I remember growing up in Detroit and looking forward to going to the State Fair every year. My day at the Fair was not complete until I had a corn dog, cotton candy and a ride on the merry-go-round. A smile crosses my face as I reminisce on how much joy it brought me and my family. Merry means to be cheerful and lively. I don’t know too many people who go to a State Fair and are in misery, yet many of us live on a misery-go round all year long. What does your experience of life feel like? Is it merry or is it misery?
Ask yourself why your life is where it is. Are you living the life you planned or are you off track? One of the most common reasons for feeling off track is when you try too hard to please others, become submissive or passive and stop honoring yourself.
Misery-go-round is a term for endless doubt. It makes you lower your self-worth and base the value of your life by the size of your body. You are not alone, society sends us the message that we are not okay as we are. One of our biggest doubts is about our bodies, we stress about our weight, our size, instead of our health and well-being. During the Fall and holiday season, commercials are filled with eggnog, honey baked hams, pies, soups, and pumpkin spiced lattes encouraging us to overindulge. Come January all the stores will have fitness clothing and equipment in front of the store ready for you to buy. Retailers know the number one New Year’s Resolution is, not to get healthy but, to lose weight. It’s as if they are setting us up for this misery-go-round and yes, most us fall for it every year.
We have made the dieting misery-go-round a “normal” way to be. It is a ride many hop on, seeking to be attractive and accepted and it keeps us going in circles:
When people focus solely on losing weight they stop trusting their bodies. From diet pills, gadgets, fads and gimmicks, Americans will spend millions of dollars on weight loss products each year. People often confuse losing weight with success or think it will magically transform their lives. As a fitness trainer, I see people lose weight and get into the best shape of their lives. However, if they didn’t acknowledge or start to work on the real issues plaguing them, the weight comes right back. They realize they remain as unhappy with themselves after losing the weight as they were when they were heavier. Basically, the pursuit of weight loss is more damaging than the weight itself.
Instead of focusing on weight loss we should focus on wellness; mental and physical. Understanding how to let go of things that led to the weight gain in the first place. Once we realize that accepting our bodies and learning to love ourselves is the first step to wellness the faster we will achieve long-lasting weight loss. When you do this your intentions shift to focusing on eating and sleeping well and then you feel merrier.
By implementing these changes, you will get off the misery-go-round of doubt and lead a more productive and peaceful life. You will feel more connected to yourself and break the cycle of thinking something is wrong with you and find your true purpose in life. No Mess!
