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Setting Fitness and Weight–Loss Goals
Marking your progress step–by–step can make all the difference when committing to a workout routine and losing weight.
By Bob Greene, best–selling author of The Best Life Diet
Have you ever known a woman who vowed to lose 20 pounds in the two weeks before her high school reunion? Or have you ever been that woman? Then you most likely know the frustration when an unrealistic scheme inevitably fails.
While most of us know that making healthy lifestyle changes requires time and commitment, we’re still duped into promising ourselves big changes in short periods. And too often that approach backfires — and undermines the chance to create real change. If you learn to adjust your expectations, you may just set yourself on the path to long–term success.
Start small. First, get over that crazy notion of remaking your body overnight. This is a huge hurdle. For most of my clients, it’s the rate at which the weight is lost that’s tough for them to accept. The safe loss of a pound or two per week doesn’t make them happy. But it’s exactly that slower weight loss that leads to long–term success. Quick weight loss is just a loss of water, not fat.
If you’ve recently committed yourself to a workout routine, you may actually gain weight initially. That’s because a more active body wants to hold a bit more water. Because of this, I’m not a fan of getting on the scale at all for the first month.
Scale back. Speaking of the scale, don’t become obsessive about it. The body can’t release more than about three pounds of actual fat per week. If you do lose more than that, it’s — you guessed it — water loss. People who weigh themselves three or four times a day aren’t doing themselves any favors.
Realize that plateaus are necessary too, and set your goals accordingly. Our bodies are programmed to avoid starvation, and at a certain point the body works to temporarily block the loss of fat. But if you stick with your plan over the long–term, the weight will come off.
Slow and steady. When it comes to exercise, pace yourself when you’re getting started. Just move a little more each day than you do right now. Think “slow and steady.” A lot of people want to go all out and they get overly sore — or even injured — and then they quit.
Try to drop that all–or–nothing mentality when it comes to healthy eating, as well. Some people blow their food plan with one entrée or appetizer, and then they give up and go off the deep end. Don’t throw the day away!
Successful people manage their expectations and focus not just on losing weight but also on making their whole life better. That’s how I came up with the name “Best Life.” You have to adjust your lifestyle if you want to be successful in the long term. When you do that, everything falls into place.
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