How to think positively

jkd32
jkd32 Posts: 11 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Many of us think in terms of the negative things that surround our lives. This way of speaking to yourself can be very hurtful, particularly if you are trying to achieve a goal.

An analogy would be that basketball players think about putting the ball in the basket. They might miss thousands of times but that is never what they focus on.

In terms of dieting and weightloss we may say that we are fat, lazy or just not disciplined.

A really useful exercise is to create affirmations. This is a statement that uses positive language to motivate instead of focusing on the negative.

An example might be:

I will prepare my food for tomorrow and enjoy the salad that I have made. I am capable of being successful and each day I will exercise, even if that means just taking the stairs or parking a little further from work.

When you start to think in more positive terms you can consider yourself something like a manager of a bank. Each day counting each deposit your customers have made no matter how small and you will start to pick up momentum.

I hope you find this helpful and would love to read some affirmations of your own.

Replies

  • CollieFit
    CollieFit Posts: 1,683 Member
    I neither do "positive affirmations", which to me feel really fake and contrived, but I also don't do this mental self-flagellation you mention either.

    For me the type of thinking that works best is being "rational".
  • jkd32
    jkd32 Posts: 11 Member
    Do you use a more scientific approach where you accept certain outcomes of not being successful as part of an experiment? Then learn from your failure? I would like to learn more about your "rational" approach.
  • myheartsabattleground
    myheartsabattleground Posts: 2,040 Member
    You forgot "These tips won't work for someone with doctor diagnosed depression. If you self diagnose, you're stupid and belong in a mental institution."
  • CollieFit
    CollieFit Posts: 1,683 Member
    With rational I mean having realistic expectations, accepting that not every day will go as planned, understanding that one mishap does not have to mean disaster, understanding that certain weight fluctuations are natural, understanding the simple principles of calories in & calories out and doing the maths.
  • ncboiler89
    ncboiler89 Posts: 2,408 Member
    CollieFit wrote: »
    I neither do "positive affirmations", which to me feel really fake and contrived, but I also don't do this mental self-flagellation you mention either.

    For me the type of thinking that works best is being "rational".

    Hail ya
  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
    CollieFit wrote: »
    With rational I mean having realistic expectations, accepting that not every day will go as planned, understanding that one mishap does not have to mean disaster, understanding that certain weight fluctuations are natural, understanding the simple principles of calories in & calories out and doing the maths.

    Science will set you freeeeeeee!
  • CollieFit
    CollieFit Posts: 1,683 Member
    A book a personally like a lot... For anyone else who is allergic to the "cult of optimism". LOL

    http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Antidote-Happiness-Positive-Thinking/dp/1847678661
  • endlessfall16
    endlessfall16 Posts: 932 Member
    CollieFit wrote: »
    With rational I mean having realistic expectations, accepting that not every day will go as planned, understanding that one mishap does not have to mean disaster, understanding that certain weight fluctuations are natural, understanding the simple principles of calories in & calories out and doing the maths.

    You are already doing some positive affirmation . :)

    Being completely rational should tell you that one mishap is one mishap. Not much else can draw from it. Anything can happen next. No?

  • CollieFit
    CollieFit Posts: 1,683 Member
    endlessfall16 wrote: »
    CollieFit wrote: »
    With rational I mean having realistic expectations, accepting that not every day will go as planned, understanding that one mishap does not have to mean disaster, understanding that certain weight fluctuations are natural, understanding the simple principles of calories in & calories out and doing the maths.

    You are already doing some positive affirmation . :)

    Being completely rational should tell you that one mishap is one mishap. Not much else can draw from it. Anything can happen next. No?

    No I meant that more in the sense of "when you have one flat tyre it makes no sense to slash the other three as well".
  • rosebarnalice
    rosebarnalice Posts: 3,488 Member
    I invented an "affirmation alphabet" as a way of keeping track of my swimming laps.

    It actually started as a quite rational response to a problem: I discovered that I couldn't keep a number in my head while swimming because my mind would wander and sooner or later I'd forget the number. But I could remember letters. My mind would still wander, but if I repeated an alliterative phrase like "go for your goals with grace and gratitude" or pursue your passions with patience and persistence" I at the beginning of a lap, I was less likely to forget which lap I was on.

    I've now got a whole alphabet of affirmations that I started using just to keep track of my laps but I now find myself recalling even when I'm not in the pool when I'm confronted with a challenge or stressful situations.

    I walked away from the fridge earlier today with the following tripping across my brain:
    "Flourish with fitness because food fetishes are fleeting".

    Hey, I didn't claim I was eloquent--just memorable!

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