When was the last time you regained some weight and struggled to get back on track? Does weight regain make you feel out of control and like you can’t manage it?
In this episode I am talking about weight regain, how it impacts everyone at some point in their weight loss, and how you can manage it so that it doesn’t suddenly feel so out of control that you don’t know where to start.
A couple of episodes ago I talked about weight related shame, and often this goes hand in hand with weight regain. Sometimes the shame around your weight might make it feel like it is your fault that you have regained weight. Or like you have done something wrong. This shame makes it more difficult for you to get a handle on the weight regain so that you can get back to losing weight.
So how do you manage the feelings around weight regain so that you can get back on track? You have to be willing to look at it and take a different approach.
We’ve been taught in diet culture that if you are regaining weight then you are doing something wrong. And these beliefs influence the tiny little food decisions that make it so that the weight gain continues.
When you are taught how to lose weight you are often taught how to diet or how to start a diet, but you are not generally taught how to maintain weight loss. Maintaining weight loss is very different from losing weight. It takes working on a mindset. When you’re in a mindset of chaos it will be difficult to find control over your weight gain. But, once you are able to take control of your thoughts and find yourself in a more positive and confident mindset you will be able to address the weight gain and shift back into weight loss.
It won’t always be easy. Learning to use these tools to address the mindset takes practice and it might take you some time to resonate with this concept. But, once you are able to look at the weight regain from a place of non-judgment and make the necessary mindset shifts you will find more ease.
There are a few things I want you to know about weight regain:
- Weight regain is not failure. This is a thought that you need to be rid of. You haven’t done anything wrong and weight regain is to be expected throughout your experience.
- Weight regain is multifactorial. If you lose a significant amount of weight, there are different things that happen in your body that make it more likely that you will regain weight. This doesn’t mean you will regain weight, but it’s possible.
- Weight regain is an opportunity. It’s an opportunity to make your life better. Especially when the regain happens as a result of a missing tool, the regain is an opportunity to address that missing piece for longer term maintenance.
Remember, you need to like the methods that you use to lose weight in order to maintain weight loss long term.
Here are a few of my favorite tips for managing weight regain:
- Leave judgement at the door. There’s no room for negativity here.
- Start a food journal. Track what you eat, when you eat it and what drives you to eat that particular food. This can help you get a better handle on where issues might be arising. Be sure to do this in a self-loving way that is a data gathering tool and not a self-shaming tool.
- Address non-food drivers like sleep, stress, new medications you might be taking.
- If you do find micro inconsistencies in your eating, look at the drivers. As yourself, “what is going on that leads me to reach for food in these situations? What am I believing in these moments that lead to these choices?” Get curious as you address these.
Look for ways that you can support yourself and make this process as simple as possible. Remember, it doesn’t always have to be difficult. How can you make it simpler?
Listen to the full podcast episode to learn more about managing weight gain so that you can focus on getting back to losing weight.
In this episode.
- How to mange weight regain and get back to losing weight.
Recent Comments