Think of the hardest thing you’ve ever done…Now, get ready to give (at least) that level of effort again. We get it. Life is busy and you don’t have enough time to get all the things you need to get done now, let alone add another task (weight loss) to your calendar. But weight loss isn’t something that you can do on the side. Weight loss can’t be your 10th priority, your 5th priority or even your 3rd priority, it has to be your first priority! You have to go into your weight loss with a warrior’s attitude because it’s not going to be easy. If it were easy, more people would be successful in losing weight and keeping it off.
Your work, spouse or significant other, kids, friends, family, household chores, house projects, recreation all need to come second to your weight loss. You must develop the mindset that you have to get your workout in or meal plan before you can move on to do xyz. This isn’t the way you’re probably used to operating but it has to be for you to be successful, at least for right now.
We know that it can feel like you’re trying as hard as you can and maybe you are. But you also need to be honest with yourself. Are you still sneaking foods you know you’re not supposed to eat? Are you coming up with excuses for not executing your plan? Are you giving the next new diet a try to see what happens? Or is it more important that you are “trying” to lose weight or is it more important for you to be actually losing weight? As much as we trust that you know you better than you, you’re also one of the best people at deceiving yourself. You owe it to yourself to give a maximum effort and to let the chips fall where they may.
Losing weight is a big commitment and it is a lot to ask to let other aspects of your life receive less attention than you’re used to giving them. But we don’t see any other way of going about it. In any weight loss program, there are people who are wildly successful and lose a lot of weight, others who lose some weight, others barely lose any weight, and a few people will actually gain weight. This isn’t due to genetics or selecting the right diet type (i.e., low-fat versus low carb), it’s about adherence to the diet. Research has shown time and time again that the most important factor in weight loss success is those that can most strongly adhere to the diet or lifestyle intervention program.
Giving anything less than 100% is going to result in suboptimal weight loss, frustration, and a whole host of negative emotions only to be repeated again sometime in the not-too-distant future when you are again fed up with your weight and make another dieting attempt. We need to break this futile cycle once and for all by helping you establish diet and exercise routines that you like and that you can stick to. Anything else is a waste of your time (and money) and leads to excess negative emotions.
So, if you can
then you are ready to start.
In our next section (06), we’d like for you to officially start your weight loss journey by first acknowledging that Losing Weight Requires a Caloric Deficit.