I am sure you have heard before that a lot of people who lose weight gain it back. It can make losing weight daunting and almost scary to think all that hard work might be for naught. So what does a person with a weight loss plan do?
I have been on my own journey for over three years now, and while I am not quite to my goal weight, I have lost the majority of my weight and kept it off for those three years. I have encountered many people on my journey (mostly through Sparkpeople.com) that have kept their weight off and there are a few things I’ve noticed that these people have in common.
Perception. You have to be able to see this as a journey and as a lifestyle change. If you just go back to eating like you had in the past, of course you are just going to end up where you were. I mean it makes sense, you got fat eating that way so why would it be any different later on. Not to say some of those old bad pesky habits might sneak back in when you least expect it, but if you are conscious of what you are doing and eating you will see those soon enough and be able to get it back in check.
Persistence. If you fall, you pick yourself back up. Whether it is in losing weight or in maintaining weight, you have to be able to recover from a setback. You have to be able to shake it off and not let that bad eating day turn into a bad eating week, or month or year. You have to be able to see what you did, acknowledge it and move on. I suppose with this also entails being able to forgive yourself for the mistakes and not beating yourself into a weight gain spiral. Beating yourself up about it, only makes you feel awful and doesn’t do anything to help you achieve your goals. That is a bad place to be and you have to get out of it immediately. You have to acknowledge it, accept it, learn from it, and move on!
Planning. You have to plan. I know for me if I go into a situation with a plan I am much more likely to succeed then if I go in blind. For example if you are going out to dinner, you can look at the menu ahead and scout out what the best options are. Or you have a party this weekend, you can plan out how many drinks you will have, and how many treats you will allow yourself, etc.
Planning ahead allows you to make a good decision and how to avoid the bad ones. I know for me it has been a life saver to plan for the moment and then I won’t be caught off guard and have to make a decision in the moment. That can be the worst. For example let’s say I didn’t plan ahead and forgot my meals for the day. By the time I get to supper I am now starving and will grab anything in sight and inhale it. And hopefully I did plan out having nice healthy meals at home so I’m not then tempted just order a pizza or get some Taco John’s. I’m sure you can think of lots of times that the lack of planning could get you into trouble, so plan ahead and safe guard yourself against it. It really can make a huge difference.
Now planning is half the battle and the follow through is just as important but at least with a plan you can be sure that you will come out much better then not having one at all.
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