I know exactly how you are feeling.

You were excited and planned to eat healthy and avoid temptations over Christmas. You felt confident that this time you were going to do it: but the festive season settled in and you got a little too merry and threw all rationality out the window and just went with the flow and thought to yourself, “I deserve this”.

And can you guess what happened?

Those extra treats have turned into extra kilos…

And you may be feeling angry at yourself for being “weak” and giving in into those darn cravings.

Many of my clients tell me how frustrated they are with themselves and feel like they “failed” yet again.

What you’re feeling right now is very common. Not only have I experienced it, but in the past, I would arrive in the new year feeling disappointed and cranky with myself for gaining weight over the holidays, desperate to get the extra weight off! I even tried the quick fix diets, that of course never worked.

If you’re like most of my clients, you’d love the things that you begin this year to flourish and to grow into consistent habits, easy routines, and lasting results.

A lot of smart, capable women think that they can rectify their festive weight gain by finding that perfect diet or getting on the latest fitness craze, and this will make her healthy eating habits fall into place.

But you know full well, it’s not enough. 

The answer is, 99% of the time, that there’s a mindset issue that’s holding you back from solving your emotional challenges of weight loss FOR GOOD.

What if you could start 2019 by turning your “festive setback “into a powerful comeback? with your own unique plan for lasting weight loss that works even when you are busy and have a lot on your plate?

So, I thought I would do something a bit different today.I am not going to tell you what to eat or when to exercise, as you know all that already and I have written previously about this, lets instead focus on how you can build a powerful mindset so that all those behaviours become 2nd nature.

So HOW can you develop a powerful mindset and consistent habits and become the expert in positive, healthy habits so that you can ditch self-sabotage, emotional reactions and be consistent with healthy habits for good.

I am going to do something different here and Coach you through the process to master your thoughts.

Self-Mastery

“Self-mastery is that condition whereby your body is your servant and not your master”.

The definition of “Self-mastery “according to Collins Dictionary is:

“Self-mastery is the ability to take control of one’s life without being blown off course by feelings, urges and circumstances.” 

It doesn’t matter how successful we are, one thing I always hear from my clients is that they want to have control of their own being, being the master of their actions.

This requires working on your mindset and taking full responsibility for yourself including your actions and decisions which ultimately create your outcome.

“If it’s going to be, it’s up to me”

Working with a coach can help you understand and uncover the parts of your thinking that are unconscious so you can resolve the obstacles that may be holding you back.

Questions are a powerful coaching tool that I use to help my clients to create motivation and identify strategies to deal with their challenges and build a plan to get the results they want.

So below I haver outlined some steps that involve you using these powerful questions to think further down the line and set the scene for a 2019: Your Year of a Self-Mastery

1-Reflect & Review

Doing a review of last year and identifying how you want things to be different is a very powerful tool and below are some great questions to get you started.

Begin by giving yourself the gift of a half hour. Pull out your favourite notebook and ask yourself these questions and let them simmer over the next few days.

• What are you most excited to create and experience when it comes to your health in 2019?

• And how do you want this year to be different?

• What have you been thinking and/or feeling in 2018 that you don’t want this year?

• What are you ready to let go of?

• If you want it to be different, better, what will you do?

• What kind of person do you need to become to achieve that?

• What skills do you need to learn to become that person?

2-Plan Ahead

Planning ahead allows you to be deliberate with your actions and choices.

One key to achieving goals is creating habits and routines that make success inevitable. If you are taking the right steps, the results will follow.

• Your plan should have the right goals, incentives and make you feel motivated.

Ok, pull out your favourite notebook again, turn to the next page and start creating

A. Create a Plan for the year starting off with your vision

Ask yourself these questions:

• What is the outcome you want?

• Why is that important to you

Are there any special events or special dates coming up for you?

B.  How do you want to feel at this event?

• You may want to have more energy

• You may want to feel slim and sexy

C. In order to achieve the above and portray this image, what do you need to do on a regular basis? 

Ask yourself these questions:

• Given my schedule this week what specific goals can I set and achieve this week?

• What day and time would I be able to action it?

• What do I do next – what’s the action that will be my next step forward?

3- MASTER consistent behaviour 

I am sure that you know that Consistency is KING!

 I believe that consistency is the glue that holds everything together. But consistency can only be achieved once you have learned and practised your goal relevant behaviour.

Doing things consistently will help you develop your habit and carry it on. It will become second nature after a while but the below steps are essential to your success!

A. Accountability

When it comes to health, fitness and wellness, people are generally accountable only to themselves-and that often isn’t enough. With such isolation and anatomy, it’s easy for motivation, diligence, and follow through to slip.

The best way to achieve your goals is with a structured plan, accountability and support that EMPOWERS you to take charge and run your own life.

As a coach I support MY clients to navigate from point A to point B, where they are currently to where they want to be and provide accountability.

B. Morning and Evening Rituals 

“Part time behaviors produce part time results”

How to have a great day every day!

I start MY day on purpose – each day.

I am prone to anxiety, depression and have been diagnosed with ADHD.

How I feel each day really depends on how I start each day, move my body and the thoughts I choose to have, remember that your thoughts create HOW you feel.

1. I start by writing out my goals and why they are important to me,1st in the morning!

2. I get up early and do the physical moves(exercise) before I do anything else and this is because I know that moving my body wakes up my mind AND I can for focus and be super productive all day.

3. I reflect at the end of each day and practise gratitude

A. Every evening I reflect on the day and identify what went well and if there is something that I want to change I ask myself this magic question:

• ” How can I tackle this in a different way tomorrow?

B. I put my “Positivity Pants” on

• I grab my favourite notebook and write down at least 3 things that I am grateful for that day.

• This helps me end the day on a positive note and sets me up for the next day

Lastly celebrate on a regular basis with the focus on what behaviours have become consistent in your day to day life.

Now take ten to twenty minutes and sit down with your favourite notebook and jot down your reflections after reading this article.

• What can you learn from past mistakes ?

Remember that learning is a major accomplishment. When you choose to learn, instead of focusing on disappointment or guilt or frustration, you unleash an incredible source of power.

• Are you frustrated with running behind on your goals and not accomplishing them?

A lot of women are afraid to seek help because they think it means they are a failure. Perhaps you feel like you are capable and competent in so many areas, so you should be able to handle this on your own.

But as you’ve seen, you may know the process but how are you going to make sure that you follow it ?

If you would like help & support with finding healthier ways to nourish yourself and accountability to make sure you follow through, than contact me for a free 15-min mini coaching session.

It’s free. And it might change your life.

I am ready to do this. Let’s go!

Irena Geller

Emotional Eating Coach

BSc (Biomed), Cert IV (PT), Wellness Coach (Level 3)

I coach 35+ women to put down their fork and pick up their life.  If you want to end your struggles with excess weight, stress and self-belief, using your strengths and capabilities, book a free 15-minute mini-coaching session with me and I’ll show you how to transform your life.