Mantras are words and phrases which are repeated out loud, or silently to yourself. Think of a dieting mantra as self-talk.
A dieting mantra can be helpful when you’re trying to lose weight, because the mantra crowds out any negative thoughts you have and replaces them with positive thoughts.
Like affirmations, mantras can work for you to change your thinking, your beliefs, and your life. All you have to do is use them.
Using a dieting mantra
Dieting mantras can be used in several ways. You can use them as affirmations, forcing your thoughts to the way you will look and act when you have lost the weight you wanted. You can also use dieting mantras as cognitive challenges when you feel at risk of going off your diet for a big binge. Finally, dieting mantras can be used to ease anxiety that might prompt overeating.
Dieting Mantras: Affirmations
Nobody every goes on a diet because it sounds like such a fun thing to do. Typically, people who diet want to look better of feel better. During those days when you’re hungry enough to eat a table leg, though, it’s easy to forget why you’re putting yourself through the rigors of dieting. Affirmation mantras remind you of the prize you’re seeking.
Dieting mantras used as affirmations should always be stated in the present tense. Not, “I will be a size six in two months,” but “I fit easily into my beautiful new size 6 wardrobe.”
Examples of dieting mantras that are affirmations include:
“I look great, and feel great; I feel healthy, fit and energetic.”
“My clothes fit beautifully on my thin new body.”
…And so on.
The more energy you put into these positive affirmations, the less you’ll feel like blowing your diet.
Dieting Mantras: Cognitive Challenges
Cognitive psychology states that we create many of our own problems by holding fixed, untrue beliefs. Cognitive challenges are meant to make us stop and re-examine those beliefs. For instance, if you believe, “I have no willpower. I’ll never be successful on a diet,” the corresponding cognitive challenge might be, “Nonsense. You’ve stuck to your plan for three weeks. There’s no reason why you can’t hold out until you reach the weight you want.”
Other examples of dieting mantras that challenge false cognitions may include:
False cognition: I can’t bear to be so hungry.
Mantra: Hunger isn’t pleasant, but you’re in no danger of starving to death. Besides, if you’re hungry you can always have an apple or a slice of cheese or turkey.
False Cognition: I can’t stick to a diet for three months.
Mantra: You don’t have to stick to a diet for three months. You just have to stick to it for today.
…And so on.
Dieting Mantras: Calming Anxiety
People who eat only when they are hungry usually don’t become obese. It is people who eat for other reasons, for instance to calm anxiety or relieve boredom, that are likely to gain too much weight. Mantras can be used to calm the mood state that leads us to overeat.
Examples include:
“You are safe and comfortable. You don’t need food right now.”
“There are a great many things to do besides eat. Let’s think of three of them.”
“You’re not hungry, you’re angry at your friend. Why not call her up and talk to her?”
…And so on.
Because dieting mantras can change the way we think and feel about our world, they can be powerful weight loss tools.
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