Stephanie Fein MD [00:00:00]:
Hello, fabulous. Dr. Stephanie Fein here. And celebrations are a key to weight loss. Let me explain how they give us dopamine hits celebrations and dopamine creates habits. There are many neurotransmitters involved, but a big one is the reward neurotransmitter, dopamine. And it acts as the reward signal that strengthens the neural pathways between cue and behavior. This is.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:00:36]:
That's like habit. Speak about the thing that we. That gets us to do the thing we want to do. And then we cement it with dopamine by celebrating. When an action provides a reward, then dopamine surges. It signals the brain to remember and repeat the action. And that's how you reinforce the loop through anticipation. Like it's not even the actual of the celebration or the act, it's the anticipation of getting a reward so we can use it to our advantage.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:01:14]:
Now, this loop also works for things like scrolling. You know, you get little dopamine hits, and so you want to continue doing that. Now, whether that's something you don't want to do anymore, then it's. That's its own thing to overcome. So bad habits get created just the same as good habits. So we're just, at least for weight loss, which is what we talk about here, we're going to use it to our advantage, and we're going to make sure we celebrate so that we create the connection and the reinforcing loop that we're going to anticipate the actions we want to continue, and we're going to make it pleasurable in the process, because the celebrations we're going to talk about are pleasurable, and if they're not, pick a different one. So knowing you'll get the reward makes you more likely to do the thing. That's what we want to set up in your brain.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:02:10]:
And the great news is it doesn't only have to be that you catch yourself in the act at that moment and celebrate at that moment. That works really well. But you can also remember the act and celebrate it afterwards, and that still strengthens the neural pathway that you're looking to create. So celebrate whenever you think of it in the moment afterwards. The timeline of behavior change is that we remember afterwards, but then as we're becoming aware of it and noticing it more as it's top of mind, we remember it sooner and sooner and sooner after until we're actually remembering it during, and then we can even remember it before. And what I mean by that is anticipate it so we can anticipate we're Going to do something and knowing there's a dopamine connection there, it makes us want to do it more. That's what we're looking for. And this is why the food date works so well, because we can catch these things afterwards and still create that celebration loop.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:03:26]:
Remember, in the food date, we're asking ourselves, what worked first, what worked, what didn't, what we're gonna do differently. But remember, the first question always has to be what worked? That's a time for celebration. And as we do that, we're creating the loop we want to. So here you may be thinking, I only celebrate, you know, five pounds at a time, or only weight loss or no, we want to celebrate everything. Everything that's putting us in the right direction that will help us get there. And it does not have to be a very big thing. Five pounds will take a little while. But if we're going to celebrate things like remembering to use the hunger scale, not even that we ate at negative two and stopped at positive two, although certainly we will celebrate those things.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:04:20]:
But just remembering to use the hunger scale, if we acknowledge that to ourselves and celebrate it in some way, I'm going to give you some ways that will create a loop that will make it more likely that we'll remember to do it. So we want to celebrate every tiny little thing. I want you to recognize that you are doing amazing things all the time. If you're remembering to check in for your hunger scale 10 times a day, 10 celebrations, not kidding. It makes a huge difference. And then can you imagine if you're celebrating 10 times a day, it just feels better. So getting in this habit not only helps weight loss, it just helps your day feel better, too. So other things to acknowledge, this is just a little smattering of things that you can think of sitting down to do.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:05:10]:
The food date, that's something to celebrate. Anytime you notice a thought about food, if you notice yourself saying, mmm, this is good, and that leads to overeating, noticing that thought is going to be helpful. If you notice yourself thinking, I don't want to waste food or have to clean my plate. Any of those. Noticing those thoughts, huge win, major celebration. Also, if you remember things like, my body's not a garbage can, so then you don't finish the scraps. When you're no longer hungry, you put them. I.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:05:44]:
You either, you know, save them for leftovers or you throw them away anytime. Any of these. Even if you think, my body's not a garbage can after you ate the scraps, still a celebration, because we're encouraging remembering that more and more. We want the anticipation of the reward to cue your brain to think of it earlier and earlier. If you cooked dinner, if that's something that you're developing or you want to develop, amazing. You do not have to cook dinner to lose weight. But if that's something you're interested in doing, reward yourself at all the points. If you didn't overeat at a meal with your parents, Amazing.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:06:24]:
Truly amazing. Really. Family of origin stuff is really hard. If you were able to do it in a way that wasn't restrictive, but you were able to really. What I always think of is you were able to manage all the comments that came your way and it didn't have you overeating. That's a huge win, by the way. That's not even a little one. That's a really big one.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:06:49]:
If you tried a new food, something that you don't normally try, Celebration. These are all things I want you to start thinking of as celebrations, as things worthy of a dopamine hit, because they really, really are. And these are all things that hopefully you're acknowledging in your food dates. What worked. All of these things would be things that worked and we get to celebrate. So here are, if you're ready, 50 ways to celebrate any sort of win. And you'll notice that food is not involved in these. That would be defeating.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:07:27]:
These are 50 ways. Think about them and have them so that you can use them to acknowledge the fact of doing the celebration is what's important. Because you're making that connection in your brain with your behavior. And your brain will notice. It notices when it gets a dopamine hit. And we want it to. So here are some ideas. Put on your favorite song and dance.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:07:57]:
This is such a good one because you're moving and you have the music that you enjoy. Dance anywhere in your kitchen, living room. Doesn't matter. Two. Take a walk. Now, this doesn't have to be a workout walk. This is a celebration walk. You know, like, I mean, you could even have the posture of like Wonder Woman kind of thing, like proud.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:08:20]:
Or you can just enjoy the fresh air. Any kind of thing. A short walk, long walk, anything you want, but a walk that you've dedicated to celebrating something you may not normally have done, but you're going to do that because you're celebrating the things that you've done and want to continue to do. Number three, stretch for a couple minutes, like yoga, something that feels really good. Do a little jumping. Is number four, like actually jumping. You'll feel like you're celebrating and you'll get some blood pumping in there that really will create a nice loop for your brain. Taking a bath or a long shower with your really nice smelling products.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:09:03]:
Light a candle that you love. The good ones, not the backup ones. Create a playlist that feels like a celebration. Number eight is play that playlist. Number nine, buy yourself some fresh flowers. I love this one. And they don't have to be like a huge bouquet. You can have the little ones or you know, if you can pick wildflowers.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:09:24]:
If you're allowed to do that anymore or even in your garden, you can pick cut some for yourself. Or number 10 is enjoy a scent. So your favorite perfume or a scent on your pillow, that sort of thing. Sensations are really useful when we're trying to get the brain involved. Texting a friend and saying I did the thing or I'm celebrating or I'm proud. Just the act of doing that will give you the dopamine hit. Next you can call your mom or your sister or your best friend and then tell them. 13 is share your win on social media.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:10:03]:
If you like that, if that kind of thing feels natural and good to you, by all means, celebrate. Not only are you putting good into the world, you're creating a better place for that in social media. So that's amazing. 14. Tell your partner or your person you could say out loud. You can list the things you can tell them you're proud of yourself. These. Saying it out loud is surprisingly helpful.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:10:29]:
So that would work. Sending a voice memo to someone you love, hearing your own voice say it is powerful. 16 is buy the book you've been meaning to read or I don't know if you have this, but in Los Angeles it may be everywhere and I just think it's only in Los Angeles, but it's Libby. So it's a library app. It's amazing. You can like browse in there and everything's free. They also have audiobooks on there. Did you know that? It's amazing.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:11:01]:
Libby app highly recommend. Or you can buy a book. Either one. But Libby is free forever. The library system's brilliant. 17. Listen to that podcast you've been saving, just taking the time and dedicating that particular podcast to the celebration is that works. Sign up for the class or the workshop or the thing that you've been curious about.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:11:26]:
That's so fun. Something new, something you've been excited for. 19. Order something fun and small. Like if you want to go somewhere and buy a little pen or a Journal or socks or you know, something Little lip balm. 20. Book a massage or a facial, whatever makes you feel really taken care of. 21.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:11:50]:
This is a great one. It can be hard, but it would work really well, which is sit down, close your eyes and feel the win for a good 60 seconds. What does it feel like in your body to feel proud? That feeling of pride is. I think it's one of the best feelings we can have in our body. Proud. Connecting the feeling of proud with that, that dopamine hit that comes from it. Connecting it to your accomplishments. Amazing.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:12:24]:
Similarly, 22. Writing it down not just what you did, but how it felt. And that again creates that neural pathway in a deeper way. 23 is adding it to a wins list. I love this idea that you keep a running document now in your food date. You may have that and you may just in a separate area, keep the wins list and you can. What's so wonderful about that is you can watch how the wins progress and also see how long the list gets. It's that also creates a dopamine hit just by looking at the fact that your list is growing.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:13:01]:
24. Take a photo to remember the moment. Just that smiley face of yours. Have that in your phone. Connect it to the thing that you're proud you finished. Amazing. 25. Tell yourself out loud, I'm proud of you in the mirror.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:13:17]:
For extra bonus points, I'm proud of you. You did it. And if you're feeling really celebratory, you can use some confetti. I have confetti on my desk. I love using it as a little celebration. Yippee. You did it. Congratulations.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:13:38]:
For others and for myself, it is so surprisingly fun. It really feels like a celebration. 26. Stepping outside to get some sun on your face. That will do it. 27. Watch the sunset on purpose, not by accident. 28.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:13:58]:
Take your shoes off and stand in the grass. It's so good. There are a lot of proprioception. There's a lot of sensation receptors on our bottoms of our feet. So walking on grass is actually a really great thing to do. Drive somewhere with a good view and look at it. That's one of my faves. That's one of the ones that I do regularly when I'm celebrating something particularly very mindfully, go window shopping.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:14:27]:
That's a fun thing to do too. Again, you're doing it on purpose. Related to the celebration. 31. Watch an episode of something you genuinely love. Not the background tv, but something you're excited about, something new or something old. But that you're dedicating that time to the celebration. Read a chapter of the book you're enjoying right now or reread a few pages of a book that makes you happy.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:14:54]:
A little time in your cozy corner reading amazing. 33. Look up pictures of something you love, like baby animals or beautiful places to go, whatever you love to look at. 34. Play a game on your phone. A board game card, something that is really fun that you like. 35. Watch a funny video on purpose.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:15:21]:
This is the activity you're purposely going to look for. Funny videos. 36. Go through your photos. I love that one. A little trip down memory lane. This is time you're gifting yourself and you're using it in this way to bring joy. Connect the dopamine to the thing that you're proud of.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:15:44]:
37. Complete a puzzle like a crossword sudoku. Jigsaw puzzle. You may not have time to complete a jigsaw puzzle, but you know what I mean. Take some time for the jigsaw puzzle. If that's something that.38. Draw or doodle something. Even if you're not artistic, just letting that part of your brain, giving it a little permission works really nicely.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:16:06]:
Rearrange a corner of your room. So like if you put a plant in a different location or you move a chair, it gives you a whole new perspective. Whenever you walk into that room, you'll notice you'll get dopamine hits that whole time. Write yourself a little love note and stick it somewhere where you'll see it tomorrow. I love that you did it. Congratulations. You're awesome. Nice job.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:16:32]:
Anything like that. Love you all those would be amazing for you to stumble on the next day. 41. Do your nails. Even if it's a quick thing, even if it's just cleaning them up. Certainly you can use polish, but something with your hands, every time you look down at them, you'll see. Use a nice lotion, nice smelling one. You could put it on your hands.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:16:57]:
You can put, you know, put it on your legs however you want to use it. But using your nice lotion, it feels really good because also there's warmth there. You're. It's. You're touching your skin and also your skin is being touched. A face mask. 43. That could be fun too.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:17:15]:
We don't often do that, so taking some time to do that would be fun. Back scratch or scalp scratch. And this is even do it yourself. You can use a back scratcher. Have you seen those things that you could use for your scalp? It Feels really good. Your nervous system will love it. 45. Schedule something to look forward to, even something small.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:17:36]:
Coffee date, walk in a museum, a movie night, Walk with a friend. Any of these sorts of things. Something that you're looking forward to.46. Clean out one drawer or shelf. Now, for some people, this would not be a fun celebration. For me, it really would be. And really what we're talking about is I am dedicating some time to acknowledging that I did this thing that I wanted to do. And so if you're spending five minutes, you could spend five minutes cleaning out a drawer.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:18:05]:
If you enjoy that. If that sounds like drudgery, that will not be a celebration for you. 47. Plan a trip. Even if it's just a daydream trip. In fact, I'd prefer that it's a daydream trip because planning, you know, flights and hotels is not that fun when you're actually, you know, having to do it. But if you're planning your dream vacation, that can be really fun. 48.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:18:29]:
Cuddle your pet or someone else's. 49. Water your plants or plant a plant or buy a plant something with plants. Very helpful. And last but not least, add a penny to your wind jar. Doesn't have to be a penny, but often we'll have pennies around. It could be a crumpled up piece of paper, but if you have some jar or a glass or anything and you start putting one, whatever penny, shell button beads in that jar, every time you remember to do the hunger scale, every time you eat at negative two, you will your brain, you of course too. But your brain will watch that those beads add up and that alone gives you a dopamine hit.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:19:20]:
If you're watching yourself add beads, you'll start to notice that your brain's like, ooh, I get a bead. If you're going to put a bead every time you remember the hunger scale, you're like, ooh, bead. Oh, I did it. That will be the place that you'll see it the most, where this celebration really pays off. Celebrations help you lose weight. Dopamine helps strengthen the neural pathways that you're creating and getting better and better at. Spotting and acknowledging your wins means progress. And the smaller the wins, the better because they add up to the big ones.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:20:00]:
The food date is a great place to do this. As you recall ones from the past. You'll get better at catching them in the moment. And weight loss just feels so much better this way. So celebrate, celebrate, celebrate. Even just saying I'm celebrating this I'm proud of this. Way to Go creates a dopamine hit so you absolutely can celebrate every single solitary little win. And I really encourage you to do that.
Stephanie Fein MD [00:20:30]:
If you want help with any of this, I am here always for you. For any questions or to lose weight with me, go to stephaniefeinmd.com or on Instagram @stephaniefeinmd. I am always there. Happy to help. I am sending you so much love. Until next week.
