Many of us make the decision to lose weight. After such a momentous decision however, many of us falter, and even where we lose weight, it seems to creep back on over time – soon leaving us back just where we started. Nothing can be more disheartening than investing in ourselves, and often in a
flexible gym membership, only to then regain any lost pounds. In the illusive quest to improve men’s fitness and women’s fitness, there are many causalities. Here however we look at some basic tips that will hopefully avoid you being the next one. Be prepared for some tough times, for temptation and for plateaus. Hopefully this time, however, the rewards you gain will remain.
Tip 1: Be Realistic
If your goals are optimistic that is fine, but ensure that they are realistic too. If they are never achievable, on not reaching them, as you inevitably will not, then you will lose all motivation and feel bad about yourself too. So rather than setting yourself up to fail, set realistic goals, and thereafter review and renew these goals –so setting yourself up to succeed. Hitting these goals will keep you on the right path, just ensure that you keep nudging them forward.
Tip 2: Slow Down
Rapid episodes of weight loss are more often than often followed by rapid weight gain. Starving yourself feels frustrating, and is unhealthy, so don’t. Eat healthy to be healthy.
Tip 3: Plan To Fail
Or more realistically, plan for occasional hiccups. The road to
men’s fitness or women’s fitness is littered with pot holes, so you can expect to hit a few along the way. Single splurges are okay for example, but just ensure that you do not slip back into bad habits, and maintain the good ones. Do not be too harsh on yourself when you do slip up, just move on and remind yourself of your goals and achievements to date.
Tip 4: Perfection Is Unrealistic
Even those people who flex their gym memberships on a daily basis will never attain it, so how can you expect to? Moreover, don’t even have it as an aim. If you do have a hiccup, do not consider yourself a failure; this will only compound the mistake and probably make it worse. Move on. The only people who say that they have achieved perfection are all lying anyway, and nobody likes a liar.
Tip 5: Partners
Having a gym partner, one motivated by the same goals as you, makes success much more probable. Having the responsibility of turning up to the gym according to a pre-agreed day and time is motivation in itself and you are much less likely to miss a session. Good habits will then form much quicker and will thereafter be harder to break.
Tip 6: Patience
All good things come to those that wait…including weight loss. Jumping daily on and off the scales however will only frustrate you. Instead, take photographs at the start of your journey and as you go along, these will better document the weight loss, and make it more visible to yourself. Often we undersell achievements, so avoid doing that and give yourself plenty of reason for further progression. There will be plateaus and these can be especially tough, but remind yourself of the reasons you are looking to lose weight and of all that you have achieved so far. It is not a rush, so let it happen. Just do not lose motivation.
Tip 7: Rewards
You need tangible rewards, rather than the empty reward of achieving fitness for example. Do not however reward yourself with old treats, but make the reward related to the next goal – maybe a new piece of gym wear, but in a smaller size. That way, every time you use it, it reinforces your successes. Maybe have a massage or a spa day; reward for those tired muscles after putting your gym membership to work.
Tip 8: Long Term
If you have lost weight, what then? You have a goal to achieve a certain weight, but no plan as to where to go then? Make sure that your plan covers the long term too. Ensure that you have in place the ideas and motivations to maintain this healthy new lifestyle. Reinforce and stick to your good habits, and look to maintain your new weight. Often people simply get some weight off and then lose focus, and yes it creeps back on. You need to stay motivated, and rather than a diet and exercise, combine both together and label them as a lifestyle choices, ones that you will maintain long term. Incorporate healthier activities such as taking the stairs rather than the lift into your day, and this will help contribute toall of your good work.
Losing weight is not easy, even making the decision is hard. But having made that effort, isn’t it much better to not revert back to old habits? Hopefully these tips will help you form new and healthier habits, ones that will keep you at your optimum weight for plenty of years to come. Be prepared for tough times, but if you have made that decision, then with a little help and some hard work you will achieve your goals.