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So let me preface this whole post by saying that absolutely nothing happens overnight. Losing over a hundred pounds took a couple of years and a tremendous amount of effort. But if there is one thing I know for sure, it is that big weight loss is 100% achievable. Something else I know? Keeping the weight off is absolutely achievable too.
Obesity is a big problem across North America. Recent studies show that a shocking 69% or 2 in 3 people in North America are overweight or obese. It affects people across all races, religions, and economic class. Worldwide, it is estimated that roughly 500 million adults are obese and by 2030 it is estimated this number will rise to 1 billion. I don’t know about you, but I find these numbers scary.
I also know that at one point I just stopped wanting to be a part of the problem. At the time when I started my weight loss journey, I had twin babies who were starting to eat solid foods and all I could think was that I didn’t want them to end up like me. I wanted to set a better example for them. At the very least, I didn’t want them to ever be embarrassed by me and my unhealthy lifestyle. But that meant that I needed to change everything about myself. Literally, everything.
So what are the life-changing steps I took to lose over a hundred pounds? let me share!
Want to read more about my weight loss story? Click here!
Adopt The Right Mindset
One of the biggest things I had to do was change my mindset from that of someone who “tried” to someone who “did”. I used to always say things like “I’m trying to eat healthy”, “I’m trying to lose weight”, “I’m trying to work out”. Trying, trying, trying. I cringe at that word now.
The day that I changed my mindset from “I’m trying” to “I’m doing this”, everything completely changed. All of a sudden, my goals became concrete. Because, when I say “I’m doing this” that implies that there is no alternative to success. Whereas, when I say “I’m trying” there is an implication that I might fail. A very simple mindset difference but it makes a huge difference. And mindset is everything.
Create a Circle of Support
Previously, when I had tried to lose weight, I did so quietly. I didn’t share what I was doing with anyone. Or didn’t share anything beyond “I’m trying…”. But I never shared any real concrete goals with those closest to me. I think it was because to do so was to admit that I had a problem. And I had been in denial about that size of my problem for many years. But not sharing my goals meant that when the going got tough there was no one there to make sure I didn’t quit on myself. As a result, I spent a lot of time quitting on myself.
But once I started to share my goals with those close to me and who I trusted, I started to create a circle of weight loss support. All of a sudden, I had people who cared about my goals and whether or not I reached them. My circle of support keeps me accountable to my goals and helps me through the rough parts of my journey.
Your circle doesn’t have to be big but it does have to have people who are positive and care about your well-being. Read more about creating accountability support here.
Choose Eating Habits You Can Maintain
This life-changing step is a big one. Nutrition plays a massive role in healthy living and weight loss. There are constantly different diets that are popular at any given time. Some of them make sense and are great, others are simply fads that will fade away over time.
But at the end of the day, big weight loss comes down to simple calorie input and output. To lose weight you need to burn off more calories than you take in.
Now, how you choose to do this is up to you! While I eat a plant-based diet, I know that it’s not the only way. But what I do know is that eating plant-based is a sustainable lifestyle for me. And that is what is important. Finding an eating style that you will find sustainable. It’s important to follow a nutrition plan that you can literally maintain for the rest of your life. If you don’t think you can follow a keto, vegan or low-fat diet for the rest of your life than don’t even start that eating plan.
Really research various nutrition styles before settling on which you will adopt for your healthy lifestyle. Research includes reading blogs like mine, trying out a few new recipes, talking to people who follow different eating plans, and of course, a little bit of real science to make sure it’s genuinely healthy.
Accept The Role Fitness Plays In Big Weight Loss
I know no one wants to hear this but the truth is if you want to achieve big weight loss than you absolutely need to embrace fitness. And not the occasional work out but true consistent fitness.
Fitness is a part of a healthy lifestyle. That means that in order to maintain real weight loss you need to find some fitness that you can do most days. Along with doing a 90 day fitness program, I kicked off my fitness lifestyle with daily walks. After I felt comfortable with walking, I started some light running. Nowadays, I do different home fitness programs to maintain my weight loss. There is no way I could have naturally lost over a hundred pounds without including regular fitness.
Most people think they need to find a form of fitness that they “love” in order to lose weight. This could not be further from the truth! Find something that you can tolerate and that fits into your schedule. Beyond that, don’t be picky and simply do what works.
Practice Willpower Daily
Willpower is like any other muscle in your body in that it needs to be exercised in order to be truly effective. In order to achieve a large weight loss, willpower needs to be practiced daily. I write about different ways to exercise willpower in this post.
A couple of years into my journey and I still have to actively practice willpower every day. I think that when you come from a place of having been very over weight or obese, then willpower is something you will have to practice regularly for the rest of your life. Otherwise, it is too easy to slip into old, negative habits.
Focus On Personal Development Daily
At the top of this post I talk about changing your weight loss mind set. But in reality, you achieve and maintain a big weight loss you need to completely overhaul the way you look at life in general. The way to do this is to focus on personal development.
What is personal development? Personal development is about improving your awareness and identity, and developing talents and potential. Focusing on personal development will help you understand how you go to be where you are/were in the first place and how to move forward. It will also help you change habits, develop goals and build the best version of yourself. I write about my favourite personal development books here.
Do Something Daily That Moves You Forward
This is a big one. Each day do something that moves you forward and toward your goals. It doesn’t have to be something big like a 60 minute workout. It can be something as small as choosing not to have that chocolate bar at the grocery checkout. But at the end of each day, you need to be able to look back and identify at least one moment that moved you closer to your weight loss goal, no matter how small.
Doing this each day will be a confidence boost and will give you something positive to reflect on at the end of the day.
Commit To Big Weight Loss
Lastly, commit to big weight loss. If you have a lot of weight to lose, own it! Don’t say you want to lose 20lbs if you really need to lose 80lbs simply because 20lbs sounds easier. Commit to losing every single pound that you need too to be healthy. If you commit to yourself and to your health journey you will successful. Commit and believe in yourself and you’re half way there!
Need help getting started on your health journey? Click here and I can help!
Chat soon,
Shannon
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