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Think Light, Feel Right! How to be healthy and be your ideal weight.

Body | August 27th, 2008 by Carrie McCarthy

I don’t feel myself. To look at me you wouldn’t  think  “she looks fat and fatigued”. However Perimenopause, years of fertility drugs and lack of consistent exercise has caused me to feel weak and tired, padded with an extra blanket of me.  Believe it or not when I go shopping for clothes my arms get tired from going through racks, I used to be able to do 50 push ups!!

In my brain I am still an  athlete, with the same amount of food coming in however very little energy is going out. In the last six years I have gained 25 pounds. I have lost some but tend to yo yo with my weight and fitness.  So no more winging it for me, I’m gathering all my wisdom, common sense and athletic training to guide me to feeling light and healthy. 


This is the beginning of a series of blogs I am going to write on my journey to lightness!! This is my commitment, join me in asking yourself these critical questions: “How do I want to feel? What’s my definition of healthy?”

How do I want to feel?

I want to feel light, strong and supple. (This is a great time to let go of how much you want to weigh, I am working on this)

What’s my definition of healthy?

Raise my quality of life (no headaches), do daily activities with ease, feel vibrant, run and do yoga five times a week. 

First Step to Feeling Light

Think light, believe you are light. Tonight begin a ritual before bed declaring ten times,

“I feel light”

What we think is what we manifest in our lives. Many experts say it takes about six weeks to cultivate a good habit. I encourage you to be kind and patient with yourself this isn’t a diet it’s a commitment to how you want to feel in your body.

Next time Energy in Energy out.

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Viewing 14 Comments

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    I'm looking forward to hearing about your journey, Carrie. Focusing on feeling good and moving toward healthfulness, instead of feeling "skinny" and moving toward weight loss as my primary targets, has made all the difference in the world for me. (Not that I have it down pat; I still have to sit myself down for a pondering sometimes to get my priorities back in line. But overall, I'm getting there.) I've got PCOS, and I'm overweight. But a huge battery of blood tests and physical condition tests have demonstrated, year after year, that (in my doctor's words), "On paper, you're an athlete. This is what doctors want to see in a patient's file." It's just that I don't look anything like I always believed a healthy and athletic woman would look like. I don't wear the size I believed a healthy and athletic woman would wear. It's been only in the past few years that I've come to realize that if I stop lamenting the lack of weight loss and focus instead on the beauty that is my ability to do a stellar triangle pose in yoga, and to perform perfectly executed push ups, and to move furniture all by myself because my legs are crazy strong... well, I feel light, strong, and supple, even if my appearance doesn't match what I expected "light, strong, and supple" to look like. So maybe it was my expectation that needed adjusting, not my weight. anyway, I'm really eager to hear about your own journey and discoveries and tips along the way. Journeys toward overall wellness are inherently individual and unique and fascinating! Good luck!
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    Danielle, I encourage and honour your new thoughts on this. Your story echoes my own, including the fertility drugs and all they bring emotionally and physically, and what they don't bring, the child desired. Referring to the "drugs" and sometimes forgetting they are hormones can dull one's awareness of the impact on parts of the body, and mind, not directly associated with reproduction.
    I am also looking for the athleticism identified in my past. It does take physical work, but as you and Marissa write, awareness comes first, must be iterated, and is key to success. I am focussing on flexibility, energy renewal, and weight management. It all seems very slow sometimes, at others I feel I can take on the world. The Olympics are always inspiring, but I don't really need to eat after "they" race. I am becoming aware of other reasons I am eating, particularly fatigue (energy in, no energy out).
    I am looking forward to hearing about your journey. Disappointment may strike for moments here and there, but you love to run, and it's in your blood along with desire and awareness for a high quality of living. That mood will be a partner running with you, stretching, and celebrating movement in every step. Try not to judge yourself too harshly; we seldom see a complete picture of ourselves at any one time.
    Many words (says my self-critical voice). Much support for your current and future achievements.
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    Sorry Carrie.... It's not like I don't know Carrie from Danielle!
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    Marissa,
    That is very well said! I applaud you for working towards appreciating who you are and the accomplishments that you have done. You are setting a great example for the rest of us.

    I grew up with a really distorted body image - I've always been 15 - 20 pounds overweight but in my mind it felt like much more. I've finally realized that if I focus on living and not obsessing over my weight I'd be healthier, happier and probably lighter too!

    I wish you well in your journey.
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    Carrie,
    I look forward to following your journey and appreciate that you are sharing it with us.
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    I am with you Marissa about adjusting our expectations, it's not about how I used to look but how I want to feel. Bravo for doing a stellar triangle pose, moving furniture and for being kind to your self.
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    I am also learning to be aware of the reasons I eat, other than to fill my tank. Thank's Janet for sharing and your support.
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    you are welcome!
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    Carrie:

    You go, girl!! I'm on this journey with you.

    After discovering my style statement (Refined Vitality) this summer, I realized just how wrong my extra 30 pounds of chub was for me. My whole life I'd been all about 'thoughtful presentation.' and I let it slide over the last 5 years because I thought I needed a more matronly appearance to make up for my lack of nuturing skills! Praise be to you and Danielle, I've realized I bring my own unique spin to the parenting game. For me, I needed to envision not only how I wanted to feel (Thoughtful Presentation), but what purpose the pudge and fatigue served in my life.

    I look forward to your updates.
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    Carrie, I'm so excited you're doing this! Thank you. You always look vivacious and incredibly svelte to me but I know how it can feel painful not feeling the same on the inside how you may appear to others on the outside...
    I love the idea of being patient with ourselves, ignoring what a scale says, and never "dieting"...what liberation! Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us, I so look forward to your next article! I'll be growing (or should I say shrinking) along with you.
    With love,
    Natasha
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    Carrie, You should be aware that everyone I know that has seen your photo thinks you look great, and much younger than you are - most people are shocked to hear your age. That said, your feeling tired, fatigued and "padded" remind me of snapshots of myself at different times and ages. At some point I recognized that my athletic lifestyle had became inconsistent, and fluctuated when other responsibilitiesor interests took priority. I needed to identify what level of activity/movement my body required and absolutely craved in order to be my strongest, healthiest self at every age. I have a theory that those of us that trained our bodies at a high intensity when young established a "set" point for maintenance that is difficult to keep up through all of life's events and stresses, and have to say that I personally need to consistently dedicate a fair amount of time to the cause. I've often kidded that retirement would be a great time to be a full time athlete! I've discovered that hours of sitting to sew, paint, read, or work on a computer make my body ache. I have also discovered that when I stop running for a few mornings in a row, my lower back starts to stiffen. This is my clue that running will be something that I "need" to keep doing as long as it makes me feel good. Listening to our bodies to understand our limitations is also important. It took me a while but I have come to understand that I need to exercise daily, the same way I need to eat daily. I don't own a scale, because my fitness is not about how much I weigh but about how I feel and how I move....... How wise to question one's self about how you want to feel. I would add to that, "what do you have to do to achieve your optimal health?".
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    Oh yes, I forgot to suggest...try plié's as you make your declarations tonight!
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    Great question Shannon. I'll be doing plie's tonight!
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    Love to have you on the journey with me Natasha. Healthy & Happy!
 
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