When I first heard this week's theme of Teacher and Student, I was pumped! As an educator for 13 years, I have seen the symbiotic nature of the student/ teacher relationship firsthand. One is impacted as much as the other. I know the power of true understanding comes through the teaching process. And while all of those things are true, they will not be the focus of this blog. You see, yet again, Jillian Michael's encounter with one of the contestants spoke to me in a profound way.
When Jill was working with Migdalia and said, "Only strong people show their emotions. God created feelings for a reason. Emotions must be felt, expressed, and moved through. Tears don't make you weak," I felt like she was talking to me. I have a terrible way of intellectualizing emotions rather than feeling them. To give a little background, I was a full fledged crybaby growing up. If someone hurt my feelings, I cried. Not a great thing in junior high... makes you an easy target for being picked on. Throughout time I began to believe tears were a sign of weakness, and I fought them with every fiber of my being, sometimes successfully, others not so much. Throughout this process, I have had to rethink my truth about tears. I have learned that tears are healing. Feeling emotions, both good and bad, and expressing them are a part of truly LIVING. It takes enormous strength to live a full life.
A weight-loss journey is about so much more than losing physical weight. While I understood Miggy's concern about not wanting to change her personality and just wanting to get healthy, my hope is that after having time to reflect on the entire process, she sees it differently. In order to become truly healthy, in all areas of your life, you are changed. It's not that you change your personality; you just become the best version of yourself. You get to know yourself on a deeper level by shedding former self truths and ultimately create new ones.
Following up on that thought about truths, I feel compelled to address the exchange that occurred during the weigh-in. From my couch-side view, Bob and Jill weren't upset that Melissa threw the weigh-in; they were upset that she didn't admit that she threw the weigh-in. The fact is, The Biggest Loser is part game. There is a monetary prize at the end. One could justify water loading to better ensure staying on the ranch. Even if you choose to play the game, you can still have a life-changing experience... if you get real with yourself. A major part of this process of getting healthy and losing weight is owning up to what you are doing and taking responsibility for your actions. In the weight-loss arena, you have to get real with yourself about what you are eating and why you are eating it. You have to get real with yourself about the intensity of your workouts or the excuses you make for not working out. While facing and telling the truth may be hard in the moment, it makes life easier in the long run.
This week I encourage everyone to FEEL your feelings... be they good or bad. Let's live in the moment, get out of our heads, and feel our feelings head on. Let's get real with ourselves, imperfections and all. Let's L-I-V-E!!!