To Gain Or Lose Weight Is Only A Matter Of What You Believe
This article applies to people who want to put on weight as well as those who want to lose weight. I will use the example of someone who wants to put on weight first.
Yes, thin people (hardgainer) can gain and put on weight. Although you may be genetically programmed to be skinny and have a higher metabolic rate, I can assure you that you can gain weight. Only problem is are you sabotaging yourself?
As a professional fitness instructor, I am always amazed by the skepticism of my skinny clients when they contemplate about hiring me to help them gain muscle weight. During my initial consultation with such these potential clients, I am always dumbstruck by their negativity when they ask me questions such as :-
“I have been skinny all my life and have been eating more than other people and yet, don’t ever seem to be able to gain weight, what makes you think you can help me to put on weight?”
“All my family members are thin and that probably means that I am genetically programmed to be a hardgainer. So, are you sure that you can help me gain muscle weight? Is it healthy to go against my genetic predisposition?”
“I have experimented with many types of weight gainer supplements and have worked out with weights in the gym without gaining any muscles or weight, what makes you so sure you can help me put on weight?”
Although, I cannot blame them for being such pessimists because of the fact that they were really thin and had been trying to get fatter or more muscular many times but were disappointed again and again. However do take notice that it is also because of this type of negative thinking that could be the root cause of them not getting their desirable body weight.
As a fitness personal trainer, I am playing the role of not only training my clients to achieve their health benefits, but as a counselor as well. When I start to train them physically, and at the same time change their beliefs, and then when they start to see improvement on their physiques, you can see the overwhelming joy on their faces and the gratitude they show me. Yes, thin people can put on weight. You change your beliefs, you change your result.
Have you heard of the Law of Attraction? Simply put, the law of attraction means that you will get or be what you think or focused on. This is a very simplified definition but the point is made.
Every thought that you think has a meaning that you have attached to it represented by pictures and emotions which are just forms of energy. As you ‘think’ or talk to yourself (mental self chatter), your mind is defining these words simultaneously. Because we believe in the thoughts that we think and say to be our truths, our minds are continually working to find evidence to reinforce these beliefs whether the beliefs are true or not.
Henry Ford once said “If you think you can, then you can. If you think you can’t, then you are also right.” So, if you think that you can’t ever gain weight or muscles, then you can’t because after a few feeble attempts, your mind will tell you that it is difficult for you to put on weight and you gave up without searching for other methods to help you to achieve your weight gain goal.
Since our thoughts are energies and the law of attraction states that energy attracts similar energy, you will start to attract more of the same type of energy thoughts (negative thoughts) to you that will confirm what you are thinking. Here are some more self sabotaging thoughts that will prevent you from gaining weight.
“It is difficult for me to gain muscle”
“I will never have a body that I desire”
“I’ll never going to be able to put on weight”
You know what? These negative thoughts can be so imbedded into your subconscious mind that your body believes and obey every thought that you think!!
“It is well known by scientists that when a person has a thought, a chemical presence or reaction occurs, and neuropeptides, the chemical correlates of thought, become detectable. Neuropeptides not only are present in the brain but can also be found throughout the body, including the stomach, kidneys and liver. Thus a thought has a real embodied physical presence.” – Dr Fred Gallo, Ph.D and Harry Vincenzi, Ed.D
“very change in the physiological state is accompanied by an appropriate change in the mental emotional state, conscious or unconscious, and conversely, every change in the mental emotional state, conscious or unconscious, is accompanied by an appropriate change in the physiological state” – Dr Candice Pert, Ph. D.
“With sensitive EMG instruments, we can show that muscles are activated when we think about anything involving action or emotion, even though there may be no visible movement. Although we do not know how thoughts are generated in the brain, it seems clear that once present, thoughts are amplified by the brain and turned into actions. Every thought we think influences millions of atoms, molecules and cells throughout the body. Besides this straightforward effect on the physical body, we know from general principles of physics that any acceleration of electrons produces some electromagnetic radiation.” – Physicist and psychologist Dr Burl Payne, Ph.D.
The same can be said of fat people who want to lose weight. It is your mind that prevents you from gaining or losing weight. Once you have gotten past these negative beliefs, I can guarantee you that your success is just round the corner. I am saying this with conviction because I have helped many people succeed over their weight challenges.
It will be very difficult for fat people to become lean if they keep thinking about being fat and similarly, it will also be very difficult to gain muscle weight when you believe that you will not be successful doing so. If you want to change your body shape, you will have to change your thoughts. If you want to own a ripped and buffed body, then you have to start thinking exactly like what the people with ripped buffed bodies think!
Unfortunately, these negative thoughts may have been with you for such a long time and are deeply entrenched in your subconscious mind that even as you are reading this article, you may not believe what I am saying here. By being skeptical about this article is the result of your unconscious mind accepting your negative believes. Get the drift?
Yes, I admit that it is difficult to change these deeply entrenched beliefs because you have already convinced yourself that what you think is true. So in order to gain or lose weight, you have to change your beliefs regarding this issue. There are many ways that you can do this, such as through positive affirmations and creative visualizations as taught by many motivational gurus like Anthony Robbins and Brian Tracy.
Change your beliefs to change your destiny and in this case, to gain or lose weight.
