Weight Loss Motivation

Weight Loss Motivation

Reasons why you may be motivated to lose weight

Initially, you may be on a  weight loss motivation or begin an exercise program when you’ve overindulged over a festive season, had some prolonged celebration or when you’ve returned from a lovely holiday.
And then you find your favorite clothes don’t fit anymore.
Needing to be a certain weight for a specific job is another reason.

I remember one of our clients desperately wanting to lose weight when she saw a recent family photo in which she was included. She had not realised how big she had become until she saw this photo.
So for you, it might be quite a different reason! Then your doctor might advise you that you need to lose weight.
These external factors are great for getting you started.

So do you have a compelling reason? Do you have a reason that really motivates you to lose weight?

One of the main reasons many people embark on a weight control program and fail is that their compelling reason is not strong enough to motivate them to continue and reach their desired weight or health goal.

To illustrate this, Which of these two situations would you find more motivating?
Example 1
Let’s say a well-meaning friend tells you that you are starting to look a bit on the plump side and you should lose 20 kgs. How would you feel about that? You may say to your self “well they are probably correct, yes, I will start a program”, or you may choose to ignore them.

Example 2:
On the other hand, your local G.P tells you that unless you lose 20 kg you are likely to have a
heart attack or suffer a stroke.

Example:
I had a lady arrive at my clinic that had been told by her doctor that she needed to lose 25 kg before she could undergo a hip replacement operation. Do you think that being able to walk once again would be a compelling reason to lose weight? Well, she did lose her 25 kg, had her operation and not long after went off on a great holiday without any pain.
Fitting into a smaller size of clothes for your wedding photos is another compelling reason. Even a pending wedding, where you are the mother of the bride or part of the bridal party.

Motivation Comes From Within

Motivation, that compelling reason why we may need to lose weight, comes from within and is the best reason to keep us on track. External motivation never has the power that is required to achieve long-term goals.

“We must have that real reason, reason from within is the best. So search for that reason.”

Therefore, recognizing the role that food should play in our lives is very important for health. Food is required as fuel to replace what we use up in day-to-day activities. When food becomes the main focus of enjoyment in our lives we have forgotten the main reason why we need to eat. So:

“Make sure your compelling reason is strong enough to motivate you to say no to that extra piece of pizza or glass of wine or piece of chocolate cake”

Any of these reasons may motivate you to start looking for weight loss plans and exercise programs.

Take Small Steps to Help Your Weight Loss Motivation

And to help your motivation you might want to take small steps to improve your health before you take the plunge and commit to a full-scale weight-loss program.

We have a list of tips for weight loss here.

Ask us about how making small changes to your diet or lifestyle will affect your health.

Once you’ve taken these small steps and find how good you feel after eating better and doing a bit of exercise, this feeling could motivate you to keep going.

For many, this can last for a very short time. So how do you go about motivating yourself to make your quest to lose weight last?
Just how do you create internal motivation?

The good news is that most people already have it. All you have to do is find it, identify it and acknowledge it.

3 Steps to Nurture Internal Motivation

1. Start with a short-term goal. Set yourself up for success by setting very short-term achievable goals. Your long-term goal might be to lose 20 Kilos but a good short-term goal might be to change to eating a lean healthy breakfast each day during the week, and drinking more water while reducing soft drinks.
2. The next week you could increase vegetables and choose healthy protein sources.
   While all this is happening,
3. Keep a journal. Write out each goal in a journal. At the end of the day, comment on the day’s success. Keep in mind that just taking the time to write in your journal is healthy and an accomplishment in itself. Use positive words that describe how you feel about your actions.
4. Acknowledge your success. Take time to review your successes and give yourself credit.
5. Review your journal on a regular basis and take pride in every step you’ve taken to improve your health.

As you move through the process of nurturing internal motivation, you’ll find that your confidence in your own abilities will increase.

When you acknowledge the success of small accomplishments, it becomes easier to believe that larger goals are attainable. You begin to believe in yourself and in your ability to support your health by losing your weight.

When you are happy with these changes you can opt for a healthy weight loss diet to enhance your motivation:

“Make sure the weight loss diet you choose is not too restrictive.”

What to avoid in Weight Loss Programs

Avoid weight loss programs that may need you to buy low carbohydrate or low-calorie foods.
These can be a nightmare and expensive.
Meal replacements like shakes and home-delivered meals are not a healthy option either.
Our bodies are not meant to function on processed mass produced manufactured, frozen or dehydrated foods.

Weight Loss Program You Choose:

• Needs to include wholesome naturally occurring foods like vegetables, fruit, nuts, whole grains, meat, fish, eggs, and cheese.
• Any weight loss program that prevents you from eating three meals of the above-mentioned foods each day is not sustainable.
• When you know which food groups to eat and how much of each, you will be able to make the correct food choices that best suit your metabolism and body type.
• Your weight loss program must empower you and motivate you.
• It must show you how to prepare good food.
• When this is the case, you will feel good, your energy will improve and you will feel better than you have in a long time.
• This is what will help you get results.

And by seeing results your weight loss motivation will keep you on track to reach your goal weight.

“Avoid weight loss programs that recommend meal replacement drinks and that don’t advise foods that are readily available”.

To help you along do keep a daily journal of what you have eaten and any difficulties you may have experienced.
And to help you stay motivated throughout, we have some motivational weight loss quotes for you.

For a calendar of weight loss motivational quotes,
email: Health@yourwellnesscentre.com.au