How Can Self-Discipline Help You Lose Weight and Develop Good Habits?
The moment you reach your goal – a tough one – a confidence appears that you never knew existed. That confidence changes who you are, but most importantly, it makes you believe in yourself in a way that nothing else could.
The chances are, you woke up with an ardent wish of getting in shape. You were all fired up. Motivated and ready to go. The thing is, many of you likely thought the exact thing last year. And the year before.
The problem here is that motivation isn’t something you can rely on at any time. Motivation goes and comes – some days you will be invincible and others worse than Thor without his hammer. A moment of high motivation, you can plan about what you’re going to do two days from now when motivation will likely be lower.
The truth is, nobody feels motivated 24/7. If you’re serious about losing weight, getting in shape, and improving your self-worth. Forget about trying to “get motivated” and do this instead.
Highlight Your Goals
Setting up a successful weight loss plan begins with setting a realistic long-term goal. Regardless of how motivated you are, striving for unrealistic results can leave you feeling constantly discouraged. So, what’s the secret? Taking your day-to-day – life into account and setting doable, realistic goals.
We know this may sound easier than it actually is, but moping out your goals can actually work. Your setting goals can be:
- Specific: You pick one based on conversations with your medical advisor or another health care professional.
- Measurable: Measure your goals in numbers. Considering the precise number of pounds, you plan to lose.
- Attainable: Taking your day-to-day life and starting point into consideration. But be aware that a healthy and sustainable rate of weight loss is 1 to 2 pounds per week.
- Relevant: Set goals that are relevant to your specific health aspects or related to a future life event.
- Time-limited: Set a realistic timeframe to achieve your weight loss goal.
We do encourage people to dream big, however, to turn those thoughts into reality will require small precise goals and focus on day-to-day routine. Is there anything you do every single day that can help you reach those smaller goals? Focusing on daily habits while still keeping your thoughts on the prize is where the magic happens.
Go to a therapist
It might sound counterintuitive, but we all know the biggest obstacle we face in life is ourselves. Like It or not, we all have those thoughts in our heads holding us back from being the best versions of us. Ponder on that. Whenever you lose control, feel unfocused, or can’t seem to tear down bad habits, it’s most likely because of stressful circumstances going on in your world.
Everyone is talking about it because everyone has been there. But there’s the thing, stressful situations are going to happen whether you like them or not. Stop wasting energy on things you can’t control. If you follow the wrong path every time stress comes your way, then you should make a change in the way you deal with stress.
The smartest way to live a healthy -purposeful life is learning to cope with stress in a positive manner. Life will keep throwing junk at you whether you like it or not, and when that happens, you want to get better, not bitter. The mindful you become about those things, the easier it gets to create discipline in your life.
Having a therapist around can help a lot, and a lot of people appreciate having an unbiased person there to help them cope with everything life throws at them. If you don’t have access to a counselor, then you can always try talking to someone close.
Have Multiple Backup Plans
On your way to getting fit, things are going to go wrong. You can plan to go to the gym this week, but work gets in the way. You may drive home formwork, dizzy and tired, and end up taking an unplanned detour to KFC.
Backup plans are there because you know the inevitable will happen. How to prepare? Note that every obstacle you might face in a given week could disrupt your progress and come up with a viable solution. What will happen if they’re some kind of emergency at work, and you don’t have time to follow your regular training program? You get home, play some free background music, your favorite album, or a Joe Rogan podcast episode and go on with at least half of your workout program.
Indeed, even half of what you’ve proposed that day matters, so you make sure you have it written down and planned in a few weeks before you begin. The more options you have, the more likely you are to reach those goals. Being flexible means you’re already on the right path, acknowledging that not all plans are successful from the start.
Don’t Just Set Goals – Create Habits
A commercial aircraft will never leave the airport without a flight plan. It needs a destination, a time of departure, and an arrival time. Surprisingly, it does not go the same with a weight loss plan – unless you’ve been in shape before, trying to foretell exactly how quickly you will lose weight and gain muscle isn’t a piece of cake. Why? Because people respond differently to the same workout program or diet.
What’s more, if you’ve never walked the route before and you don’t know what type of car you’re driving, it’s quite challenging to know in advance what time you’re going to arrive.
The chance of hitting a certain target by a certain time is something that is often outside your control. Your habits, on the other hand, are mainly within your control. Rather than setting yourself on white horses without even being in shape, you’ll be doing great if you manage to habits that help you reach the goals you’re dreaming about.