What we think governs the way that we talk to ourselves. When we tell ourselves that we cannot do something it many times stems from some form of negative thinking. Changing this way of thinking is a major way to combat the negative self talk.

The first thing to destroy this negative thinking is to set realistic obtainable goals. Your long term goal to lose 90 pounds (this is how much weight I have set as my goal) is a realistic goal. To say that I will lose it in 6 months is an unrealistic goal. 1 to 2 pounds a week, even though slow is a realistic goal, especially if you are not just trying to lose weight but you are changing the way that you think about food so that you become a healthier more interject person, losing weight is only a by product of that.

Now any thinking that interferes with obtaining that goal must be eliminated. We might think that we need a diet pill or a special program and that every program that we have tried has failed there fore whatever we try next will too. If we labeling ourselves as a failure or as lazy that we can’t do this, or that it is too hard. How about I come from a family who is overweight there fore no matter what I do I will be fat. Another negative thinking pattern can come from an all or nothing agenda. This is how someone with this thinking pattern may talk to themselves. Monday you are at a birthday party and there is cake. You have a piece of cake, no problem. Then you say well I already had one I might as well have two. Well now I already blew it today I might as well eat whatever the rest of the week. Then you think well since I am going to start eating better next week I might as well binge this week and get it out of my system. Some of these thought patterns are so ingrained we don’t even realize they are part of what we fall back on to justify our self talk.

I learned all these strategies from the book The Ultimate Weight Solution The 7 Keys to Weight Loss Freedom by Dr. Phil McGraw