Starling Fitness: Daily writings on Fitness, Diet, and Health

This postcard from PostSecret reminded me of the reason that most people don’t lose weight.

It reads:

I am so afraid of failing that I don’t even want to try.

I see so many people at Weight Watchers who stay the same weight, me included. Whenever I really attack the reasons why I’m not following program, it always comes down to being afraid. Sometimes I’m afraid of failing. Sometimes I’m even afraid of succeeding.

If I fail, then everyone knows that I keep trying to lose weight and I’m still STUCK where I am.

If I succeed, then I have to live in an unfamiliar world of being thin. Will that make me different somehow? Will I be conceited? Will I be constantly hungry? Will I be promiscuous?

It’s no wonder that I feel stuck sometimes.

It has been said that fear is energy. It’s the energy that we need to do something scary. They always say feel the fear and do it anyway, but I want you to USE that fear to move you past your sticking point. Every time you feel scared, go exercise, clean out the bad food in the house or call a friend and talk it out. Don’t let fear trap you in a life that is less than you deserve.

PostSecret‘s beneficiary is the National Hopeline Network. It is a 24-hour hotline (1 (800) SUICIDE) for anyone who is thinking about suicide or knows someone who is considering it.