The Journey to a Healthier, Happier You

What we are talking about here isn’t just losing weight. It is, believe me, about giving yourself a whole new life. It really is that big, my life is completely different to how it used to be when I was over four stone heavier. With a new body, because that’s what it will be, a brand-new body, comes a completely different outlook on life. I can’t begin to explain the energy and the confidence it brings. The problem is when you’ve lost weight and found the new you, it’s hard to remember what it was like being so much heavier. When you lose weight, it would be really good to go back and live in your old body for a day, just to see and feel how rough it really was. You quickly forget how unhappy you were, being embarrassed about your size and having to cover yourself over.

This is lifechanging. Losing weight, getting a new you could be the most positive thing you’ve ever done. It gives such an amazing message to other people, you are fit, you are slim, you look after yourself. We are talking about changing your life and when I think back how I used to be, I wouldn’t want to swap. How good was that previous life, compared to this one? Not good at all. Are fish n chips really that brilliant? Slices of pizza, bars of chocolate, being out, getting drunk regularly? Was it good? Is it good? Ok, it may give a bit of instant gratification, but the cost is immense, and the guilt is difficult to deal with as well.

We know in our hearts what is hurting us, what is making us unhealthy and bigger, how good are those things really? Is going without a mars bar, a sticky cake, that tough a price to pay for a slimmer, fitter, happier, confident you? Mate, give up the takeaways, stop the snacking, reduce the boozing, give yourself a new life. I’m serious, be the person you deserve to be.

Finding a New You

I was overweight and you reading this, I’m guessing would like to lose weight. Firstly, we should consider who we are right now. Moreover, give serious thought to what made us overweight in the first place. Let’s have a good think, let’s work like television detectives and look for the clues. We can get there; we can figure it out. What is it we have been doing that has made us unhappy with how we look? Now we’ve figured it out, we have to stop doing those things, right? There is no way we can carry on doing the things that made us overweight and manage to lose weight! Please, please let’s be absolutely clear about this, there is no magic trick, there is no pill we can swallow, there is no injection, there is no way of carrying on our old lifestyle and losing weight. That is impossible, please make sure you fully understand this.

We have to wave goodbye to the old you, we have to embrace the new you. We have to unlearn all the habits we’ve picked up over the years and we need to re-educate ourselves into new habits. Motivation will give us a good start; good habits will keep us going in the right direction. The motivation comes from wanting change, to being unhappy enough with how we look to want change. That gets us going. That’s the push we need to start, that won’t last, making good choices constantly they become habits. Those habits will last and stay with us. I used to drink nearly every day.

I used to snack on chocolates and crisps, I used to regularly phone for takeaways. They were only habits, I wasn’t addicted to any of them, they were simply habits. I found alternatives, I found strategies for dealing with the want for bad food to the point where I don’t even think about healthy choices now, they just naturally happen. I don’t think, shall I order a curry or grill myself a piece of meat, it naturally happens. I don’t ever think, oh, I fancy a chocolate bar, I naturally grab for a ripe pear. I no longer think, oh, let’s open a bottle of wine every night, what I think is, can I sit somewhere quietly and enjoy a book. I do hope all of this makes sense, you just had to unlearn the old you, the old overweight you and relearn the new you, the new slim confident you.

Key Takeaways:

1. Losing weight is not just about physical change, but it also brings about a new outlook on life, boosting energy and confidence;

2. To achieve weight loss, it's crucial to identify and stop the habits that led to weight gain in the first place, replacing them with healthier habits; and

3. Believing in oneself and visualising a slimmer, healthier future self is a powerful motivator in the weight loss journey.