Success in Weight Loss is a Mindset

Wouldn’t it be great if you realized that the very obstacles you seem to face are merely created in your mind rather than being real? When you view something with self-doubt rather than the “I can” attitude full of faith and conviction you will succeed. So replace doubt and fear with a strong conviction of certainty and you will succeed. You give away your own power to the food rather than realizing your mind can be stronger. So no matter where you are in your weight loss, rethink it,  start today with a different strong life force of real faith of self encouragement, belief, and trust in yourself that this time you will make it.

But  just how do you do it? Face the challenges head on, step by step, day by day, challenge by challenge and get help if you need to. So even if the upcoming holidays seem so full of temptations  remember you really can be successful. Act as if failure really is impossible because it is if you believe that.

“Act as if failure is impossible, and your success will be assured. Wipe out every thought of your not achieving your objective, be brave and set no limits on the workings of your imaginations. Never be a prisoner of your past, Become the architect of your future…and you will see that nothing can stop you.”  - Author unknown

Staying Motivated

With the holiday season almost here a client was worried about her motivation waning. She asked me for some motivating quotes to help keep her on track. Actually clients ask for this a lot. (I’ve been known to adopt a few for myself too.) She wants to put them in her food diary which incidentally is always  good for anyone to stay on track no matter what time of the year a person is dieting. (Food diaries are also proven to promote weight loss.)  I gave her a few of my favorite quotes which are:

• ”If you always do what you always did, you’ll always get what you got.” – author unknown
• “If you fail to plan you plan to fail.” – author unknown
• “Nothing tastes as good as being thin feels.” – author unknown
• “You must do the thing you think you can not do.” – Eleanor Roosevelt
• "Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishments." - Jim Rohn

Readers let’s build on these. Please post some of your favorite quotes that keep you on track for Halloween this coming weekend and the months ahead.  Or just tell us what you do to stay motivated during tough times.

Think and Lose

For years I have been a fan of  rational emotive therapy which is basically a way of changing negative thinking patterns into motivating empowering statements that can change unwanted behavior. Recently I came across the following quote which gave me some food for thought along these lines:

“If you don’t change your (negative) thoughts your life will be like this forever. Is that good news?” – Dan Miller. Wow, who wants to stay stuck with excess weight forever?  By constantly stating these irrational negative thoughts this is  exactly what you are programming yourself for.

The idea here is that what we constantly think  about becomes our basic reality. Negative thoughts literally turn into negative behavior predicting potential unwanted behavior. Many dieters fall into negative thought patterns especially when  feeling discouraged, so here are some alternative ways of thinking:

• “I’ll never lose my weight, this is taking so long.” Instead say:  “It may take awhile but I’ll get to my goal, I just need to be patient. It took me awhile to gain it so it will take some time and effort to lose it."

• "I've already blown it today so I might as well eat whatever I want." Instead say: “I can still get back on track right now and balance my food out the rest of the day. Maybe I can even get some extra activity in too to compensate a little. And, I won't do any more damage for the day."

• “Dieting is so hard.” Instead say:  “Dieting is challenging but it doesn’t mean it’s impossible especially if I go on a healthy weight loss plan and get support when I need it.”

So release any belief that seems to have power over your thinking. You have the power to choose positive thoughts over negative ones!  Think (positive) and lose.

Overlooked Reasons of Why it’s Great to be in Shape

Every day I share weights loss tips, advice, research, and exercise examples of how to get in shape and maintain a healthy weight, but today I wanted you to know that being fit goes well beyond losing weight.

This fact became blatantly obvious to me when I was traveling to Calgary, Canada last week. When I flew into Minneapolis from Boston I realized I had less than 11 minutes to catch my connecting flight… and to make matters worse my gate was on the other side of the airport!

At that moment I could have given up figuring it was too far away to make, but I decided to see if I could beat the clock and make my flight. So, as I was “that guy” sprinting through the airport with a laptop bag slung over my shoulder and dragging a carry-on behind me I realized how this would have been absolutely unthinkable if I had not been an exerciser and at a healthy weight.

Between the deadline to make my flight and the extra 35 pounds of luggage weighing me down my heart was pounding. I skipped all the escalators and walking conveyor belts and instead ran the stairs and walkways so I wouldn’t get stuck behind everyone else who had the luxury of taking their time.

After almost 10 minutes of weaving in and out of crowds I made it to the gate right as they were calling my name… Thanks to practicing what I preach I had made it right on time.

Motivation and Focus

How do keep motivated while you are trying to lose weight? If only we could bottle it and keep it for those times when we “lose” it.
I frequently hear, “I start out really well and then just lose my focus after a week or so,” or “I was doing well until I had a lot of stress at work and then lost my focus.” or “I always lose about ten or twenty pounds and then I lose my focus.”

So if focus is the problem how do you get it back?  There's hope, if  you can lose it then you can find it again!

Start with a list of your motivators. Don’t stop there, make those motivators become alive again and don’t just say "I just want to lose thirty pounds," Does that really motivate you? It simply does not elicit the underlying motivation behind it.  Exactly why do you want to lose thirty pounds? Dig those reasons out.
The following are some ways to really “focus” on how to rejuvenate your motivation with your thoughts:

• I will have more energy.  With that energy, I will do more outdoor activities again like water ski, go to the beach in a bathing suit and compete in volleyball again. I will play with my kids more and I will hike again.
• I will feel more confident in social situations. Maybe I will start dating again, get a better job, or join a class etc.
• I will be healthier. I will lower my blood pressure or cholesterol and just maybe live longer!

So take these reasons and think about them, often, every day and especially when you are feeling tempted or the next time you “lose your focus.” Revisit them with real heart and feeling.

Readers how do you regain your focus?

Why Now is the Best Time to Start

The beginning of September has to be the all-time best time to start a new exercise program.

Here are just a few of my reason why…

1. For many of the northern states (countries) the temperature has already started to drop and summer time has quickly passed us by.
2. Kids are back to school and we’re all back to more of a set routine.
3. Because of the economy many gyms have dropped their prices and created new member incentives to join.
4. The holidays are still a few months away.
5. You can (and should) get a 4 month head start on your New Year’s resolutions!

These are just a handful of the reasons why I think you owe it to yourself to at least attempt a new weight loss program. I’m sure you can think of many more reasons and if you have a good one please list it in the comments box below to motivate all of us!

Motivation to Exercise for a Special Cause

Are you struggling for motivation to exercise? Well here’s something to help you move.  How about raising some cold cash for a good cause without the dutiful fund-raising part? All you have to do is log on to http://www.plus3network.com/.  It will donate 5 cents for each mile you exercise whether it is by walking, running, biking or even swimming. And apparently they will be adding in credit for workouts at the gym, doing yoga and playing tennis too.

So, if you can’t get motivated for yourself maybe doing it for a worthy cause will help!

What are you "Weighting" for?

Are you one of those dieters just waiting for the perfect time to go on your diet? Guess what, there is no such thing as the “perfect time” to lose weight. Yes there are some times that are definitely better than other times but  there will always be social events and stress to interfere with your weight loss efforts. I love this following inspiration by Daily Motivation which puts things in perspective:

"You can start at anytime if you want to be successful.
But you have to start.

You won't accomplish anything if you wait
for all the possible objections to be overcome.

Taking a new step, uttering a new word,
is what people fear most.

Don't be afraid to live.
Don't wait for things to change.
Don't wait until you have more time,
until you are less tired,
until you get the promotion,
until you settle down,
until, until, until.

Don't wait for a major event
in your life to occur before you begin to live.

Begin where you are.
Work where you are.
The hour you are wasting now,
dreaming of some far off success,
is crowded with tremendous possibilities.

When you take the first step,
your mind will mobilize all its forces to assist you. 
Once you have started, all that is within and around you
will come to your assistance.

The only way to start down the road to success is to start."

Copyright 2008 www.yourdailymotivation.com   Reproduce freely but maintain Copyright notice.

Simple Way to Lose Weight Today!

What ONE thing can you do today that will increase your chances of losing weight?

Seriously, if you had to pick just one thing you could do today to get yourself on track to losing the weight you wanted what would it be?

It could have to do with cutting out all sugary drinks, going to the gym, taking a long walk, not having that afternoon sweet, or anyone of the other methods you could put in place to start the weight loss process.

What I’m saying is that you need to get your body into a rhythm. Some people work best when they just concentrate on ONE thing and stay consistent doing that "one thing" for 21 days straight (and beyond). Then after you’ve formed that healthy habit you can pick your next weight loss method to make part of your daily routine. Pretty soon you’ll have half a dozen powerful weight loss techniques accelerating you to your goal!

So what is your "one thing?"

(Feel free to post your comment so that others can learn from you and if they are at a loss for what they should do first they may be inspired by one of yours!)

A Quote to Live By

“There is no drug in current or prospective use that holds as much promise for sustained health as a lifetime program of physical exercise.”
- Journal of the American Medical Association

I think sometimes all of us forget how much control we really do have over our health, energy, weight, and longevity. We do have the power to eat better and be more active, but for the most part our mind gets in the way…

We choose to eat comfort foods and pass on activities like taking the stairs when there’s an elevator. Of course having the occasional muffin or choosing the elevator over the stairs is not going to hurt us, but the fact is for most people it’s not an occasional choice... it’s the norm.

This article is not meant to make you feel bad about your past choices, but instead show you that your health is the sum of all your actions – and the great thing is you can change those actions whenever you want and begin living life to the fullest.