“You Don’t Have To Change Your Lifestyle”

I don’t like it when I hear these words.  They send the wrong message and do not help anybody.

My mom and sisters babysat PJ and AJ today so Josh and I could go on a date.  We went to pick them up and I  visited with my mom a little while.  While I helped the kids get their shoes and jackets on, a commercial came on the TV that caught my eye.

The commercial was for some product that will remove belly fat when you wear some band twice a day.  Watching it, I was all fine and dandy with the product until I heard that phrase  – “You don’t have to change your lifestyle.”  In other words, I could use this product and lose inches off my belly while still eating or doing whatever I want.  Excuse me?  I don’t think so!

When I decided to tackle my weight, I didn’t want to go on a “diet”.  I wanted a lifestyle change.  I’d learned that when I finished a diet and went right back to eating whatever I wanted whenever I wanted, the weight just came back on.  I needed to change my habits.

Lifestyle change doesn’t just apply to weight loss.  There are so many ways people want to change their lives, so many goals that individuals have.  Make new friends.  Have more courage.  Spend more time with loved ones.  Be more spiritual, educated, articulate, etc.  But to achieve any goal, you NEED to make changes!  Sometimes that change can be as simple as doing, or not doing, something.

If you want to change your life for the better, then realize that you WILL have to work.  But all the work you put into achieving your goals is worth it when you see them accomplished.  Imagine how it feels to be the new homeowner who, after years of scrimping and saving, is finally handed a set of keys.  Or the student who studies for hours and hours, sometimes barely making Cs, to be given their degree.  Or the couple who struggles for years to have a family finally holding a little baby in their arms.

People have asked how I’ve lost the weight that I have .  Well, here’s my secret: I started working towards my goals and made changes.  If you want to do the same, then  do something about it.  Be willing to  work and make changes so that you can have the life that you want and be the person that you want to be.

Work will win when wishy washy wishing won’t.

Thomas S. Monson