Hate-Loss Challenge Update Week 4

Happy Thursday Everyone!  It is time for the fourth and final installment of the Hate-Loss Challenge that Ellen over at Fat Girl Wearing Thin has been hosting this month.  I would first of all like to give a huge thank you to Ellen for developing this idea and being the fearless leader who was so honest with all of us about her triumphs and struggles over the years.  It is amazing to me that she so willingly shares emotions and events in her life and has overcome so much to get where she is.  So, thank you Ellen.  You are amazing!

On that note I would like to tell you all what I have learned from this challenge and how I will try to incorprate these lessons and positivity into my life.  For starters, I would like to talk about the impact that being positive has had on my life.  I don't want to seem like I am little miss sunshine.  I certainly am not and I am also the first to admit that I am not always a Georgia peach :)  I will say though, that I think trying to be positive has helped me become the person that I am and has also helped me lose weight.

Truth be told one of my favorite movies is Pollyanna, the original with Hayley Mills.  It is no surprise that Pollyanna is in fact little miss sunshine.  I love that no matter how bad things were in her life she always found something to be glad about.  Yes, I know... life is not always glad this, glad that.  There are times that I am grumpy, irritable and possibly cantakerous.  However, I hope that when someone thinks of me they think I was generally a positive person with maybe a small dash or a sprinkle of occassional crabiness rather than a moody, difficult and negative person with a splash of joy. 

So, what is the point of this post?  I hope you're still reading.  Are you?  The point is that the hate-loss challenge has been a reminder to me to lose the hate.  That seems obvious, but seriously.  It is amazing what you CAN'T do and WON'T accomplish when you are stuck in rut, down on your luck and just plain negative.  Whether you are beating yourself up with "hate talk" or you are being short, negative or rude to others it doesn't really matter.  You aren't being productive.  You aren't accomplishing what you want to accomplish whether it is completing work, losing weight or any other daily task.  Chances are that you are dragging yourself and possibly others around you down with you.

If you really want to lose weight you must start with yourself first.  No one can make the choice for you to lose weight.  If you don't first try to make positive changes within it won't matter what you do on the outside.  Losing weight is about more than just watching what you eat.  It is also about what is eating at you and what you allow to bring you down.  The HL challenge has taught me that the most important thing in this journey of weight loss is me and how I approach this challenge.  Are there going to bad days?  Definitely.  Am I going to find things to dislike about myself along the way? Sure.  What matters the most is finding a way to keep going and to achieve a healthy body and life filled with positivity. 

Not everyone's level of positivity is the same.  Some people are highly positive while others are more subtle.  Find your level of positivity and live it. Do you want to be negative with a only splash of joy? Or, would you like to be positive with the tiniest pinch of occassional grumpiness?