About five years ago now, I had gastric banding. You don't need to spend thousands of dollars on gastric banding. I have lost over 100 pounds, but it wasn't just the physical band that helped me, I had to change my way of life.
I had a lot of emotional eating issues. There is really only one secret to absolutely permanent weight loss -
1. Learn to love and respect your body.
Why should you love and respect your body? You have only got one, it is the vehicle that you are transported around the earth on, and the tool for which you accomplish everything that you desire upon this earth.
Looking after it will make you feel better within yourself. Eating well and doing gentle exercise will get the weight off (don't rush it) and essentially you will begin to enjoy being in your own body.
Do the best you have with what you have got.
Treat yourself with respect - I believe God made me and loves me -
1 Corinthians 6:20
"You were bought with a price, therefore glorify God in your body and soul, which are God's."
The first commandment is to love God. The second one is to love our neighbour as we love ourselves - so many people have trouble loving themselves, they they can't love others easily. Those of us who have responded to being loved ought to share a little encouragement.
Believe me - you are loved - and you are worthwhile. Give yourself a hug or some flowers if nobody around you is, and celebrate the wonderful individual that you are.
I just want to share some other simple tips with you that I have picked up along the way:
1. Eat plenty of fresh fruit and veggies, and drink plenty of water. If you don't like the taste, sneak veggies into your meals as a sauce, or drink veggie juice - eventually you will get a taste for it. If you like fizzy soda - drink soda water, with a twist of lemon or lime. Eventually you will lose the taste for the sugary stuff.
2. Reduce the size of your dinner plate. My stomach had been overstuffed so much that it was very hard for me to diet - so now I don't "diet" - I have permanently changed my way of life. If you slowly reduce the amount of food you serve yourself, and eat protein at each meal, you will feel fuller for longer. I serve myself on a bread and butter plate. Also put your fork and knife down in between mouthfuls. You will eat slower and allow your body to turn on its full signal properly.
3. Get sleep. If you are sleep deprived, your body and brain will crave junk food. If you can't sleep, see your doctor.
4. See your primary health care practitioner for a regular check up and to get some good health pointers. See your healthcare practitioner to also get clearance to exercise if you need to.
5. Do some gentle exercise to reduce your stress, and to help you sleep. It also helps with weight reduction. I find that doing PraiseMoves as exercise really helps me. I also look for more incidental opportunities to do exercise. I park the car at the back of the parking lot so I have to walk further, I take the stairs, I get up and hang out my laundry. I do my own gardening. In the beginning I was so heavy that the best exercise for me was walking up and down the lanes of a pool. Be gentle with yourself. The weight will come off as you make slow, permanent change.
Stress is not good for trying to lose weight, as stress causes cortisol, a hormone which causes the retention of fat in areas like the stomach. As I reduced my stress, I lost weight as part of the process.
I have put more of my weight loss and stress reduction journey into my ebook, The Savvy Little Guide to Stress Reduction.
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