Losing weight is difficult. From all the exercises we do to the luxury foods we have to give up, it can leave us feeling incredibly worn out, depressed and lacking the motivation to continue on. It’s no surprise that many of us give up our weight loss goals early into the ordeal, and it takes a lot of hard work to regain any sense of composure to try again.
If this reminds you of your own attempts at losing weight, then don’t worry—it happens to everyone. What you’re likely missing is positive energy and the motivation to keep going. In this guide, we’ll be looking at ways to improve your positivity in order to give you a better chance of losing weight in the future.
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What is your motivation?
Why do you want to lose weight? What’s your reason for improving your health? Lately, it’s become difficult for people to really find a reason to lose weight other than to “look better”, and this is completely acceptable. Perhaps you find it difficult to date because of your weight, or maybe you’re having trouble with your partner because of your weight issues. These are embarrassing and often depressing situations, but they make real reasons for wanting to lose weight.
Motivation is the key to losing weight because it gives you positive energy knowing that you’re reaching your goals. For instance, if your motivation for losing weight is to assist in your current health, then it will feel fantastic when you make noticeable changes to your lifestyle. Perhaps you stop getting out of breath when you walk up the steps to your home, or maybe you find yourself being able to walk for longer distances without feeling your knees hurt. There are many small signs that let you know you’re doing a great job, and by setting reasonable goes and a source of motivation you can feel positive about all the small challenges you overcome.
Motivation can also come in the form of help. Recognised gym courses are great because you’re paired with someone who can motivate and teach you how to live a healthy lifestyle. It might sound expensive, but the support, assistance and motivation you get are absolutely priceless. Of course, it’s a good idea to look at reviews before you hire a personal trainer to help you. There’s a huge difference between a good and a bad personal trainer, and only the best are capable of making you feel fantastic each time you finish a set of exercises or reach new targets.
A lot of the time, people find it incredibly difficult to maintain their weight loss goals because they don’t feel motivated. They don’t see the light at the end of the tunnel and they don’t receive the positive energy they need to continue with their exercise and diet plans. Motivation can make us do a lot of powerful and wonderful things so it’s important to rely on it. Set yourself up some goals, ask yourself what your reason for losing weight is, and set small realistic goals to promote positive energy and a sense of accomplishment.
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Reduce the strain
Weight loss can make us feel absolutely horrible at times. Taking on an extra few sets of exercises can make our bodies hurt, it can make our minds hazy and we’ll hate ourselves the next morning for torturing our bodies. While the “no pain no gain” saying is somewhat true, you don’t have to inflict pain on yourself just to lose weight.
The strain of weight loss comes in two main forms: physical and mental. Physical strain comes from pushing your body to its limits both in terms of how much food you cut and also how much exercise you do. The mental strain comes from limiting yourself to certain things and decreasing your quality of life for the sake of exercise. It takes a strong mind to be able to balance these both.
For instance, mental strain can occur when you punish yourself for failing to do exercises, or when you refuse to go out with friends out of fear that you will end up drinking and binging on food. This is why people have cheat days in their workout routines. These are days where you can reward yourself and make yourself happy. You can eat all the food you want (as long as it’s within reason), you can go out to see you friends and have some alcohol, and you can skip your exercises for that day. However, it’s important not to have too many cheat days. Limit yourself to once a week or every two weeks to ensure that you’re not overdoing it.
The physical strain comes from how much you push yourself during exercises. If you ever feel lightheaded after working out or feel sick after pushing yourself, then it’s a clear sign that you need to rethink your workout routine. First, determine if those effects are the result of your own body or preexisting conditions. There are some medical conditions that could cause lightheadedness or nausea after working out. Exercising under these conditions is harmful to your body and could diminish any kind of effort you’ve put into your weight loss. In addition, you could put your entire body and life at risk by pushing yourself to limits that you shouldn’t be hitting.
In order to be positive and lose weight with a smile on your face, you can’t push your body to the point where you’re feeling sick. Stick to lower-intensity training and exercises until you can take the added strain. It’s important that you don’t work yourself to a point where you want to give up, so go easy on your body and stop stressing yourself out so much. Exercise is important, but it’s half the battle and your diet also needs to be taken into consideration.
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Making small changes
Making drastic changes is no way to do anything when it comes to your health. Switching to healthier alternatives in life is always a good idea. Be it getting off the bus a stop or two early and walking or switching from soda to water, these are admirable changes that can make a huge change to your lifestyle. Unfortunately, it can be difficult making all of these changes at once, which is why it’s important to make gradual improvements to your life.
Your lifestyle (in other words, the things you do on a regular basis) have a huge effect on how you shape your body. For instance, if you live in the city and most of the stores you need are close, then you’re more likely to walk to those destinations to purchase things. However, if you live on the outskirts then you probably drive a lot more. If you live in the countryside then there’s a good chance you use a bike a lot for exercise and transport, and if you live in an apartment complex without an elevator then you probably have to walk a lot each day.
If your lifestyle doesn’t include healthier habits then you need to will yourself to gradually change your attitude. For example, if you walk by a fast food place and regularly purchase your dinner from there after work, make it a habit of walking a different path to avoid it or visit a grocery store instead to buy ingredients to cook dinner. If you find yourself taking the bus a lot or using elevators, then consider taking stairs or walking more. Don’t make huge changes to your lifestyle—simple ones will do fine.
When it comes to your diet, remember that you don’t have to make huge changes immediately. If you want to cut down on soda, consider drinking diet soda for a while, then lower it to sparkling water or fruit juice, then finally water. These gradual changes are important because it makes you more likely to stick with them. Occasionally drinking some soda after you switch your diet is fine, but as you make these changes you’ll slowly move away from unhealthy drinks and snacks in favour of healthier ones.
No one likes to force themselves to drink water all day after they’ve gotten used to sparkling drinks, caffeinated drinks and so on. Similarly, people hate eating just salads and skipping out their favourite sweets. Striking the right balance by making small gradual changes is the best way to lose weight. They’re easier to cope with, they’re simple enough to become part of your lifestyle over a long period of time and you won’t feel terrible about it.
To conclude, weight loss is all about having a positive mindset. If you’re not feeling great when you start working out and dieting then you won’t be successful. You need to make gradual changes to your lifestyle and slowly work towards burning off excess fat. Stay positive and don’t force yourself into uncomfortable or frustrating situations. Focus on trying to stay happy with the changes in your lifestyle so you can lose weight with a smile on your face.
