| Description: | Are you trying to lose weight? You’re not alone. Many people struggle with weight loss, and a many of them struggle to keep off the pounds once they’re shed. Motivation is hard to come by in today’s world. You may feel as though you have a better chance of success winning 10 million dollars at high-stakes Texas Hold ‘Em than getting down to your goal weight. However, it’s more than possible to work hard and see that struggle pay off. To achieve successful long-term results, there are a few things you need to keep in mind.
Abandon Perfection, Embrace a Healthy You
The most important thing to remember while dieting and hitting the gym? Don’t scrutinize yourself too much. You know you need to lose weight, so congratulate yourself — you’ve already taken the first step to a healthier you by deciding to get in shape.
Negative feelings toward your body are a reason to sabotage yourself and your weight-loss plan. Try looking at yourself in the mirror and embracing the way you look. Once you accept yourself the way you are, it will be easier to work toward your goals.
Embracing yourself doesn’t mean giving up on weight loss. It opens the doorway for significant changes. According to weight-loss expert Adam Gilbert, the main reason people fail at weight loss is their fear of failing. It’s a cycle that claims even the most motivated people.
Once you abandon the concept of perfection and embrace the wonderful being that you are, your fear will melt away. You won’t have immediate, overnight success — not without surgery — but you’ll be able to take steps toward a healthier, thinner you.
After all, the main motivation for weight loss should be health. You’ll find that easier to achieve when you aren’t stressed out about every curve and bite. Perfection is not a realistic or healthy goal. An active lifestyle full of nutritious food is.
The first step to achieving long-term results is a change in your overall lifestyle. Once you do that, you’ll find you lose the weight easily. The pounds will melt away, and more importantly, they’ll stay away.
Small Steps Help Reach Big Goals
Rome wasn’t built in a day. A healthier you won’t be either. It takes little steps to get big results. PEERTrainer co-founder Jackie Wicks explains that part of any successful weight loss plan is setting realistic goals for yourself — goals that are failproof.
Part of self-sabotage is expecting yourself to slim down in weeks or months. Just like you won’t become an overnight poker sensation with millions in the bank, you won’t become a supermodel in a month. You might not ever become a supermodel. But when you eliminate that goal of perfection (or that goal of raking in millions at the poker table), you’ll find the entire game more enjoyable and attainable. One way to set goals is to follow the SMART system: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Time-Bound. Following these guidelines allows you to set goals that are specific to you.
Caption: SMART goals are a way to take small steps on the road to big results.
So, set small goals. It helps psychologically by giving you the feeling you get when you know you have achieved something. Goals like losing one pound a week may work for the short term, but you may hit a plateau that obliterates your weight loss for a while.
To offset this, set process goals as well as results-based goals. Process goals focus on the actions you have to do to lose the weight rather than on the number of pounds lost. Focusing on parts of the process like eating and exercise will allow you to continue achieving your goals even while you may slip on the numbers aspect. For example, set the process goal of working out four days a week. Even if you fail to lose weight, you’ll know that you still achieved your goal — and probably gained some muscle!
Caption: Sharecare Chief Science Officer Dr. Mike Clark explains how to set SMART goals in a way that will help you make progress.
Eating goals are important as well. Instead of restricting yourself completely, try adding food to your diet. Vegetables, of course. Add one serving of vegetables to every meal, and you’ll find yourself eating less. Again, even if you don’t lose the weight right away, you’ll know that you’re living a healthier lifestyle. The weight loss may come slower, but that’s no reason to beat yourself up. Changing your eating habits slowly over time ensures you won’t be overwhelmed by a sudden diet change.
Caption: Switch out calorie-dense foods for healthier options over time to achieve maximum satisfaction and results in your diet.
The website Develop Good Habits explains that process goals can help achieve more long-term results than results-based goals as they help eliminate dieting stress and sustain a healthier lifestyle over time.
Don’t be Afraid of Discipline, and Give Rewards
Nobody has ever achieved greatness without discipline. Even those millionaire poker players had to spend years learning the game, and most likely suffered losses. You will too. You’ll try and fail. But that doesn’t make you a failure!
Caption: The Health Nerd gives tips to stay motivated, achieving both short and long-term results.
Experiencing the dark side of dieting can give you the motivation you need to succeed, especially if you discipline and reward yourself. It’s a simple system: If you achieve the realistic and responsible process goals you’ve given yourself, you get a reward. Go to a movie. Buy yourself a nice bottle of perfume. And when you need to, discipline yourself. Disconnect from Facebook for a day or take away your favorite TV show. Doing so will ensure you are on track to reaching your goals.
Taking the risk of losing will always instill within you the excitement and rush of a potential win. Have you ever wondered what happens to your brain when you take a risk? You can see a prime example in the mind of a seasoned poker player laying his hand on the table. The risk and the possibility of a reward causes a rush of dopamine almost like the one you get on the treadmill. But you don’t have to be a professional poker player to get it. Taking risks each day will not only help motivate you to work toward your goals but also keep you invested in your actions. Just like the poker player, you stand to win big. Not money, but something better — a healthy body, mind and soul.
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