Some great information!!! Taken from loseweightcafe.com
Weight loss is simple: burn more calories than you consume. But if it’s so simple, why is it so difficult to implement? The answer is all in our minds.
Successful weight loss does not start with a diet or an exercise regime – it starts with your mind. The mind is a very powerful thing – depending on your mindset, you will either succeed or fail. So before you decide on the details of what to eat and when to exercise, you need to decide to have the right mindset and the right attitude.
First of all, you need to commit to being healthy and leading a healthy lifestyle. However, commitment doesn’t just mean writing down your goals and telling your friends you want to lose weight. Commitment means you wake up every day and decide to be healthy. It’s a decision you make every time you have a choice between being unhealthy, and being healthy.
Here are some things you can do to stay committed ~
Motivate yourself:
Don’t forget your goals. Remind yourself throughout the day about what you would like to achieve. Have a friend call and remind you or set alarms.
Remember your goals:
It’s easy to forget the big picture among all the details. Remember your long-term goals, and remind yourself that the details do add up!
Plan and Prepare:
Weight loss can be a big lifestyle change, one that you’re not used to. Try to make things easier for yourself. For instance, plan your workout the night before and lay out exercise clothes. Decide what you’ll eat the next week and buy groceries accordingly. Pack your lunch the night before.
Be Accountable:
When you achieve your goals, reward yourself. When you skip that workout, or indulge in unhealthy foods, have consequences ready to deter yourself – miss your favourite TV show, for instance.
There’s a saying, “Plan your work and work your plan” – this does hold true for weight loss. Do the things you’ve planned – whether it’s exercising or eating healthy. Here are some tips for being disciplined in your approach to weight loss:
Make it a habit to exercise:
Don’t think about whether to exercise or not. Have a set plan and stick to it. For instance, decide that you’ll go for a run every morning, or you’ll attend the daily aerobics classes at the gym. If you make it a habit, you won’t have the chance to think about it, and decide to maybe not exercise today.
Get help:
It’s much easier to make a lifestyle change if you have some help. Ideally, you should have an accountability partner. Even if you don’t have someone to buddy up with during your weight loss journey, try to get support from your friends. For instance, try to become friends with someone at the gym, and plan to workout together – you’ll place more importance on going to the gym if you know there’s someone waiting for you.
Just do a bit:
If you don’t feel like exercising, make a deal with yourself that you’ll just do a bit. For example, if your regular run is 30 minutes decide to go for 10 minutes. Most of the time, you’ll find that the first step is the hardest – once you’ve taken it, you’ll want to keep going.
Put things off:
If you feel like dessert or an extra, unhealthy snack, put it off for a bit. Tell yourself that you’ll have that chocolate after an hour or so – often an hour later you’ll find that you don’t want that chocolate.
If you’re serious about losing weight, you’ll find that preparing your mind and having the right attitude will make it much easier for you to stick to your weight-loss plans.