There is one thing you MUST do if you’re ever going to succeed at losing weight. This thing has nothing to do with buying the right exercise equipment, or joining a gym or even writing out your eating plans. In fact, it has nothing to do with the actual process of losing weight at all!
Ok, I bet you’re wondering what this “thing” is, right?
Well… it’s quite a simple “thing”!
What you must do if you’re ever going to succeed at losing weight, is to work out WHY you want to lose weight!
If your reasoning is “because my doctor said I needed to”, or “because I feel fat”, then it’s unlikely you’ll lose the weight and keep it off for very long. In fact, you may eventually put on more weight than when you started!
Ok, so what if you could come up with a better reason to lose weight? Would that make a difference?
You bet it will!
Often what happens is that you start off feeling all motivated, you join the gym and you train religiously. Until something else comes along to distract you. Next you’re making excuses as to why you can’t go to the gym tonight, then this week, then this month, and eventually you’re not going at all.
The reason why this happens is because once the initial motivation dies off, there’s nothing left to inspire you to keep going. You’re not working towards achieving something you’re passionate about.
Let me give you some examples of inspirational reasons to lose weight
-You have a lifelong dream of competing in a triathlon, so in order to achieve this goal, you need to train regularly and eat properly – this of course will move you towards your weight loss goal too.
– You have young children and it is your number one priority to see them grow up and raise their own children. You want to be there for all of that, and you want to be the best grandparent ever. If you’re overweight now, your chances of being around when they come along are reduced, and it’s not like you’ll be able to get around as much and spend quality time with your grandchildren anyway because of your weight.
– You have a friend or family member who died or is seriously ill or disabled due to their obesity. You want to lose weight in their honour.
– You have seen what happens to somebody who is seriously overweight and you NEVER want to be in that situation – EVER.
– You have a goal to inspire young people and you want to live by example where your health is concerned.
These are just some of the many reasons why somebody would want to lose weight, and notice that none of them are because “somebody told me I should lose weight”. They’re reasons that come from your heart.
Basically it comes down to this: You need to believe that losing weight is going to bring you a LOT more benefits than staying as you are or gaining weight. You also need to believe that staying as you are or gaining weight will be the worst of the worst outcomes!
So here’s an exercise for you:
Grab a notebook (or even post it in the comments here!), and write down as many reasons as you possibly can as to why losing weight and getting fit is going to be the best thing ever! Remember your reasons as to “why” you want to lose weight and include them here!
Now, write down all of the reasons why staying as you are or gaining weight is going to be the worst thing ever!
Try to make your “good” list longer if you can! 😉
Now, the next time you’re lacking motivation or inspiration, look at your lists and feel the difference inside you!
