Body

False optimism…

Every summer growing up I had this idea that I was going to diet myself down to a size zero. My finish line was a skinner, happier me. I started walking in the mornings and eating healthy food every first Monday of the week. It always lasted until around 7 pm when everything broke and I just felt deprived and quite honestly miserable for not being allowed to eat sugar. In my head, I made up all these plans of how I was going to get back on track and finish my diet but I never did. When I gave up this is what I said to myself; I tried that and it didn’t work and I went back to the couch feeling sorry for myself stuffing my mouth with chocolate and crisps.

In my mind, I had made up these pictures of myself being hardcore and running every morning and eating a restricted diet. False optimism and it is when you use positive thinking without actually trusting that you can achieve a goal. I trust my ability to accomplish the goal but lack the trust in myself and that made me fail every time.

I like to think that I hit the pause button and that I can just restart everything when I am ready but motivation can only come when you take action, it doesn’t hit you in the head while you are dreaming. It is about making bold choices, being determined and choosing to get up every time we fail. They say seeing is believing, but the reality is we need to believe it first in our minds in order to be able to see it with our eyes.

false optimism

I know what I have to do but why is it so hard to do it?

The truth is I feel good when I am eating healthy and exercising. I feel my body vibrate and my cells actually feel alive. So why do I always stop and why do I go back to my old habits?

Fear usually stops me when I am going through a change and I feel like I am going to be missing out on something if I change my lifestyle. That is why it is so important to have the right kind of mindset before you start a new diet. It took me a while to learn this and I still struggle with it a lot, but the bottom line is you have to keep the right attitude.

The mindset of a winner is to never give up. Realistically you should prepare yourself for hard times and know that there will be struggles. Shit will hit the fan. The key to success is to know what to do when that happens. Decide how to react from that in order to move forward. That is the only way to get to the finish line.

Today my focus is on eating good food that gives my body the right kind of nutrients and energy. I exercise to feel good and to get those nice endorphins running through my body. My goal is to have a strong body which in return gives me a healthy mind. I eat a plant-based diet and my exercise routine is a combination of yoga, cardio, and muscle-toning. To my younger self who was so obsessed with the numbers, I would say start with loving yourself and everything will get easier.


Have you tried to diet and did you succeed? I would love to hear your stories about weight-loss, your relationship with food and exercise. How did you overcome difficult times? Leave a comment below if you feel like sharing.

Love,

Pet

I practice yoga. I eat organic food. I write.

6 Comments

  • Emmanuel Buysse

    Great post and good info.

    I was in this position that you are now, but strangely enough i found both the optimism by one person.

    Deep in myself.

    Anyway, I really am inspired by your post and I’m sure plenty of other people in this situation will be.

    So many thanks for sharing it, because this will help people!

    • Pet

      Hi Emmanuel!

      Thank you for your kind words! 

      We often look outside of ourselves to find motivation but forget that we are the only ones who have it in us to actually do the change. My hope is that we can hold on to that in all situations. 

      Love,

      Pet

  • Daniel

    I must thank you for this helpful but also emotional article Pet. I completely understand you because I had the same problem 2 years ago. I was fat boy trying to lose some pounds but my bad habits always beat me up. I think that it is the mindset and that we should change our mentality because we are in control and we are giving the orders to our body and not the opposite.

    • Pet

      Hi Daniel! 

      Yes! It is like you say, we are the only ones who can decide to do it and change our habits. Nice to hear that I am not alone in all of this.

      Love,

      Pet

  • pmbaluka2016

    Hi Pet,

    Personally, I come from a background where I used to eat a lot of natural food  from the garden and always work hard after schools in the same garden. My dad trained me to always wake up very early, do some garden chores and do the same in the evening after school. This kind of lifestyle couldn’t allow any involvement for Yoga, jogging or gym sessions. I mean my duties were more than enough.

    Five years ago I left home and now am living in a totally different environment and I was forced to enroll gym sessions and due to my weight control, I’m following a certain plan from my gym instructor and everything seems interesting. I’m liking the routine all the way and I would like to maintain it even when I go back home.

    Thank you for this wonderful article. How does Yoga for men look like? Do you have any materials you can recommend? I’m planning to start on it soon.

    Paul.

    • Pet

      Hi Paul!

      Thank you for sharing your story. Yoga for men is no different than the yoga for women. There is a lot of free videos on youtube. I recommend you start with Yoga with Adrienne. Give it time and your body will thank you. 

      Love,

      Pet

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