How To Maintain Your Weight Loss Motivation
by Jason Barger
One of the hardest aspects of getting yourself into shape, is maintaining the motivation you need to achieve your weight loss goals. Just about anyone will lose some of their enthusiasm, a month or so into a weight loss program. I have learned a few things that keep me motivated and dedicated to achieving my goals. They have helped me tremendously and I think they will help you as well.
Here a just a few of the many things I do to motivate myself.
Weigh yourself once a week: I weigh myself at least a few times a week. In the beginning of your program once is plenty because you don’t want to discourage yourself.
The reason I weigh myself once a week is because it can be easy to look in the mirror and justify, in your head, that you aren’t gaining
any weight. If you look at a scale every week, you know for sure whether you need to make changes or not.
Keep a picture of the heavier version of yourself in plain sight: I have a picture of me at my son’s baptism next to my bed. I was 20-25
pounds heavier in that picture than I currently am. This gives me a chance everyday to see what I don’t want to slip back into. It reminds
me why I lost weight and keeps me from sliding back into old habits. Also, it will just remind you of how far you have come and how much
better you look now.
Visualize everyday: You should visualize everyday, how you want yourself to look. If you
have achieved your goals then just imagine yourself doing some new things, in your new body. This really does help. I try to visualize
myself everyday doing something that I plan on doing in the future. This can help with goals in any aspect of your life. I used to do this
while running, when I first started my program. I would picture myself mentally, running and looking the way I wanted to look.
Set your sights farther and higher: If you have already reached your ideal weight, then you should set some new goals or standards. If you don’t, you will probably fall back into old habits. It is harder to maintain something, then to achieve something new. So if you have reached your ideal weight, then why not set a goal to add some muscle. Or maybe, set a goal to get absolutely ripped. In perfect shape, like you never imagined you could. Look high and far, set your goal and then reach it. Nothing will keep you more motivated then setting and achieving new goals.
Those are just a few of the ways that I use to keep myself motivated. There are thousands more. To find other motivating ideas just do some searching on the internet. You can find thousands of articles and websites dedicated to weight loss and health.
Being healthy and losing weight can change every area of your life. It is amazing, the possibilities we begin to see, after reaching an
achievement such as weight loss. Don’t lose the momentum. Keep it turned up and start using it to help you with other areas of your life. But most of all, never give up. There will always be obstacles in any thing you do in life. Just don’t use them as excuses to hold you back from achieving the ultimate freedom you deserve.
About The Author:
This article was written by Jason Barger. Jason has been helping people lose weight with his breakthrough book, Primal Weight Loss. To
learn more about his philosophy and programs you can visit:http://www.primalhealth.com.
Well, my scale needs to be replaced so I hope I don’t use that as an excuse to quit monitoring my progress, or lack of it.I have a world’s ugliest photo of me at my highest weight, which happens to be almost my weight again. It is not motivating–it is depressing.
I can visualize being at my goal weight and when I had reached it before, how good and energetic I felt, how I savored the compliments, and how many minor health complaints had been eradicated. This is what is going to have to drive me. What will drive you?
Candy Makers Cater to the Health-Conscious
By ELLIOTT MINOR, Associated Press Writer Sun Feb 19, 9:10 PM ET
ALBANY, Ga. - It’s every chocolate lover’s wish that their favorite indulgence could somehow be healthy for them. Now, chocolate makers claim they have granted that wish.
Mars Inc., maker of Milky Way, Snickers and M&M’s candies, next month plans to launch nationwide a new line of products made with a dark chocolate the company claims has health benefits.
Called CocoaVia, the products are made with a kind of dark chocolate high in flavanols, an antioxidant found in cocoa beans that is thought to have a blood-thinning effect similar to aspirin and may even lower blood pressure. The snacks also are enriched with vitamins and injected with cholesterol-lowering plant sterols from soy.
But researchers are skeptical about using chocolate for its medicinal purposes and experts warn it’s no substitute for a healthy diet.
“To suggest that chocolate is a health food is risky,” said Bonnie Liebman, nutrition director for the Center for Science in the Public Interest.
Recent research has not established a link between flavanols and a reduced risk of cancer or heart disease, she said. And with obesity already a serious health problem, “the last thing we need is for Americans to think they can eat more chocolate.”
A paper published by the
American Heart Association concluded that chocolate contains chemicals, including flavanols, that have the potential to reduce heart disease. But it added researchers still don’t know enough about flavanols to make dietary recommendations.
Other major chocolate companies also have started promoting the flavanol content of their dark chocolates, such as Hershey’s Extra Dark, introduced last fall with highlights on its label touting its 60 percent cocoa content and high level of flavanol.
Dark chocolate, which contains more flavanols than regular chocolate, is the fastest growing segment of the $10 billion-a-year chocolate market. Hershey reports that its dark-chocolate sales have grown 11.2 percent over the past four years.
Last year, Hershey Co. acquired San Francisco-based Scharffen Berger Chocolate Maker Inc., known for its dark chocolate with high cocoa content and baking products, and plans to add new dark-chocolate products.
Mars created a new division, Mars Nutrition for Health & Well-Being, to distribute CocoaVia. The company has sold the CocoaVia products online for a couple years. They are already available at retail stores in 34 states, selling for nearly $1 a bar.
“Chocolate … is the number one flavor ingredient in the world,” said Jimmy Cass, Mars’ vice president of marketing. “Heart health is the No. 1 concern of adults over the age of 40 in every civilized nation. Putting those two together is automatically a big idea.”
The industry, trying to appeal to baby boomers, has been focusing on products that may provide health benefits, including gourmet chocolates, organic chocolates and “functional” chocolates such as CocoaVia.
Rachael Brandeis, a national spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association in Atlanta, said dark chocolate is a good source of flavanols, but so are other foods such as fruits, vegetables and whole grains.
“Dark chocolate can fit into a healthy diet,” she said. The fat in chocolate is a type that does not raise cholesterol levels, but it can add unwanted pounds if a person overindulges, she said.
“I would say if you enjoy the taste of dark chocolate, enjoy it,” she said. “But you always have to be conscious of how much you’re eating.”
Mars adamantly defends its health claims for CocoaVia.
The company has done research studies that have shown it can improve blood flow, said Mars’ chief scientist Harold Schmitz.
“We believe … there can be a significant benefit around blood pressure, but we have not conclusively proven that,” he said.
The soy extract was included in the products because it has been shown to reduce cholesterol, Cass said.
Norman Hollenberg, a professor at the Harvard Medical School, told a recent cocoa symposium that the Cuna Indians of Panama, who drink flavanoid-rich cocoa beverages, have a 10 percent lower risk of dying of heart attacks and a 20 percent lower risk of dying of cancer than average Panamanians.
More studies are needed to determine whether it is the cocoa consumption or other factors that make them healthier, Hollenberg said.
“The data assigning it to one mechanism just isn’t there yet,” he said.
Regardless of the research, Mars’ Albany plant is filled with the fragrance of dark, warm chocolate. A seemingly endless procession of CocoaVia bars move along a conveyor belt under the scrutiny of human and electronic eyes.
It is a sterile environment of gleaming stainless machinery and highly polished floors where workers wear white suits or smocks, hair nets, safety glasses and white helmets.
The health bars pass through a machine that cools them, several that cut them to size and another that dribbles decorative swirls across the top and gives the underside a final coating of dark chocolate.
The Wellness Letter, a health and fitness newsletter published by the University of California-Berkeley, evaluated CocoaVia and advised readers to enjoy the snacks on occasion for pleasure, but not as a health food.
“CocoaVia’s benefits are still unproven,” the newsletter said. “Eat it only if you like it and are willing to pay the premium price.”
Fruits and vegetables are still the best source of the antioxidants found in dark chocolate and they also contain vitamins, minerals, fiber and plant chemicals not found in chocolate, the newsletter said.
CocoaVia was just an expensive candy bar, concluded John Swartzberg, chairman of the newsletter’s editorial board and clinical professor of health and medical science at Berkeley.
“But it did taste good,” he said.
When to Say When
By Michelle Olson | 2/6/2006
Eat when you’re hungry, stop when you’re satisfied. Simple advice? Yes. A simple philosophy to practice? Not so much. But becoming better in tune with your body’s satiety signals is the first step in mastering your food Comfort Zone. Here are some basic guidelines that can help you better understand when to say when:
Stop. “At the first thought of being hungry, individuals have trained themselves to eat,” says Noralyn Wilson, RD, spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association (ADA). Wilson warns that by doing this “we have developed a false sense of what it feels like to be truly hungry.” So, if you struggle with wanting to eat even when you’re not hungry, how do you know if you actually do require food? When you do begin to feel hungry, drink water or go for a short walk, and wait for the feeling to come around again. Eventually you’ll learn to discern when you’re actually hungry, and when your emotions are trying to get the best of you. On the other hand, it is important not to let yourself get so hungry that when you do eat, you go overboard. So be mindful of keeping a balance.
Look. When you’re eating, eat, says Wilson. Don’t try to multitask! Working on a document at your desk or watching TV will distract you from the project at hand – which in this case should be supplying your body with nutrients. So slow down and think about what you’re eating. “The stretching of the stomach takes a while to register,” says Wilson, “and if you’re eating quickly, you can surpass fullness without even realizing it.”
Listen. If you are eating a balanced meal – that is, a 7-9-inch plate filled half with veggies and the rest with a lean protein and a starch – you should be satisfied at one serving, says Wilson. But if seconds are calling your name, take a 20-minute breather and listen to your body to see if you really are still hungry. “Go outside, engage the family in a game, play trivia, go for a walk or do the dishes to take your mind off of eating for a moment,” suggests Wilson. “The food will still be there,” reminds Wilson. “You can always go back for more.”
Feel. “It’s really easy to confuse physical hunger and fullness with emotional hunger and fullness,” says Cynthia Sass, RD, spokesperson for the ADA and author of Your Diet is Driving Me Crazy (Marlowe & Company, 2004). So if it’s emotions that are causing you to overeat, Sass suggests keeping a food journal to help better understand your emotional overeating triggers. To do so, ask and answer some of these “Why” questions when you realize you have overeaten:
- “Why did I eat that particular food?” Did you really want it, or did you eat out of boredom, obligation or because you were upset/angry/anxious?
- “Why did I decide to stop eating?” Were you full or did you finish what was on your plate or what the bag said was a serving size?
- “Why did I eat?” Were you honestly hungry, or were you trying to ward off boredom or some other emotional cue?
Only once you begin to understand your emotional overeating triggers, says Sass, can you take steps to change your behaviors. “Food tastes good, eating feels good, and most people will need to try several things before they find what will make them feel good as an alternative to eating,” says Sass.
It won’t happen overnight, but with a little effort, the signals your body is sending you can be heard clear as a bell. So get reacquainted with your body’s signals – it might just make all the difference in your weight-loss success.
http://editor.mydietblogger.com/files/backlogo.jpg How many of you are trying to eat only when hungry and stop when full? I have been trying this approach for at least 5 years. The problem I have is stopping when full. If you have tried this style, let us know if it works–weight wise–in the long run for you. Or does it breed overeating and bingeing?
contact 4pray@care2.com or
diet_editor@hotmail.com
to have your question answered here or leave a comment to have your Q answered next Thursday. This is a weekly column.
Dear Diet Editor,
I am in need of free diet plans. Can you provide me with web sites that provide them?
Thanks,
On A Budget
Dear On A Budget,
I have been following free diet plans even before I needed to lose weight. What comes to mind, excuse the pun, is there is no such thing as a free lunch.
Have you heard of the free Grapefruit Diet?
Or the free Cabbage Soup Diet?
How about the free Mayo Clinic Diet?
Using common sense, there is only one free diet plan that really works.
Lose one pound of body weight by reducing 3500 calories. The calorie deficit may either be achieved by less food, increased activity or both. If you lose at a greater rate than 1-2 pounds per week, you are losing water and not fat. You WILL see a regain when you quit following your “free plan.”
Nobody, but nobody loves the word free more than me, but I value most my freedom to chose.
Bon Appe’tite!,
Diet Editor
Can you really pray your way to weight loss?
Local pastor and doctors say you can
By Christi Myers
(2/12/06 - KTRK/HOUSTON) - We’ve all heard that to lose weight, you have to diet and exercise. Well, what if there was another big, big factor? We’re talking about something that doesn’t involve your physical well-being, rather your spiritual well-being. Don’t laugh. Many think praying could be the missing link to losing weight.
Chemistry teacher Carole Crawford was tired of yo-yo diets, so she’s trying something new. Can she pray the pounds away?
“I’ve been on it about two weeks and I’ve lost seven pounds so far,” she said.
Junk food lover David Dixon is trying prayer, too.
“In about five weeks, I’ve dropped about 14 pounds,” he said
It’s kind of like a prayer and diet combo.
“I haven’t done that before and now that I’m doing it, I see that it’s vital,” said Carole.
“For me, the spiritual component was the most important ingredient,” added David.
They’re using the Total Heart Health Book for Women and the Total Heart Health Book for Men and the workbook. They’re doing a daily Bible reading, prayer, and following the exercise and meal plans…and overcoming previous weight loss landmines.
“The hardest part for me is fitting in the exercise,” said Carole.
“I was a five or six Dr. Peppers a day drinker,” said David.
“We’ve seen it work now for two years in the lives of literally hundreds of people,” said Dr. Ed Young, pastor at Second Baptist Church.
Dr. Young, cardiologist Robert Leachman, and heart surgeon Michael Duncan added the spiritual to diet and exercise in their total heart health plan.
“We just think in order to experience a lifestyle change, you’ve got to approach it from the spiritual standpoint if you’re going to be successful,” said Dr. Duncan.
And the three of them follow it, too. They work out and they pray. But why would a busy pastor want to write another heart and diet book?
“It’s the wholeness of it,” said Dr. Young. “It’s not only physical. It’s also spiritual.”
The theory is it takes 21 days to break a bad habit. The authors say give them 90 and you’ll be dropping the pounds. Why? Because the authors say this isn’t a diet. It’s a change in your whole life.
“The reason people fail is because their lifestyle doesn’t change,” said Dr. Duncan.
And they say the spiritual can jumpstart your self-discipline.
“It was pure and simply a lack of discipline in my life,” said David.
“The hope would be that as one matures spiritually, that you can bring to bear the power of God to some of these physical elements of your health,” said Dr. Leachman.
In just weeks, Carole says she has more energy and something other diets don’t give her — peace of mind.
“I know that I can stay on it forever,” she said. “It needs to be a forever sort of thing.
“This is not a diet. This is not a fad. This is something that will change any life physically and spiritually,” said Dr. Young. “That just makes sense.”
(Copyright © 2006, KTRK-TV)
From Ash Wednesday March 1, through Palm Sunday, April 9, I will be doing 40 days of praise prayers I wrote about dieting. I believe strongly in asking in prayer, but even more so in praising in prayer. I hope you will join me in this journey here.
