This is the time of year when you are setting healthy goals for yourself. You are determined to make this year the one in which you reach your goal weight and most importantly, maintain that weight.
You have tried all the traditional methods to help you lose weight.
What you need now are lifestyle tips that are easy to implement use every single day. Tips that allow you to start noticing positive changes, in both your physical and mental health.
Below are five non-typical, some call them weird, ways to finally hit that happy weight goal, and maintain it.
Forget the three meals a day plus two snacks. Forget the intermittent fasting regimen where you can eat what you want for so many hours before you stop eating altogether. These diets do not teach you to listen to the most important part of your body when trying to lose weight, your belly.
Too often we eat, not when we are hungry, but based on our emotions. Because food has shown to scientifically create a spike in the reward section of our brains, we get a sense of “feel good” when we eat certain foods, especially sugary foods.
This causes us to turn to food when we feel stress, sadness or any other emotion that can be overwhelming. We use food to cope, not to satisfy hunger.
What to do Instead: Starting today, not tomorrow or next Monday, begin paying attention to why you are eating. Be truthful with yourself. How are you feeling when you reach for that snack? Do you feel the pangs of hunger or are you feeling stressed out?
If you are feeling actual hunger, allow yourself to eat, preferably a healthy option.
You have probably heard about the laws of attraction. Meaning, what we think about is what we attract into our life. If you are constantly thinking about money problems, you may begin to see more bills and payments due, or more situations that are costing you money.
If you think negative thoughts, negative stuff is what you will get. Just the opposite is true also. If you think positive thoughts, you will receive positive results. This is true with weight loss. If you are constantly thinking about being overweight, and you picture yourself as overweight, you will find it harder to hit your happy weight.
However, if you think of yourself as thin, as already at your goal weight, you will find it easier to get there. You can even use a vision board to help you implement those positive weight loss thoughts. A vision board includes pictures and notes that focus on your weight loss.
This can include a reward you may give yourself once you reach your goal, or simply the number of pounds you want to lose. Seeing these every day on your vision board will keep you focused on your goal.
When you hear people talk about de-cluttering, you most likely think about your home and the junk mail scattered around, too much furniture, or a closet filled with too many items. While it is very important to de-clutter your closet and your whole house, there are a couple of other areas that can benefit from less clutter.
First, your kitchen. A cluttered kitchen can be stressful, especially when it is filled with unhealthy foods. To truly reach your weight loss goals, you must get rid of the temptations in your own home. You will never be able to avoid all temptations. But the ones in your kitchen can be reduced.
Clean out your cabinets and pantry and replace all junk food with healthier options.
Second, de-clutter your mind. You must find ways to calm the racing thoughts, the overwhelming list of things to do, and the negative self-talk that swirls through your head all day and night.
These thoughts are creating the perfect excuse for you to eat when you are not hungry, or to choose unhealthy food options to satisfy your emotions, not your hunger.
By simply adding meditation, prayer time, yoga, exercise or other mindful practices to your daily routine can help clear your mind so you can stay focused on your goal of losing weight.
You have already proven you are a hard worker, a great parent, spouse, child and friend. You are responsible, reliable and fun to be around. But doing all this, and trying to hit your happy weight, can be taxing.
You do not need to do all this alone. You don’t have to be a superhero to be successful. And trying to do too much by yourself will not benefit you in the long run. You will become tired, overworked and underappreciated. These feelings will keep you from reaching your weight loss goals.
Building a support network to help you is a smart decision. It does not mean you are weak. It means you are strong enough to seek help so that you can be even better in all areas of your life. Work with a friend or coach to help you.
Value yourself and your needs enough to ask for help.
One of the best health activities is to keep a daily journal. Your journal is a place where you can brag about the day’s ups and release the downs. It is also a place where you can connect your emotions to actions, like eating, throughout the day.
When you can see this in writing, and be able to track your patterns and behaviors, then you can start making necessary changes.
If it is not written down, it didn’t happen. This statement is often used to explain that when it is not documented, there is no proof you did it. Keeping a journal allows you to prove to yourself you are doing what it takes to reach your happy weight.
Start today with these five weird lifestyle tips. They will help you succeed.
