It always fascinates and entertains me to hear the reasons why people decide to make a drastic change in their health. In the business I am in, I hear lots of reasons. The reasons range from the serious (just been diagnosed with diabetes) to the vain ("do these pants make my butt look fat?).
I have heard them all at one time or another. The most popular reasons that I hear are event-related. I get the panicked call that a high-school reunion, 40th birthday or daughter's wedding is three weeks away. I am not really sure why I don't get these calls six months ahead of time, especially when we are talking about losing 30 pounds (yes, I have been asked how one could lose 30 pounds in 3 weeks...thanks Biggest Loser!!)
By far the funniest weight loss 911 call that I have ever received was from a previous client whom I had not heard from in several months.. She had a frantic tone in her voice and she said that she needed to make an appointment ASAP. I asked her if she was ok because I could tell that she was clearly exasperated. Her response to me still makes me laugh out loud to this day. She responded to my question by telling me that she had just walked out of the building where she worked and saw a homeless man sitting outside (this is not the funny part). She walked past him and he said "Guuuuurl, I like that wagon you be draggin". She continued to tell me that not only was she unaware that she had a "wagon" but apparently it was "draggin". Needless to say, she was sitting in my office the following afternoon.
A quote that I absolutely love is “change occurs when the pain of making a change becomes less than the pain of staying the same.” The anatomy of change has always been of particular interest to me. Clearly the “wagon draggin” comment inflicted enough pain in my client to bring about change. It is interesting to a me that a snide comment from a homeless man has the ability to make one person run towards lasting change. Yet for another, it takes the menacing sound of the “chest cracker” being cranked up preceeding heart bypass surgery for them to commit to stop ordering foods that are scattered, smothered, covered and chunked.
Here’s hoping you take a good look at your “change threshold” today. Have a happy and healthy one!
Heather
This reminds me of the spring I went to Paris with a few friends....we were walking past an open market and some male street vendors yelled:
ReplyDelete"hey! American ladies come look at our leather coats!" I stopped and asked "how do you know we are American?"...."because", he answered , "fat women are always from America!". OUCH!
Whether, draggin our wagons, junk in our trunk or ships in our hips, it is past time for us to respond! The obesity epidemic in America is yet another example of a self indulgent culture who has a diminished ability for self control and self denial. I have struggled my entire life with compulsive overeating and have enjoyed some success and wept over failure. The good news is that we get more than one "straw" ! What propelled me to finally lose weight before may not be the same thing that propels me after a setback. The important thing is to never give up regardless of the pounds that are repetively lost, gained, lost, gained....you get the point. We only are defeated if we quit and I ain't quitten! Thanks Heather! You always inspire me!!!
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