There’s a story about a group of monks who went down to a river at night, got in a boat, and began rowing as hard as they could. At dawn they discovered they had made no progress. They had forgotten to untie the boat. Focusing on your body and not your mind and spirit, you are like the monks tied to the dock.

 

Your eating habits and your desire (or lack thereof) to move your body is directed by… you guessed it, your mind and your spirit. I’ve often asked people who have set out on a weight loss journey if they would be happy if they made it to their goal weight but felt exactly like they did right then. Think about that. If you weighed what you thought you wanted and you felt exactly like you do right now, would that be enough? Most likely if you are being honest, the answer is no. So why are you so quick to ignore these other components and row as hard as you can while still tied to the shore?

 

I could answer for you: perspective.

 

Marketing plays a huge role in that, as well as societal pressures. You’re told over and over again that if you just weighed a certain weight or looked a certain way that your mind and spirit would follow suit. I can tell you from firsthand experience, that’s a lie. Yet you still put all of your focus on the physical body while putting the mind and spirit on the back burner. This is what actually causes your being “good” for awhile then “falling off the wagon”.

 

It’s not your willpower, it’s not that you’re lazy, it’s not that you have no self control. It’s that you have rowed and rowed only to reach daylight and realize you’re still tied to the dock. Here is some perspective for you: what if your physical body was a byproduct of the health of your mind and spirit? It would then stand to reason that weight loss should be put on the back burner. If you’ve ever reached for food to meet an emotional need, it would stand to reason that food is not the root of the problem. If you’ve ever felt disconnected, unlovable, unworthy, not enough… it would stand to reason that your body is not the root of the problem.

 

When you are ready, it’s time to untie the boat and push off into the deep, scary, unknown waters. Take a mind, body, spirit approach to your health and happiness. Begin first with the awareness and acknowledgement that you cannot focus on one without the others. Learn how to meet your emotional needs without food. Learn to use food and exercise in ways that honor your mind, body, and sprit. The water will be rough and sometimes choppy but each morning when daylight hits you’ll realize your rowing has taken you closer and closer to where you want to be, to who you are.

 

Let go of the edge,

Melissa