Lies Our Brains Tell Us

DittoDan

I was posting on my wall, the lies our body's brain tells us. You know, usually it says you can't do something, but if you persevere and override what it tells us, you find out it lied to you. Most of my body's lies come from the years of training it got from when I was 330 pounds and a carbage eater. At that time, most of the things I list below, were true. But now that I have lost the weight, my mind still lives as though its in a body 130 lbs. heavier and still eating carbs.

Lies Our Brains Tell Us

Mind lies: Says that I can't water fast, too hard, you'll starve to death, impossible.
Reality: its not that hard. Keto preps you to fast. (But carbs won't let you fast easily).

Mind lies and says walking anything more than 50 yards is going to wear you out.
Reality: No, its not, you've unhooked that train behind you! Walk, its good for you and you can do it.

Mind lies: See that pretty, single, woman, forget her, you're fat, she would never consider you for a date.
Reality: I don't know, but suspect I'm getting closer than I was 14 months ago.

I know others have similar experiences, please share.

Thank you,

I hope this helps,
Dan the Man from Michigan
Keto / The Recipe Water Fasting / E.A.S.Y. Exercise Program
Current weight: 194.9, 119 pounds down, 16 to go. 14 months on diet

totaloblivia

What I've found over the last few years is that your mind produces thoughts naturally. It's important not to set too much store on what your mind comes up with. It's like it's almost a random thought producer, sort of spitting out thoughts til you find one you attach to. The important thing is to be picky about which thoughts you attach to.

I agree with you that the mental aspects of weight loss are perhaps the most important thing. Back in January, I wouldn't have believed I could lose 3 stone relatively painlessly, but I knew I had to try. Now I am struggling with the idea that I should keep going and lose another 2 stone. My thoughts/mind lies are: you've done enough already, you couldn't really be properly slim, you won't be able to make it etc etc. It's important we recognise these as lies - as you say, the reality is, I don't know til I try.

robosphere

I used to think that the brain was the most wonderful organ in my body. Then I realized — well, look what's telling me this! - Emo Philips

daylitemag

My brain is definitely my worst enemy. I have ADD and it makes it hard for me to stay focused on eating properly. It is far too easy to get side tracked and almost accidentally end up eating the wrong things.

Sunny_Bunny_

daylitemag wrote: »

My brain is definitely my worst enemy. I have ADD and it makes it hard for me to stay focused on eating properly. It is far too easy to get side tracked and almost accidentally end up eating the wrong things.

I have ADD too and even though I'm still taking my Adderall at the moment, I plan to cut my dosage at my next check up because I think the presence of ketones has made a difference. I am now looking into some other supplements that are supposed to help as well. I have come to believe that the symptoms of ADD are most likely caused by diet, and vitamin/mineral deficiencies. I have just added fish oil and got a better magnesium supplement than I had been taking. The biggest problem is trying to figure all this stuff out on my own since doctors just want to prescribe meds and don't consider other factors. I feel like I would be better off with a naturalist but doubt my insurance would cover it.
Anyway, on point with the thread, my mind has been telling me that I am not making progress as far as weight loss goes, but it's just not true. I have to get more comfortable with the fact there will be weeks with no obvious signs of progress at this point, but progress is still being made. I may not see anything for weeks, but I know that when I look back at November, come January, I will see it more clearly because I was just looking back at what I thought was an unproductive September and October, and I realize it was a completely reasonable amount of progress to my goal. I'm close... I have to keep reminding myself that.

slimzandra

I'm so glad you posted this. I am now dealing with a mental weight loss block. From 2010-early 2015 I was steadily gaining an unusually large amount of weight. I call it my extra PSTD pounds. I was going through an particular difficult period in my life and had never been that heavy in my 50+years.

As of today, I managed to finally get back to my prior "high" weight and now entering the phase of re-losing the weight I've lost before. During my LCHF WOE I've been able to steadily drop one pound a week. I thought that this is reasonable since this was weight that I shouldn't have had anyway and it never part of my 'normal' weight loss struggle.

Coincidentally, this weekend I found an old WW chart from 2007-2008 where I was starting then, at that same weight I am this morning and at approximately the same time of year. On WW it took me over 16 weeks just to lose 5 pounds. I know that was a completely different WOE, but frankly, I'm scared of what the next few months will bring.

My hope is to lose 5 pounds in 5 weeks and keeping doing what I have been doing. My mind knows that this WOE is so much better for me than what I was doing on WW. I'm not starving or exercising like a manic. I also haven't yo-yo'd on this WOE, but seen steady results without feeling I was "dieting".

My mind is lying to me that these next future loses are going to be harder, and that I won't see the same results I've been experiencing.
Reality is that a pound is a pound, and that there shouldn't be a reason why if I continue what I'm doing now it won't continue to work for the next 5, 10, 15..

My mind is telling me that I'm getting closer to my goal weight (Reality, I'm not that close, I'm still 40 pounds away) so I shouldn't expect to be able to lose weight because I wasn't able to lose it in the past and I just gained back everything I lost before. I feel as though I'm at a mental crossroad. Before, that was just fluff pounds, now this is the battle.
Reality is tomorrow will come and go and I need to seize each new day as I've been doing. Don't be afraid of the future but embrace today.
In reality, I did lose these particular pounds before, so it IS possible. I also didn't have the tools like MFP and this group to support my efforts in the past. Hoping that in this reality ---This time it will be different.

deksgrl

My mind used to tell me that I couldn't live without bread, pasta, etc. It lied.
My mind used to tell me that I would never lose the excess weight, that being 10,20,30,40 pounds overweight was normal over a certain age. It lied.
My mind used to tell me that being on a diet was miserable. It lied.
My mind used to tell me that I would always have a beach ball belly. It's going away!
Uhm, I'm sure there is more, but that's all I got for now.

cynlyn2010

I understand what you mean. When I look in the mirror, my mind still sees the extra 80 plus pounds I was carrying around. I have found that taking a full length photo and comparing it to "before" photo shuts my brain right up.