Karen and I are currently writing the Stop Losing and Win book (hopefully out in the fall of this year), and we focus quite a number of pages on the psychological aspects of weight management. One of the topics we have not yet covered, though, is managing your weight during difficult times. I will attempt to do that here.
I just retired. I know, you’d think I’d be ecstatic, but I’m full of mixed feelings. Who am I if I am no longer a college professor? How will I fill my hours and days over the next two or three decades? On one hand, I’m thrilled for the freedom that comes along with retirement; on the other hand, I’m a little bit terrified.
What does this mean for my weight management efforts? As tenderly as I care for myself on any given day, I will need to redouble my efforts during this transition. Having wonky emotions naturally leads to out-of-control eating, too many hours on the couch, and bad feelings that seem to erupt out of nothing, and I need to guard against these dangers.
I know three things for certain:
- Exercise is the best stress-reducer out there, so I’m taking more walks, doing more strength training, and finding new ways to get outside and have fun.
- A life transition is no time to try to restrict eating. Simultaneously, I’ve never had so much freedom, so it is the perfect time to try new, nutritious dishes and combinations that I may not have attempted in the past. Bring on the cook books!
- Crisis times require new strategies. I need to find new self-care activities as my stressed-out mind and body reach out for homeostasis, always being gentle and kind to myself.
Crises, whether they be an unwelcome birthday, a divorce, the death of a spouse, losing your job, a nasty conflict with a friend—even a long-planned-for retirement—can be a time of reflection and growth. At the same time, “going through something” makes you vulnerable to your turbulent waves of emotion as well as the ill-timed actions and reactions of others. A refrain throughout our up-coming book is to care for yourself as you would care for a child, with kindness, compassion, creativity, and infinite patience.
Stop Losing and Win 