Maladaptive Perfectionism - Transformation Weight Control

Richard Weil, M.Ed, CDE
Founder and Director
Transformation Weight Control

“Maladaptive perfectionistic thinkers never feel as good about losing a pound as they feel bad about gaining a pound.”
An original quote by Richard Weil, M.Ed., CDE

My quote pretty much captures the essence of maladaptive perfectionism. It’s demandingness, all-or-nothing thinking, black and white thinking. Basically, no matter what you do, it’s never enough. I challenge you to define “perfect” when it comes to weight loss, and think about your thinking when what you do doesn’t fit your definition of “perfect”.

We have a phrase we use a lot in our weight loss program. “Progress, not perfection.”

In a nutshell, we’re all human, we’re all fallible (according to psychologist Dr. Albert Ellis), we’re all going to make mistakes. If we beat ourselves up after every mistake, or every disappointment, then we’re going to deplete our ability to be resilient, that is, bouncing back from adversity. We believe resilience is the most important factor in weight loss and preventing regain, because once you make a mistake, which you inevitably will, it’s important to be able to pull yourself together and get back on whatever plan you’re following, otherwise, it could spiral to weeks, months, or even years, before you wake up, come to your senses, and realize that something went wrong.

By the way, tied for second, as the most important factors in weight loss and preventing regain, right behind resilience, is self-compassion (i.e., lack of it), and what this blog is about, perfectionistic thinking. In my 44 years of doing this work, these three thinking styles are the most common ones I’ve observed (almost everyone does it), and are most likely to cause problems for you with weight loss and preventing regain.

Read my blogs, 1) The ABC’s of Cognitive Behavior Therapy – CBT Part 1 of 2, and 2) The DEF’s of Cognitive Behavior Therapy – CBT Part 2 of 2, to learn how to challenge and dispute your maladaptive perfectionistic thinking.