We’re starting the first Monday of this year with helpful tips on how to achieve your weight loss-related new year resolutions since this happens to be a pressing need in our current generation and has been validated by various reports including a recent one published in the University of Scranton Journal of Clinical Psychology which reported that losing weight was the number one new year’s resolution in 2014.
Since almost 40% of American adults are obese, according to a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), it is no surprise that most people will have shedding a few pounds one of their top priorities every year.
A research study also done by the University of Scranton showed that only 8% of people achieve the goals they set for the New Year, and with this low success rate with New Year resolutions, it makes one understand why the goal of losing weight is often not achieved.
But, this year, we can do something different and be among the 8% that statistics show as achieving their goals by trying some of the steps that will be discussed below as it relates to your weight loss
goals in 2015.
1. Set Specific & Measurable Goals. Specific and measurable goals helps in ensuring that your goals are clearly defined and can be easily monitored towards their achievement. For example, instead of saying that your new year’s resolution is to “lose weight,” you will help yourself in achieving your goals better if you have a well-defined measurable goal such as “I plan on losing one to two pounds per week until I reach my goal of fifteen pounds by the end of the year” or “my goal is to have dinner before 7p.m. on a daily basis for the rest of the year”. With statements like the latter, you will be able to easily relate to the specifics of your goals and therefore able to track whether you are meeting them rather than having generic goals that are often very difficult to quantify.
2. Document your Goals: Once you’ve identified the specific weight loss-related goals you want to achieve, write them down, sign/date it and place the documented goals in an easily accessible location so that the more you see them, the more you are reminded on ensuring the goals are achieved during the year. Also, documenting your goals solidifies them and helps in ensuring they can be easily tracked for success and ensures you stay focused on the goals you’ve committed to.
3. Keep a Food Journal: Having a food journal or food calorie counter helps in ensuring your goals of staying within a particular calorie intake is documented and monitored. One of the most popular ones is that provided by MyFitnessPal, a food calorie counter, which keeps track of your calorie intake per meal and also alerts when you are going over your assigned limit for the day.
4. Share your Goals with Friends and Family Members. When you discuss your weight loss-related goals and resolutions with your closest friends and family members, you create a support system that will help in encouraging you towards the achievement of your goals and also serve as a check, if you ever go astray. For example, if your new year resolution is to quit drinking soda and a friend sees you taking one, most likely than not, he or she will caution you about sipping the drink which may help you in dropping the can altogether and not taking the drink.
5. Exercise With a Workout Partner or Join a Workout Group. Although, exercise only accounts for a minor percentage (about 20-25%) in achieving your weight loss goals, with your food intake taking the larger share of about 70-75%, the need to exercise cannot be overemphasized as it helps to set the body organs in motion in order to achieve an overall healthy functioning of the body system. Exercising alone can be tasking for some people and in order to stay encouraged, having a workout buddy may come in useful in pumping up your motivation on those chilling winter days to to step out and get your workout done . Also, having a workout buddy or group often makes exercising more fun and a sort of social activity that you will end up looking forward to and without knowing it, will help you towards the achievement of your weight loss and staying-fit goals.
6. Set up a Reward System. This strategy of reward and “punishment” rule-making often used with our children to enforce positive behavior may seem absurd with adults, but if utilized judiciously can definitely help in reaching your weight loss goal. However, you will have to muster a lot of discipline to make it happen. If you love designer bags and shoes for example, try to create a reward system that ties your purchase of those bags and shoes to the achievement of your weight loss goals. If you are really disciplined and serious about achieving your goals, then your desire to buy that next designer bag will drive you to lose those extra pounds in a much faster way than you can ever imagine. But, this definitely takes a lot of discipline!
7. Continually Visualize the Achievement of Your Goals. There’s something about visualization, which if done with a positive mindset may often lead to the realization of whatever desires are being sought. And, this also applies to your weight loss jouney. If you can spend a few minutes thinking about what you will look and feel like when you achieve your goal and fit into your favorite jeans again, maybe that feeling alone can give you the encouragement you need to pull through those times you may get weary as you pursue your weight-loss-related new year resolutions.
8. Be Disciplined. There’s no weight loss journey that is easy, even if you are going to use fat burners or medications. You still have to be disciplined in following whatever routine you have set up for achieving the weight loss goals. With self discipline, you will be able to muster the energy to push yourself above and beyond to ensure you achieve some percentage of the goal rather than none at all, even when it’s most difficult to do so.
9. Believe in Yourself. No matter the discouragement around you, you need to believe in yourself and have confidence in your ability to commit to your new year resolution to lose weight in 2015. Be proud of every accomplishment you make, even if it’s just losing a pound, and continue to encourage yourself as you take baby steps towards shedding more weight and losing those extra pounds by the day. Praise yourself for every accomplished visit to the Gym or determination to stay off that extra serving of food or chocolate bar. It takes a lot to stay lose weight, stay fit and healthy, so if you’ve started this race, you need to give yourself thumbs up for making it happen!
10. Never Give Up. We are all human and there is a slight possibility that you may lose hope somewhere along the line regarding the possibility of ever achieving your weight loss goals this year, despite all your best efforts. Even if you occasionally mess up, don’t give up! Get up from where you strayed and hold on tenaciously to the goals you’ve set for yourself. Utilize the support system around you if you find it difficult to muster the inner strength to continue with your weight loss objectives.But, no matter what happens, NEVER GIVE UP! Always stay focused on your vision, and with hard work, determination and perseverance, you’ll be closer to the achievement of your goals by the end of the year, than where you started from at the very beginning.
We hope you now feel a little encouraged that you new year resolutions regarding weight loss can be achieved with this little piece of information. Don’t procrastinate any further, get started on this journey as you can never have a better opportunity to start this race than now.
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