1. CONSISTENCY

This is perhaps the single most important thing any person can do to achieve weight loss success. CONSISTENCY, CONSISTENY, CONSISTENCY! Have you ever asked someone about the top three most important things for business success, and heard them say “location, location, and location!” Well, for weight loss success it’s “consistency, consistency, and consistency!” It’s not enough to take responsibility, and to find our why, and to choose a plan of attack, you must be consistent. People who are unsuccessful at losing weight try several different things over the course of the year, always looking for the “right” or “best” or “fastest” way to lose the weight, and always changing their plan of attack. Remember, it’s the accumulation of good and healthy habits that produce weight loss success, and the only way to accumulate is to BE CONSISTENT!

2. ACCOUNTABILITY

Find someone,…a coach, trainer, friend or family member who is committed to you, and your success. After you have taken responsibility for yourself, determined why you eat, chosen a path, determined what your nutritional requirements are, and devised a plan for both your eating and your exercise, find a person who will keep you accountable to the plan. It’s A LOT harder to skip a workout, cheat on your diet, or to lose consistency if there is someone waiting for you to show up and work out.

Accountability provides you with additional support on your journey toward a healthier you. This is where the help of a family member, or a professional, can encourage you, and help keep you motivated when you begin to have doubts. Being held accountable to a program through another person is ESSENTIAL to your success. Until you develop proper eating habits, and until you develop new ways of thinking about yourself, food, and exercise, having another person to guide and assist you along the way can make all the difference between success, and failure.

3. TIME

This is an important part of the weight loss process, and one which is often diminished, or left out of conventional weight loss methodology. I am here to set the record straight for you. This will not happen over night. This did not happen all at once, and it won’t “unhappen” all at once either.

I am sorry to break this to you, but I’m sure if you’ve tried things in the past, unsuccessfully, to lose weight, you probably are beginning to understand this…THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A QUICK FIX. Programs, or people who try to sell you, or tell you otherwise are out for your money, not your success.

Healthy, sustainable weight loss occurs at a rate of anywhere between 1-2 lbs a week. That’s right. Probably not what you wanted to hear. BUT THAT’S THE TRUTH. A pound may not seem like much. BUT the AMAZING thing about this is if you keep it up for a year, BE CONSISTENT in the path you’ve chosen for one year, and that 1lb turns into 52lbs. 104lbs in two years.

4. BELIEVE IN YOURSELF

If you’ve taken the previous 9 principles to heart, then the final thing you need in order to successfully achieve your weight loss goal is to BELIEVE that you can do it. This can be difficult, especially if you’ve tried things in the past, perhaps several times, and seen no results or seen the weight come back on.

5. TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOURSELF

It appears as though many people want to shift blame for their current situation to anyone, or anything but themselves. Whether it’s finances, relationships, work, family, or health related, as humans we sometimes have a tendency to create external reasons for our problems. If you ever find yourself saying, “If only so and so had done this differently, I could have…” or, ” If only I had this, I could…” or anything like this, I suggest you stop and take a good look at the real reason why you don’t have exactly what you want in your life. Is it because of other people and circumstances, or is the real reason because of a lack of action, or purpose on your part?

If you’ve ever found yourself saying…”I just don’t have the time to exercise…I don’t like healthy foods…No matter what I try I can’t lose weight…It’s just in my genes to be heavy,” or anything like this, then just STOP!

6. FIND OUT WHY?

This is one of THE MOST IMPORTANT STEPS in losing weight and keeping it off….the big WHY. Why do you eat? I don’t mean to offend anyone, but I’m going to assume that if you’re overweight, you don’t only eat because you’re hungry, but for a variety of other reasons as well. A lot of people eat because they’re bored, or tired, or they are just used to eating when they arrive home from work, or when they watch TV at night, or when they go out with friends, and the list goes on and on.

For many people, eating is a deeply emotional, and psychological issue. People deal with painful experiences in their past or present, and with insecurities in their lives by eating. Food as comfort. This is one of the most destructive patterns a person can have, and it goes in direct opposition to weight loss success.

I am not suggesting to know the specific reason why you eat, but I invite you, as painful as it may be, to really spend some time with yourself, and identify why it is that you eat, what times of day you eat, what emotions you experience when you eat, and what emotions you experience when you overeat. By doing so you will unlock a door that many people never even get close to. I can not stress the importance of this step. Until you determine WHY you eat, you will not be able to fix the problem.

7. DIET

Your diet, the food you choose to eat, is a crucial step on your road to weight loss success. As I stated earlier, I believe weight loss success is achieved through a combination of sound nutritional principles and regular exercise. However, it seems as though much of the information available points toward an exact combination of foods, or the elimination of others, in order to successfully lose weight. I am here to tell you, this is not the case. You will be thin if you eat fewer calories than you expend. Plain and simple. But if you do not take to heart and APPLY the principles listed above, no matter which “diet” you choose, ultimately weight loss success will not be yours.

So, how do you know which diet to choose? The answer is as simple as understanding what your goal is, and how you intend to arrive there. Do you want to lose weight? Are you going to do a lot of aerobic exercise? Are you going to do a lot of anaerobic exercise? How often do you plan on exercising? How active are you in your daily life outside of exercise?

Once you have arrived at answers to these questions, you can begin to determine the nutritional requirements for you, your body, and your tastes. Based on your activity levels and your goals, you should eat the appropriate amount of carbohydrates, fats, and protein to supply your body with sufficient nutrients. The key is to choose the healthiest foods possible that fit your tastes, and that meet your requirements. Diets are not one size fits all.

Your body’s main source of energy is carbohydrates, which come in two forms; simple and complex. Complex are starches from grains and vegetables. Examples of simple are sucrose, lactose, fructose, and glucose. No matter which type of carbohydrate you ingest, it ALL gets converted to glucose, commonly referred to as blood sugar. The only difference then, between the simple and the complex carbohydrates, is the rate at which your body digests them. How much, at what times, and which type of carbohydrate you consume should be based on your tastes, your activity levels, and your goals.

Protein is another essential component of a healthy diet. Protein does far more for the body than build muscle. Proteins in the body in the form of enzymes, perform numerous functions, including keeping your brain, heart, and digestive system functioning properly. Protein is made from 20 different amino acids, 9 of which are considered “essential” amino acids. Essential because your body does not have the ability to manufacture these 9, it must obtain them from your diet. If you eat animal based foods, chances are you have nothing to worry about. However if you eat a vegetarian diet, then you must make it a point to eat the right combination of foods containing plant proteins which will supply your body with the 9 essential amino acids. So how much protein do you need? Again, as with carbohydrates, the amount you need depends largely upon your goals, and your activity levels.

Fats are often misunderstood. People shy away from high fat foods, consistently looking for “low” or “non-fat” foods, when if weight loss is the concern, people should be far more concerned about the calories, and the ingredients in their food, and not just the amount of fat that it has. Fat has a tendency to make people “fat” because it is so calorie dense. One gram of fat has 9 calories, whereas a gram of carbohydrates, or protein has only 4. There are different types of fat, some of which are healthy for the body, and some which are not. We need, on average, 15-25 grams of fat a day to provide our body with proper nutrition, and to ensure we have enough fatty acids to absorb the fat soluble vitamins. Your body can manufacture saturated, and monounsaturated fat from other foods that you eat, however it can not manufacture the fatty acids, or the omega-6 and omega-3. You must obtain these directly from foods which contain them. These fatty acids are built into the tissues of your heart, brain, and other vital organs, and must be replenished through your diet.

Adequate consumption of vitamins and minerals also plays an important role in healthy nutrition. The bottom line is that there is no one food you should be having, and no one food you shouldn’t be having to attain weight loss success. The answer lies in understanding your body’s requirements, and in fulfilling them with healthy, whole foods consumed in moderation.

8. EXERCISE

Besides helping you look and feel great, regular exercise lowers your risk for developing a number of different diseases, health conditions, and cancers. It can improve the quality of your life.

Exercise is such an important tool in not only losing weight, but in keeping it off. This is because exercise is an essential component of a healthy lifestyle. Regular exercise will help you look and feel better. It will increase your energy, motivation, strength, confidence and self image.

As far as weight loss is concerned, the type of exercise is not as important as the amount. You just need to get out and move. Run. Walk. Swim. Bike. Skip. Jump rope. Lift weights.

Exercise will accelerate weight loss, and it will help give you the body you want. You can lose weight through applying the above principles to your life, but you can only get a strong, toned, healthy body through regular exercise, and specifically through strength training. You can’t ignore, or skip this. If you want to lose weight and be healthy, and you’re serious about it, then get serious about starting an exercise program…TODAY!

9. COMMITMENT

In order to achieve weight loss success, you must commit to your program. After deciding on your specific requirements and choosing a diet and exercise regime, you must COMMIT to your program, and you must commit 100%.

No matter how much weight you have to lose, YOU CAN DO IT! But you must first commit to the program. You must say to yourself, that no matter what, you will follow through on your commitment, and follow the path you have chosen, until you reach your goal. Commit to your program!