“Weight loss doesn’t begin in the gym with a dumb bell; it starts in your head with a decision.”
At some point in your life, you will likely go through the struggles of maintaining a healthy weight. In my mid twenties I was 35 pounds heavier and basic activities like walking up steps would leave me short of breath. I was embarrassed and had to change many bad habits to achieve my desired weight. Going through the struggles of losing weight, I can empathize with the challenges you will face.
Challenges You Will Face
Maintaining Confidence or Motivation
Human behaviors are significantly impacted by our feeling and emotions at any given moment. As you attempt to establish good habits and work through challenges, your confidence or motivation can waver and lead to feelings of shame, failure, low self-esteem or guilt.
Controlling Distractions and Negative Influences
Distractions and negative influences will be a constant challenge; Your ability to control your environment and temptations will have a major impact on achieving your goals.
Managing Your Willpower
Willpower is often exhaustible and needs your help. The key to success is to rely less on willpower and more on establishing good daily habits.
Here are my 10 Tips to empower you to maintain a healthy weight:
Tip 1: Exercise 30 to 60 minute 6 to 7 days a week
Most people are aware that exercise burns calories, increases muscle mass and metabolism, and leads to improving your emotional and brain health. I believe the most important and overlooked benefit is developing mental toughness. When compared to the daily grind of committing to an exercise regimen, other areas in life seem relatively easier. There is also a tendency to support your effort with a healthier diet.
To maintain a consistent exercise plan, be creative and frequently change your workouts (type of exercise and intensity level).
Tip 2: HELP YOUR CAUSE: establish good habits.
You can use habits to help establish healthy patterns and free up mental energy. If you want your behaviors to be running on auto pilot, commit to daily rituals and develop habits so eventually you will not rely heavily on willpower. Developing good habits will create an automatic routine and this starts by understanding the habit loop: set up a cue that triggers the pattern, which gives you a reward.
An effective strategy is to plan your wellness plan the day before and create an easy, excuse free path for having this become a daily routine; Example: set out running shoes and clothes for easy access in the morning (the cue); go for a 30 minute run (the pattern); feel great and have improved health (the reward). You will establish your habits by consistently craving your rewards and strategically planning triggers to motivate action. A great resource to learn more on habits is “THE POWER OF HABIT WHY WE DO WHAT WE DO IN LIFE AND BUSINESS”, by Charles Duhigg.
Tip 3: Internal transformation
To transform your life, I believe your mind is the most important area to change. Establishing an empowering mindset is an effective strategy for helping you overcome challenges and develop good habits. When you establish an unwavering commitment and believe in your desired outcomes, you will begin to see those results show up in your health.
You will benefit from planning for emotional ups and downs and the setbacks along your journey. Do not accept excuses because it will become easier to revert back to old habits. You can submit a request for a free Visualizing Guide to help transform your mind and body.
Tip 4: What you value often drives behaviors
Value becoming healthier for reasons that will sustain behavior change and lead to improved outcomes. If your motivation is to lose weight for your class reunion, this is not likely a sustainable strategy for the long term. A better approach is to value your health, want to live longer for your family, or feel better and more confident. Your changes are more likely to grow roots and become a part of your life.
Tip 5: Rally the herd
Encourage your friends and family to join your journey. Supporting each other can help you stay committed to establish your rituals and become healthier.
Tip 6: Reduce portion sizes
Examples:
- When you are going out for dinner, ask your server to box up half your meal before serving it to you.
- When you are at the movies, instead of ordering a large box of popcorn, order a smaller box.
Tip 7: Commit to a healthy grocery list and set yourself up for success
Avoid going grocery shopping hungry and commit to buying healthy foods. If you want to start living a healthy lifestyle, your environment needs to align with your desired outcomes. If cheetos or ice cream is a vice, a wise choice would be to eliminate temptations in your environment, especially in the early stages of change.
Example: If your goal is to start eating fresh foods, i.e., fruits and vegetables, this will require you to be intentional with your food purchases and supply your refrigerator with fresh produce. You need to make a clear and easy path to achieve your desired results. When healthy choices are accessible, you will be more likely to establish good habits and build momentum to improve your health.
Tip 8: Eliminate high calorie beverages
Drinking too many calories is often one of the biggest mistakes made by people. You should substitute high-calorie beverages for water or other low-calorie alternatives. You might be addicted to that sugar or caffeine spike so be prepared for short-term withdrawals. Go to https://www.hsph.harvard.edu to learn more on sugary drinks.
Tip 9: Don't allow yourself to become too hungry
When I am busy and delay my normal eating patterns, this often results in becoming too hungry and losing self-control. Bad decisions are routinely made in the “I’m so hungry” state. To avoid this pattern, have healthy foods available, and if needed, snack lightly between meals. You will benefit from having a regimented eating pattern to avoid long gaps between meals.
With that being said, when you are attempting to lose weight, you will be resetting your mind and body’s caloric expectations. You will need a little time to get used to having less calories. There will be moments when you are hungry and need to redirect yourself and change habits. Understand when you feel vulnerable and what triggers your bad eating habits. Example: When you are lonely or bored, there is a common tendency to turn to comfort foods or snacking. Many foods have a powerful, physiological effect on your body and you should be aware of the strong pull foods have on your behavior.
Tip 10: Focus on the right things
A common mistake is to focus on food or weight and this has a tendency to put a person in a poor emotional state. Some days you might be doing everything right and expect more weight loss. You jump on the scale and your entire mood swings with what you weigh. Another common pattern is to focus on foods you want to eliminate and this often leads to craving these foods even more.
Avoid this ongoing emotional roller coaster by shifting your focus on your positive behavior changes. Celebrating bright spots will help you maintain your enthusiasm, and if you are not seeing the results you desire, assess where you can make improvements.
Use my customized Assessment to test how well you are maintaining your wellness.
“After a lifetime of losing and gaining weight, I get it. No matter how you slice it, weight loss comes down to the simple formula of calories in, calories out.”
Final thoughts
Depending on the amount of weight you want to lose, keep in mind that you didn’t gain the weight in a day and you will not lose it in a day. Maintaining a healthy weight will be a difficult challenge and using my tips will help guide and prepare you for the many obstacles you will face along your journey.
Here a several suggested readings to help you achieve your goals:
-Submit a request to receive your “Free Guide to Visualizing for Success.”
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