"Your Inner Dialect" Exercise

HAVE YOU EVER SAID... “I’ll never be able to...” or “These snacks are my favorite; I can’t resist them,” or “I feel embarrassed when I exercise... I won’t do it.” These are examples of ‘negative self-statements.’ They can hurt your efforts by triggering you to behave in ways that undermine your success.

YOUR INNER DIALOGUE: WATCH WHAT YOU SAY! What you say to yourself – your inner dialogue, can affect you in much the same way as statements made by others. Your inner dialogue can influence your behavior. Self-statements like “I’m too heavy to be seen in shorts,” or “It was a crummy day, so I needed those chips,” can trigger you to behave in ways that are not supportive of your weight management efforts like snacking excessively or avoiding exercise.

CHANGING YOUR INNER DIALOGUE Is your inner dialogue filled with negative self-statements? If so, making your inner-speech more positive can help you with your weight management efforts. How do you do this? Try this three-step instructional approach. Step One: Self Observation First, you have to observe what you are saying to yourself! To get you started, list any negative self-statements you’ve said to yourself recently.

Step Two: Starting New Inner Dialogue Second, identify positive self-statements to replace the negative ones. Write these replacement statements down.

Step Three: Practice Your New Self Statements Instead of using your former negative self-statement, use your new positive one. And, say it over and over and over again! Negative Self Statements (Self-Observation) I’ll never be able to lose this weight.

Positive Self Statements (Starting New Inner Dialogue) When I concentrate on my goals, I’ll lose weight.