Lesson 12

Beliefs and Attitudes

Fighting the Feelings of Hopelessness

Sometimes I feel that I have been dealt a bad hand of cards. I am a failure when it comes to will power. Sound familiar? If you feel that external forces control your life, you eventually give in to feelings of hopelessness. Feelings of hopelessness in turn defeat any attempt at weight control. If you rely on your negative feelings you will never face up to your being overweight. If you can convince yourself that you will never be thin, you can convince yourself never to try. Go from negative affirmations to positive.

Put Yourself In Charge

Affirm ownership of your behavior. Your successes and failures are yours and yours alone. If you feel out of control, concentrate your energy on making proper choices. Even a seemingly small decision like choosing an orange over a piece of pie is an example of a positive choice. Choices are positive because they help to prove that you can change. And as you begin to make changes and feel comfortable with them, you will begin to value yourself as a decision maker. Think I am not on a diet, rather I am choosing what I eat and do.

Create a Positive Outlook

Clarifying and defining your beliefs and then changing them for a more positive outlook is crucial to your success in the HM&N program.
To change any of your beliefs and attitudes you must first clarify them and understand how distorted beliefs have led to your weight problem. The following exercise is helpful in clarifying your beliefs.

HM&N Beliefs and Attitudes Exercise

List your beliefs about weight control:

Rephrase them to be positive statements:



HM&N is designed to promote a lifetime of success which requires a complete, healthful shift toward positive thinking, exercise and diet.


Gene C.