Copyright 2006 Carol Solomon

Has anyone noticed how easy it is to live in our (perceived) limitations and even more dangerously, to let ourselves be defined by them?

Last week, when I sent out my newsletter, I got 6 emails almost immediately thanking me for the information and letting me know how much my newsletter is appreciated (ahhh . . . the power of the internet).

I also got 1 email asking to be taken off my mailing list :(.

Now, my thoughts immediately went to the 1 person who didnt want to be on the list. Since I am used to this phenomenon, I quickly reminded myself of the 16,000+ wonderful subscribers (thats you) who choose to receive my writing and sometimes even write to me in gratitude (Thank you - I read and appreciate each letter :-).

If I have 6 Coaching sessions in a day and 5 are life changing and 1 doesnt seem to go anywhere (for whatever reason), what do I usually think about?

Of course . . . the 1 session that DIDNT go well.

The same is true for eating. If you have 5 good days and then you have 1 bad day, what do you do?

What do you focus on?

Who beats you up?

Its like the 5 good days didnt even existthey are completely erased by the 1 day that didnt go the way you would have liked.

This kind of thinking is what sabotages you and prevents you from getting back on track. It is easy to go into a downward spiral when you focus on the wrong thing.

It is much more dangerous when our THINKING gets out of control, than when our eating gets out of control.

If our eating gets out of control, there are opportunities to get back on track the very next minute, the next meal or even the next day. It is much more difficult to do that if your thinking spirals out of control as well.

If you manage your thinking well, you can minimize any damage done with your eating.

YOUR THINKING (combined with your healthy routine) is what can keep you on track and get you back on track when you lose your way. Most people, by the way, get off track FREQUENTLY and continually boot themselves back on the path.

BEWARE of generalizations!

Lets say you eat more that you planned at a party (and you are PLANNING, right?).

Dont make a broad generalization like thats it I have blown it I will never be able to lose weight . . . I might as well . . . (you know the rest)!

Instead, say something kinder to yourself like OK there were foods here that I hadnt planned on . . . or . . . I guess I got a little carried away tonight . . . I will get right back on track tomorrow!

LISTEN to what you are saying to yourself and dont beat yourself up.

Your strength lies in the power to change what you think and what you say to yourself.

No one can do that but you.

Heres to power thinking!

Carol Solomon

Carol Solomon, Ph.D. is a psychologist and personal coach who specializes in helping people who want to lose weight and eliminate food and weight issues.

By going from food obsessive to charge neutral (i.e. Did I eat today?), she became dedicated to making it easy for others to step off the vicious cycle and live free of anxiety about food and weight.

She is the author of "Lose Weight Now Stay Slim Forever," a practical "how-to" manual for learning to lose weight without dieting.

Sign up for her free email newsletter, Slim Forever at her website.