Say Goodbye

By , SparkPeople Blogger
Have you ever thought about the phrase ''say goodbye'' as it relates to your weight loss journey?

Are you on this journey to simply lose weight or are you are on this journey to change your life?  You do realize there is a difference, right?  Here’s the deal: you may be here to lose weight. That’s why the majority of us joined SparkPeople in the first place.  However, there are so many other things you may very well gain, or lose along the way.    

Sometimes I come across ''stuff'' that really hits me where it counts.  Recently, while I was exercising on the elliptical machine, the song ''Say Goodbye'' by Mandisa came on my iPod. For the first time, I fully listened to the lyrics, and they really spoke to me about what I've been through in my weight loss journey.

Let me break it down.

''To the voice, to the liar in the mirror, saying you can’t ever change.''   My initial thought after hearing the first line of this song was something like, ''Well, that voice is wrong!''  Then after I gave it a little more thought I realized that I had listened to that lying voice for many years.  I had actually halfheartedly tried a few years ago to lose a little weight.  Like many who had tried before me and many who will keep trying, I saw no success and I listened to the voice and liar in the mirror and gave up.  I listened to the voice and I believed it!  This is a major struggle that countless people will face daily on this journey.  Remember that ''most weight loss struggles happen between the ears''.  The liar in the mirror is a root cause for that.  There is great news though-- you CAN CHANGE!  Will it be hard?  Maybe.  But you can change.  When you look in the mirror and you hear that negative voice, talk back to it. Tell it that you can and will change.  Tell that voice you are saying goodbye to your old, destructive habits and saying hello to new, healthy habits.

I still face this lying voice on an almost daily basis.  I am currently over a year into maintenance of having lost a fair amount of weight.  To this day, I still hear in my head that I can’t do it.  I’m going to fail.  I’m going to gain it all back.  I honestly have no idea where this comes from since my confidence is higher than it has been in years.  I overcome those thoughts the best I can and just tell the liar in the mirror that I have changed, and I will maintain!

The second line of the song that struck a chord with me was: ''To the guilt that's sittin' on your shoulder, always keepin' you locked in chains.'' Guilt?  What guilt?  I don’t have any guilt.  Why does this line not sit well with me?, I thought at first.  As in most cases, the fact that I felt defensive told me that I actually do have lots of things in my life that I feel guilty for and I’m the type of person who harbors and nurtures that guilt for a very long time. I don’t know why.  It’s just what I do.  Or maybe I should say that’s what I used to do.  I am learning to let it go, slowly.  The biggest thing I have guilt about right now is that I feel like I have cheated my wife and daughters out of numerous years of life.  Sleeping in my chair, not having any energy to play with my daughters, not helping with the household chores-- these are all things that I still feel guilty about.  I don’t know if it’s possible to make it up to my family, but I am trying my best.  So, to the guilt that all of us are carrying around, say goodbye.  Release the chains of bondage and say goodbye.

The last line of the song that stuck with me says: ''To the past that you can’t undo.''  Did you read those words clearly?  To the past that you can’t undo.  This is something that can hinder your journey greatly; trust me, I’ve been there.  What you did yesterday cannot be undone, period.  If you hold on to that and stress about it, guess what?  Your new life will be hindered.  When you screw up, learn from it and then say good bye.  You can’t change it in most cases so why hold onto it?  Why put yourself in that bondage?

This song, ''Say Goodbye,'' can play a major role in your journey, just as it has in mine. In many cases, the easy part is simply saying goodbye to the foods that don't nourish you.  If you take a long, hard look at your habits as they relate to the lyrics of this song, you will probably see a theme.  You will likely find that the liar in the mirror, the chains of bondage, and the past are all root causes of any issue you might be having on your journey.  Stressing about something that happened yesterday, last week, or last month can cause you to turn to food.  Say goodbye to the past, say goodbye to those things that you cannot change. What good are those things doing you today? 

I’d like to encourage you to write down these lyrics to help you during your weight loss journey.  Blog about them, or put them on your mirror.  I challenge you to look hard at these lines and say goodbye to whatever it is that you need to say goodbye to. You might be surprised at what you gain in the long run.

What things in your life are you willing to say goodbye to in order to help you meet your goals?