YOUR LIFE WITHOUT LIMITS

American industry icon Henry Ford once famously said, Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t — you’re right. Said another way, you may be the only one standing in the way of your dreams, which includes achieving weight loss goals.

You may ask, if someone sets a goal to lose weight, then what might cause them to block their own success? There are probably a variety of reasons, but one may involve an erroneous belief about willpower.

Willpower is a quality that most people in the process of losing weight cling to. It’s that effort required to resist falling to the temptation of behaviors that run counter to successful weight loss. And in our modern lifestyles, just think of the sheer amount of that temptation we face. In the morning, we need the willpower to resist getting a box of Munchkins at Dunkin Donuts while getting coffee (I mean, come on, they are right there!). At the office, we need the willpower to get up from our desks every once in a while to move our bodies. At night we need willpower to resist a five-hour NetFlix binge while nibbling on cookies. Mustering all of this willpower can feel exhausting!

This is where the false belief about willpower comes in. Based on a concept called ego depletion, it used to be thought that willpower had a finite energy source. For example, if you used it all up by 3 p.m., well then, there goes your weight loss plan for the rest of the day. Bring on the ice cream!

Not so fast?

Several studies within the last few years have discovered inconsistencies with the ego depletion factor when it comes to willpower. The studies, as published in PLOS ONE and other scientific journals, report exactly the opposite. The fact is that your willpower in reality has no limits!

What these findings translate into for us is that we can no longer rely on excuses that we’ve tapped out on our willpower to engage in healthy behaviors that lead to weight loss. Science doesn’t buy it and neither will our doctors and medical providers.

So, if you truly believe that you have what it takes to lose weight, then science supports you endlessly in achieving that goal. Don’t let limiting thoughts stop you from what you are truly capable of. Just believe you CAN, and you will be right!