You’ll Never Believe This Scientific Weight Loss Method: Thinking

For many of us expat women, summer has arrived. Sunshine. Beach. Adventures. The fantasies that got us through winter can finally become a reality.

How have you been prepping? A classic strategy to get beach ready is to keep a bikini photo on the fridge to visualise the target. And of course, as an incentive to resist fridge raids.

If you’ve used this method, I hope that you’ve got a backup plan - because it’s scientifically proven to fail. Researchers suggest that only focusing on our end goal signals to our subconsciousness that the journey there will be simple.

But inevitably, we will encounter challenges. When we do so without mental preparation, we quit. If our goal is to get fit, we give up on the healthy eating required to achieve it. I trust science on this one since I know how hard it is to keep a light mindset when the body is nothing but. A few years ago I was prescribed the wrong medication, which resulted in an insatiable appetite and weight gain.

I’m a big fan of positive thinking, but now, it felt like a joke. Affirmations about being fit and healthy were an outright lie since I attempted them while stuffing my face. (Luckily, I eventually got off the medication and slimmed down before my delusions drove me insane.)

The research indicates that instead of practising “wishful thinking” with bikini pictures and the like, we’re better off visualising the action necessary to achieve our goal. Because while we’re powerless over whether we’ll wake up one day looking like a Hollywood star, we choose what actions we take.

Focusing on what’s within our control is realistic and thus encourages us to stick to our commitment. The result: beach ready before we know it.

So what does your process towards your target weight look like? Eating low-carb lunches, drinking Bulletproof Coffee, running on the beach? Whatever your healthy habits, repeat them vividly in your mind. And get rid of those depressing bikini photos.