Gregg McBride: Guest Blogger and Author of "Weightless--My Life as a Fat Man and How I Escaped."

Please welcome Gregg McBride to Out of the Woods. Here is his post on:  A Passion for Change, An Appreciation for Yourself

One morning inhaling my coffee, I looked out of a window, down into the courtyard of the apartment building across the way. I noticed a man placing a box with a small plant into the sunlight. At first, I assumed that he was going to be doing some gardening. But then noticed he left the box there in the sunlight and had walked away. Then, upon further examination (aka "not minding my own business and staring out the window"), I saw that the small plant was actually a beautifully maintained Bonsai Tree.

Seeing this man take care of his Bonsai (which is clearly thriving) actually warms my heart -- and it's a sight I look forward to seeing when I'm lucky enough to notice this ritual in motion. Whether seeing the man place the tree into the sunlight -- or just seeing the tree already in place -- makes me very happy. And this process also reminds me of the level of care I need to make sure I'm giving to myself. And that's the same level of care you need to be giving to yourself, as well.

Think about it. When we care for something, it thrives. This can be seen in my neighbor's Bonsai Tree or even in the happiness level of my dog, Latte. It's therefore important that we give the same kind of love and care to ourselves -- as well as our health-minded goals.

When people I know tell me they need to lose weight, I can often detect a degree of self-loathing in their tone. I can relate -- knowing how much I hated myself when I weighed over 450 pounds. This disdain for ourselves is an approach we've been taught is normal and will likely facilitate change. The thinking being, "You hate how you look, so do something about it." But after learning to love myself at any size (both before and after I took off 250 pounds of excess weight), I am motivated to pass along what I've learned. If we actually love and care for ourselves -- even as we are now in this very moment (no matter how many pounds overweight or no matter how far away from any kind of goal) -- we become more likely to encounter faster success.

Perhaps it’s time for us to think of ourselves in more affectionate ways and afford ourselves the very same degree of care my neighbor gives his Bonsai and I give my dog.

Do something kind for yourself today -- throughout the day and every day. And remind yourself that you matter (which, for the record, you do). Suddenly, if you're wanting to make a positive change in your life, you're doing it because you care, not because you're disgusted. That's going to make the journey a lot more pleasant and, I imagine, a lot more successful.

Just like my neighbor's Bonsai Tree, it's time for you to position yourself in the warm sunlight of your own tender loving care -- and thrive.
                                                            *****


Gregg McBride is a film and television producer living in Los Angeles where he works for companies including Disney, Comedy Central, Sony, Paramount, MTV and others. His blog, JustStopEatingSoMuch.com, focuses on weightless and food addiction. 

His new book, "Weightless" is available here:http://www.amazon.com/Weightless-Life-Fat-Man-Escaped/dp/1937612694

And Gregg's blog, "JustStopEatingSoMuch is here: http://blog.juststopeatingsomuch.com