How do we commit to our weight loss goals and then (here’s the big part) STAY committed for the long haul?
Trying to commit to our weight loss goals is a struggle, right?
Especially if we are in a situation where we know we probably have at least a little time each day to commit to our fitness. If that’s the case, then why we don’t take that extra step to commit to our goals regularly?
Like most things in a successful forever-fat-loss journey, it comes down to changing our MINDSET.
MINDSET is EVERYTHING!
And much of this boils down to changing our mindset from our old “yo-yo dieter” mindset to a new “forever-fit” mindset.
Here’s some real-world strategies to begin to make this super-important mindset shift.
1) Fully Embrace and Write Down Your WHY
This starts with figuring out WHY you want to achieve your goals. Dig Deep! To simply say, “I want to lose weight,” or “I want to get fit” is not enough. WHY do you want to do these things? HOW will reaching these goals impact your life for the better?
Once you figure that out, your path to success becomes a bit easier to see (and achieve)!
I challenge you to write a WHY list. Take a few days to be sure you are getting through the superficial reasons and uncovering the heart of WHY you want to get fit. A mentor once told me, “Pick a WHY that makes you cry.” Now, you don’t need to necessarily be crying over your reasons to get fit, but his words were true. You want to discover the reasons why your weight loss and good health really mean something to you. After writing your “WHY List,” keep it out to review (and add to) during your fitness journey.
2) Adopt Habit-Based Strategies to Reach Your Goals (pro tip – the less habits you tackle at a time, the better!)
In our old yo-yo dieter mindset, we often try to overhaul too many things at once. This is not our fault. It’s how we were taught to “get healthy” or lose weight in our current diet culture. In reality, overhauling so many things at once is not sustainable.
It’s simply impossible to commit and STAY committed to HUGE lifestyle changes – all at once!
Instead, adopt habit-based diet changes. Pick 1-3 habits (less is better) to commit to practicing. It’s MUCH easier to stay committed to our goals when we choose do-able goals to tackle every day.
For example, start by working on increasing your water consumption for a few weeks until you solidify the habit. From there, start to build the habit of increasing your vegetable consumption. Habit-based strategies to lose weight have been proven more effective long term than diets that require us to change multiple habits at one time.
The best part – this can translate to REAL weight loss we can keep for life!
3) Don’t Wait for Conditions to be Perfect to Commit (the magic happens when we learn how to stick with it in real life – not perfect conditions!)
As you think about your goals, remind yourself that we are never “on” or “off” with our fitness. In past diets we often have to wait for perfect conditions to be able to commit to our programs. I would tell myself I would start a diet AFTER my birthday or AFTER the holidays, because there was no way I could stick to my goals under those conditions.
This has to be about REAL LIFE, though (not only getting fit in “perfect” conditions).
Instead of thinking you have to force yourself to start something strict on Monday (that may have brought you weight loss in the past, but never worked long term), try a new way. Pick ONE healthy habit to start to master.
With a forever-fit mindset, there is no “on the wagon,” “off the wagon.” In fact, you are always “on,” but it’s because there is no wagon you can fall off of anymore.
We make it work for where we are RIGHT NOW.
Because our lives are never perfect. We have to learn to go with the flow.
4) Practice my T.R.Y. Method for Forever-Fat Loss
My T.R.Y. Method is a strategy I used to help myself, and currently use with my clients as we work on losing weight the forever-fit way.
T.R.Y. METHOD to FOREVER-FAT LOSS:
- T: Trust the process
- R: Race (recognize it is not a race)
- Y: YOU… make your journey about YOU!
Next time you feel like you’re getting off track with your weight loss goals, check in with yourself and see if you’re following the “TRY Method” or falling into the old yo-yo dieter mindset.
It’s a process, and just like everything worthwhile…. it takes practice! But the payoff will be so worth it!
5) Remind Yourself Struggles are Normal and Pick Yourself Back Up!
Struggles are normal. There are no failures, only learning lessons. You are always one meal or one workout away from feeling like you’re where you need to be. Start to change your mindset with how you look at “failures.” They are simply an opportunity to begin to practice a new forever-fit mindset and get rid of the old yo-yo dieter mindset (that’s NEVER worked long term).
With these strategies, it’s truly possible to commit and stay committed to your goals for good!
❤️️,
Barb