How to stop negative self-talk by putting your thoughts on a diet

In late August, Crystal Jackson, 36, found herself lost in the hiking trails of Hard Labor Creek State Park, Georgia. She should have been admiring the beauty of the woods, she recalls. Instead, she was focused on sucking in her stomach.

“I started to think about the fact that I was alone in the woods, and I cared that much about what my stomach looked like, and if I was the right weight, which is insane because I’m extremely fit person,” Jackson tells NBC News BETTER.

Jackson, who is a novelist and blogs on Medium, says this negative “self talk” about her body was an issue most of her life. As a teenager, she was criticized for being too skinny. She gained a few pounds in her mid-20s. She says people started asking her if she was pregnant. Some gave her unsolicited weight loss advice.

During her hike, it occurred to Jackson that she had turned these critical remarks into her own internal dialogue.

“Our thoughts are incredibly powerful,” she says, “but I didn’t realize the power of those thoughts until I was critical with no one around to judge me.”

When she finally emerged from the trail that day, she had a new perspective: She was no longer going to obsess about the way she looked. She needed to put her thoughts on a diet rather than her body, she says.

Here’s how she did it.

She created a lifestyle she enjoys

Jackson ditched the gym for activities she enjoys, like hiking, yoga, kayaking, and running outdoors.

“I focus on the strength, fitness and health rather than reaching a certain weight loss goal or losing so many inches, or fitting into a certain size,” she says

She focuses on food quality instead of calories, and allows herself to enjoy junk food from time to time, as well, she says.

“I don’t worry about how many carbs might be in the piece of fruit that I’m eating,” she says “I take it away from diet and just focus on living a healthier lifestyle.”

She never speaks badly about her body

Jackson says she doesn’t criticize her body or appearance, especially in front of her son and daughter, who are four and six years old.

“I try very hard, since I have young children in my home, not to voice criticisms of my body or a picture of myself,” she says.

She anticipates when she will be most vulnerable to self-criticism

Jackson says she typically puts on about five pounds during her period. It’s the time of month when she says she feels the worst about her body. She says it’s most important for her to be conscious of any negative self-talk during this time.

“Putting my thoughts on a diet is being just really self aware at what I dwell on, and where I allow my thoughts to go,” she says.