While many of my posts are fairly light-hearted and–I hope–make you laugh, this is a serious topic and one that I encourage you to take to heart. You’re more than your weight. No, I’m not saying that when you step on the scale you see 175 but in fact you’re 188. What I would really like to emphasize with this post is that as a person your identity is so much greater than whatever number you see on the scale.

Regardless of whether or not you’re losing weight on schedule, it’s important to remind yourself of all of your other achievements in life. I bet you’re a fantastic mom or dad, son or daughter, brother or sister, and that you work hard at your job.  And if you haven’t gotten a promotion lately, you’re probably due for one. You have a gut-splitting sense of humor and know how to put a smile on people’s faces. I’m sure some of you play musical instruments and speak other languages, and even though you’re not supposed to eat them anymore, you make phenomenal chocolate chip cookies.

When you’re in a program like Health Plus, it’s easy to evaluate yourself based on how much weight you’re losing. When you come in for an appointment and see that you’ve lost seven pounds, you feel like a million bucks. When you don’t lose weight it probably ruins your whole day, if not your whole week, which may make you feel tempted to give up. You don’t have to think about it that way though.  It’s not necessary to tie up your self-esteem with your weight loss. Let me put this another way: the reason you’re on the Health Plus diet is to be healthier, and if you’re eating right and exercising, you’re already improving your health whether or not you’re losing weight.  If you look better and feel better about yourself, that’s an extra perk, but not the main objective.

Our society glorifies thinness, and makes people who are overweight feel like they’ve done something wrong. These are messages that you should be actively fighting against when you watch TV, go to the movies or surf the Internet. You’re not coming to Health Plus because you’ve done anything wrong from a moral perspective. You’re not cutting calories to punish yourself. Again, the real goal is your health. But keep in mind that whether you weigh 100 pounds or 300, your weight does not reflect your worth as a person. You’ve got impressive skills and talents, and there are people in your family and circle of friends who love and appreciate you.  You are so much more than your weight!