How to Make New Year's Weight Loss Resolutions Stick!

 

The New Year’s Resolution has become the mythical symbol of the new year much like Santa Clause and the Easter Bunny. It is nice to believe in, but not quite real. Make this year different by forming your resolution like this:

1. Your Weight is not the Problem, it is a Symptom of a Problem

We all want to lose weight come January first. We vow we will lose 20, 30, 50 pounds once January starts, but it never seems to work. Instead of focusing on your weight (which is a symptom) focus on improving the habits that will get your weight down. For example, if you make your resolution to drink more water, reduce after dinner eating, eat breakfast, etc…those habits will cause your weight to go down, and your actions will always be in line with your goals.

2. Improve, Don't Perfect
When it comes to weight loss and nutrition, we tend to judge our success to perfection. If we miss the mark on perfect, we consider it “off track”, which in turn, snowballs into potentially several days, weeks, or months of being “off track”. Instead, compare your success to what you did last week, if it was better, mission accomplished! For example, if I have a client who is eating 15 cheeseburgers a week (it happens), and now they are eating 10 a week, guess what? They will see results that week! If they try to cut them out cold turkey, statistically speaking they will be on a burger binger by Thursday. If you didn’t exercise at all last week, and you went one day this week, that is great! Improve, don’t perfect!

3. Change the way you Handle Slip Ups
That saying “old habits die hard” is no joke! You will have slip ups on your resolution journey, it is completely unavoidable. If you get back on track, bonus points! If you get back on track, and learn from it, mega bonus points! It is not the slip up that will dictate your success or failure, it is how you handle it.

4. Love the Changes you are Making
If you are trying to lose weight by eating foods that make you miserable (think: bland chicken and egg whites), you are not going to want to do this long term. The biggest indicator if someone will lose weight and keep it off, is if they got there in a way they felt they could maintain their whole lives. You need to find exercise you love, you need to find healthy foods you love (they are out there!) Then you won’t mind your new lifestyle (and matching bod) one bit!