Last Updated Jan 2011
Here's 7 great tips for healthcare professionals AND clients to help keep those infamous weight loss resolutions strong and effective throughout the entire year:
1. Set goals or the weight won’t go: Ever go on a trip and not know where you were going? How much gas did you plan on getting? What kind of provisions did you pack? It’s difficult to go through a weight-loss or health finding “journey” with blinders on. You need a goal, because the goal is your finish line—something you can see, and feel and strive for. Without goals you’re just taking blind shots at an unidentified target from miles away.
2. Create a target and know when you’ve hit the bull’s eye: Success has definition just like that six pack you’re trying to chisel out. An ill-defined target or goal is like a set of ill-defined abs. If you want results you need to create specific, objective and measurable goals with clear time-frames. So instead of “lose weight and feel better” try “lose 10 lbs. overall and 5 inches from my waist by March 15th so I can nail the part of Lois Lane in Superman VIII”
3. Go for the gold (one ounce at a time). Sure, in 2 weeks you want to weigh as much as you did when you were in high school, when you got married or (fill in the blank with that ideal, nostalgic time when the scale was your friend). Reality check: it may take longer than 2 weeks for you to fit into that superhero suit, but you can still be a superhero. Rather than going for broke, try breaking your long term goals into smaller short term ones. This way you can celebrate successes along the way to the ultimate success.
4. Goals aren't always about results. Perhaps you get easily discouraged when the scale doesn’t flatter you or the mirror doesn’t reflect the “inner you” that’s trying to free itself. Sometimes, goal setting doesn’t have to be about the end result. Instead of a goal to lose 10 inches you can make it your goal to work out, say, for at least 20 minutes on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday. Notice that this is relatively realistic for a beginner, but perhaps too wimpy for someone 2 months into a workout routine. Adjust accordingly.
5. Work(out) with others: They say that misery loves company, but so does success. It’s much harder to eat that donut and skip three workouts when your workout buddy has already blown holes in your alibi of having to visit your sick grandma. Your workout buddies create the accountability, fun factor, and group energy that keeps you on track and moving faster than when you’re rationalizing and overeating by yourself.
6. Make time: What’s the difference between people who work out/eat well and those who don’t? Simple: they work out and eat well. They made a decision to change their lives and they re-affirmed that decision every day. As the pounds fly off and the heads turn, suddenly, time is no longer an issue because working out has made it into the daily planner next to doing laundry and eating lunch.
7. Expect to Backtrack: You WILL falter at some point. The key is to expect this and to not hit yourself with a 2x4. Not only will you end up with a concussion, given your altered mental status, you’re also more likely to think, “okay I failed so I might as well just give up now.” Start over. Recommit. Shift your gears back into drive and move forward. Falling short of your expectations is only bad if you don’t get back up.