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Dec 17, 2010

Mental: Let Your Mind Make You Slim

Did you know that your weight loss may be dependent on whether or not you believe in yourself? In order to shed those pounds successfully, you need to do more than just change your diet plan or exercise more frequently; you need to overcome the mental obstacles that may be preventing your weight loss success.
Below are a few strategies that may help you start thinking thin and become one step closer to reaching your goal weight.
  1. Imagine. You want to lose weight so you fit in those old pair of jeans from college, or so that you can fit in your perfect wedding dress…or any other dream you have. So, start thinking of yourself then. Imagine yourself post weight loss, whether it’s six months from today or a year from now; keep imagining how beautiful you’re going to look and feel. Imagine how accomplished you’ll feel when you fit yourself in a pair of tight jeans that you wore in your college days. If you were every thinner than you currently are, dig up those old photos and place them around the house so that they work as constant visual reminders of what you are working toward. Think of all the things you used to be able to do but can’t anymore because of your weight. What can you do to reach your goal? Do it!
  2. Don’t over expect. Nothing can be more off-putting than over-anticipating and finding yourself not meeting your weight goal week after week. Set realistic expectations, achieve them and enjoy the taste of success that will no doubt motivate you to keep going.
  3. Make small goals. Small goals are easy to achieve and are great to keep you motivated. Some could include:
    1. Eat more fruits and vegetables;
    2. Exercising every day, if only for 30 mins or so;
    3. Cutting back on alcohol (limiting your consumption for the weekends only, for instance);
    4. Substituting the French fries for a salad
But remember, change is hard to make so make one change at a time so as to not overwhelm yourself and lose motivation.
  1. Know what you’re doing and stick to it. There are so many different ways you can go about losing weight, and the possibilities are overwhelming to many dieters. Set a plan and stick to it. Meeting your weight loss process one day at a time may seem like a good idea at the beginning, but it leaves too many possibilities towards failure open, because let’s face it, there’s always going to be something more important that you could be doing than spending time fixing a healthy meal or 30 minutes exercising!
  2. Give yourself a pat on the back. When you do follow through with your plan, reward yourself to stay encouraged. That doesn’t mean you’re allowed to flat-out break your diet and indulge in dessert after dessert, but a single bar of chocolate or trip to the movies does a lot of good to your mental state and keeps you motivated to accomplish more of your small weight goals.
  3. Lose those bad habits. Weight loss is a change in lifestyle. You can’t expect to eat the same foods and be as inactive as you once were and still manage to lose weight. If you have an evening ritual of lounging in front of the TV every night with a bag of chips, for instance, you can indulge in a piece of fruit instead. You’d be surprised at how big a difference these small substitutions can be.
  4. Keep track of what’s happening to your body. Keep a weight loss journal and include how much weight you lost every week and what strategy worked for you. This is a great way to determine what methods work best for your body so that you can lose weight effectively.
  5. Join a support group. Weight loss is a physically and emotionally draining journey—you want someone to be there to support you along the way, especially through the rough patches. If you don’t want to join a support group, make sure you have a member of your family or a friend who you can count on to be there when you need them. Another great way to get the motivation you need to see you through your weight loss journey is by speaking to a weight loss coach who can give you the advice and support you need to shed those pounds. I’d love to hear from you, so please don’t hesitate to contact me or leave a comment here with your questions or comments and I’ll be sure to get back to you as soon as I can.

Having troubles sticking to your diet plan? Need some help setting your plan up? Looking for an extra pair of ears or some extra support and motivation? I’d love to hear from you! Let me know how your weight loss plan is going, how many pounds you’ve lose to date and anything else you want to share with me. Please don’t hesitate to contact me or leave a comment here with your questions or comments and I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.



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