Have you got what it takes to be a successful loser?
By Lynda Smith

It is well know that only about five per cent of people who go on diets succeed in permanently keeping the lost weight off. What is it that this 5% have that the other 95% didn’t have?

Is it better willpower? Do they exercise every day? Do they drink less alcohol? Maybe they don’t eat fat, maybe, maybe.…

The truth is they changed their attitude! The successful five per cent made gradual, but permanent, lifestyle changes by changing their behaviour in order to succeed.
Dieting, in the majority of cases, doesn’t work long term because you only make temporary changes to your habits. Once the ‘diet’ is over you go right back to what you used to do and usually to what you used to look like.

To be a successful, long term loser you need to make permanent changes. These need not be huge changes; just by making a few small changes in your daily life you can achieve success with fat loss.

Part of the problem with people not achieving the required changes is their continually saying to themselves, “I don’t have time.” Everyone has the same 24 hours in their day, but successful long term losers evaluate their priorities and make time for what they need to do to be successful.

You might need to get out of bed earlier a few times a week so that you can fit in that walk or exercise session.

You might need to prepare your next day’s lunch while you are making your dinner the night before so that you don’t have an excuse to buy takeaways for lunch. 

You might need to plan your food intake and schedule your exercise. One thing that most successful losers do is keep a food and exercise diary. This makes you accountable and you can see what is and isn’t working for you and where sneaky little snacks might be creeping in.

Just because you didn’t write it down doesn’t mean it didn’t happen!!

Copyright © Lynda Smith 2008
 
Eating properly
This means eating the right foods, in the right amounts, at the right time. 

Perfection with eating is not realistic long term; aim for 80% adherence to a healthy eating regime. Bump up the amount of fresh food in your diet and reduce the amount of pre-prepared, pre-packaged foods. Exercise portion control.

Drink more water
Dehydration can cause lethargy and headaches. If you start to feel thirsty, it is too late: you are already dehydrated.

Focus on a regular intake of water throughout the day and plan ahead so that you always have water with you.

Increase activity
Regular exercise is part of a healthy lifestyle and without it, you are unlikely to keep off any lost body fat. You need to form the exercise habit!

The more active you are, the more fat you burn. Start by walking 20 to 30 minutes a day. Build it up to 45 to 60 minutes most days. Ideally, combining some form of cardiovascular exercise with resistance (weight) training is the way to go if you want to reshape your body and keep lean. If you don’t like exercising on your own, find a friend to do it with you.

Believe it
To be successful with fat loss, you need to believe you can do it. It might seem like such a long journey, but if you believe it is achievable, then it is!! 

Become a successful loser by:

• Accepting responsibility rather than making excuses
• Setting realistic but exciting goals and staying focused on the positive
• Eliminating limiting beliefs
• Eliminating negative thoughts
• Using positive self-talk

Successful losers do what it takes and you need to lose the excuses if you want to succeed.