5 Ways to Motivate Yourself To Lose Weight

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Losing weight, especially a substantial amount, can be one of the hardest things to do.

If youâ??re doing so at an older age, youâ??ll have already settled into habits and patterns of behaviours over a lifetime, which could amount to several decades of doing things.

This can be eating the same meals, in the same quantities and at the same times of the day. Youâ??ll have probably fallen into these eating habits because of the way your life commitments and responsibilities are arranged, with looking after kids, work, pets and other factors which dictate how you spend your time. Itâ??s also become apparent that kids are falling into habits as well according to recent news reports on childhood obesity.

Motivation is the key to sticking to a diet plan and often when people fail, itâ??s because theyâ??re not motivated enough to dedicate themselves fully to this cause. A bit like when people speak of an addict needing to hit rock bottom before they can quit, someone who is fat or obese needs that push so they feel like they have to see it through the whole way. Here are a few tips:

1: Visit Your GP

Many go so long with bad habits because they donâ??t realise the damage they are doing to themselves internally. In some cases, unfortunately this can have dangerous and even fatal results when they do become apparent, in the form of heart attacks or a diagnosis of diabetes, cancer etc. If you catch a health problem early as itâ??s beginning to snowball, you can easily go about changing this before it becomes a bigger problem that might one day require surgery, if youâ??re lucky. Having a professional tell you whatâ??s going on inside you with data and scan results is a very harsh reality but one that works with the scare-factor.

2: Buy a Gym Membership

You can get a very good workout at home using stairs, things you can find around the house to weight lift or simply performing pushups and situps yourself. However, the reason why so many choose a gym membership is because psychologically, paying the premium price means they want to get the most value out of it possible. The availability of a trainer, professional equipment and working out in a group are all positives that help, but for the thrifty amongst us, the pretty penny youâ??ll spend per year will force you to get everything you can out of it. You may even find yourself going more so each time you do, it will work out as costing you less per visit. In the same vein, research and invest in a bulk shop of additional vitamins like cinnamon supplements or zinc tablets beforehand; this way, theyâ??re there when you need them and it becomes second-nature to include them in your diet, rather than having to top up every few days.

3: Photo-time

Usually, itâ??s in photos when we realise how much weight we may have put on, especially if we look at an older photo when we were slimmer. Itâ??s a good way to confront yourself if youâ??ve been in denial about your recent eating habits and lifestyle. While you should by no means obsess about your image, putting more photos of you when you were slimmer around your home can be a good motivating tool when it comes to those after-dinner fridge raids. Alternatively, you can put up a pic or change your desktop to an image of a dress or piece of clothing you would like to fit into, so you have an end goal.

4: Plan Your Shopping

Many fail on their healthy food plans when they donâ??t plan ahead and shop on an impulse. Usually this occurs when hungry and everything looks good for a quick fix. So take a day on the weekend, when youâ??re more relaxed to do your shop so you can take the time to see what is available and how best to shop. Use a boring moment, like waiting for a bus or sitting in a slow meeting at work to plan your list, so you have a meal for each evening that is appetising and somewhat different. This also applies to lunch and breakfast, so you arenâ??t tempted by high calorie meal deals when on the go, seem convenient.

5: Set Something You Want To Accomplish

Those with an end date in mind tend to do better than those who one day just decide to lose weight without forethought. The reason that groups like Weight Watchers work, is that there are goals to strive to, which are broken down and just about manageable but with still being challenging. Afterall, what constitutes a success for you? If you donâ??t lose weight one week, youâ??re likely to make excuses for that. This way youâ??re on a path to get somewhere by a certain time. If you book yourself for a competition, like a marathon or an event you want to look great for, then you have something to motivate you to work that extra bit harder, and expectations of you from other people.

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Paul tries to keep in shape himself, but goes through cycles. When special events are coming up, he makes a conscious effort to set himself a plan and has come up with a few tricks that have motivated him in the past and he swears by. His work with a client, promoting a number of natural remedies like mistletoe, and cinnamon for weight loss, has actually assisted him in this.