travel, gastronomy is part of the trip: more in favor so that the food in August is not the same as on a rainy Tuesday in the office.
So get it out of your head that you deserve punishment now. They are simply different circumstances. Additionally, create habits that make you feel good and are sustainable in the long term. If not, there will also be frustration. And you won’t be the one to fail: it’s just that those habits left no room for life.
If you want to get started, I would say start with weekly meal planning. Having a roadmap is very helpful; Silence that mental noise with food, you won’t constantly think about what to eat and you’ll save time and money.
I won’t lie to you, making a menu for the week is very lazy and starting to cook I won’t even tell you. But it will take away your job during this. If you’ve never done it, don’t aspire to do it completely; It might be best to plan for a couple of days and then continue. Going little by little is a strategy that never fails to create habits. There is a widespread myth in food that if everything isn’t done perfectly it’s not worth it, and the reality is that the more perfect everything is, the less sustainable and more problematic in the long run.
If you continuously monitor your weight, you will change your eating behavior depending on the result you get. Let me explain: if you have lost weight, you will believe you deserve a reward and you will eat something to celebrate. On the other hand, if you haven’t lost or you haven’t lost enough, there are two options: either make more restrictions or raid the fridge. Ultimately, you will use food as a reward or punishment, and that is a far cry from having a healthy relationship. You should know that weight fluctuates continuously, especially in women with hormonal changes. So do yourself a favor: focus on changing habits and hide, or better yet, throw away the scale.
You might think that if you don’t weigh yourself you won’t know how your diet is going, but the truth is that there are many indicators that don’t show up on the scale: if you have more energy, if you feel better, if your digestion is easier, if you rest better, if you don’t spend the day thinking about food… All these parameters are more important than a number on the scale. These will encourage you to continue; The scale, however, will encourage you to throw in the towel.
Suddenly it seems like September arrives with a gym membership under your arm. Sport is important: we are not made to spend ten hours in front of a screen, but to find something that you like. The gym can be a very uncomfortable space if you don’t feel comfortable with your body, even a place you simply can’t enter because the spaces aren’t suitable for large bodies. Try to move from a pleasant place with an activity that you like, in which you see yourself in the long term, and not with an obligation that you want to be prohibited by the legal system.
Prioritize the activities you enjoy, even try the one you’ve always wanted. Now there are many sports facilities with free first class. It can also be a plan with friends to decide later if you want that activity to stay in your life.
Don’t expect to train every day: follow a progressive routine. The goal cannot be just the finish line, because in that case you will only experience frustration as soon as you are unable to respect the set pace. Strength training is important, but don’t just focus on that. The best exercise will be what you do, so find something to keep in your life and enjoy it.
September doesn’t need diets, but kind and sustainable routines that accompany you all year round.
