Losing weight is the focus of millions of people around the world as is shown by the billion-dollar weight loss industry. Obeisity is without a doubt a rising problem, with three quarters of adult Americans classified as overweight to obese – and childhood diabetes being a rising problem among the world’s children. There are many reasons to lose weight but the challenge frequently comes in the motivation. So what can you do when you have absolutely no motivation to lose weight? To get yourself moving in the right direction, here are some tips to use for when you find yourself lacking in motivation.
People You Associate With
Whatever you want to achieve in life you need to have like-minded people around you. Often you hear that if you want to be rich you need wealthy friends. The same principle applies to weight loss! Being around like minded people is a powerful strategy for maintaining your weight loss motivation. Select your skinniest friend to begin to go out with, eat with, go for a run or join them in some of their favorite activities. Very soon, you will find yourself getting more and more excited about the way you look as the pounds begin to melt away. If you do not have any friends who are in shape, join a gym and make some new friends!
Use Negative and Positve Goals
You have probably heard all the advice in the world about positive thinking, fun goals and rewards. However, have you ever thought that you might need to consider some negative goals? If that sounds like a contradiction in terms, hang around for a moment. Thinking about all the great things that will happen in your life if you lose weight is great, however, considering the negative implications of not losing weight can be a highly effective motivator as well.
As an example, make a list of all the negative things that could come into your life if you fail to lose weight. For example, you might include diabetes, damaged joints, embarrassment, lack of physical attraction and more. The aim of this exercise is not to get you down, but to give yourself a shot of tough love. We need a reality check sometimes to get that motivation to lose weight, and a negative goal list will do precisely that.
Vision
What you continually look at can be a effective motivator if you’ve got no motivation to lose weight. Do you like what you see when you look in the mirror, or can you not stand it? Take some time each day to view yourself in a full-length mirror, take off your clothes first if you’re especially brave. Now, before getting totally down you should pull out a picture of yourself at your thinnest – or an image that represents your ideal weight – and post it on the mirror, refrigerator, and cabinets and everywhere you can see it very often. Make a promise to yourself that no matter what, you’ll get back to that picture. Put your face on an image from a magazine that represents how you want to look if weight has always been an issue for you. Keeping a picture of where you are and where you want to be can be a powerful motivational technique for when you want motivation to lose weight.
It’s About More Than Losing Weight
Part of what I’ve said above could be seen as negative, but you have to remember you are not just losing weight; you are in a battle for your health! Remember through it all to forgive yourself when you make a mistake, and aim to keep your goals firmly planted and in front of you.
This article was written by Mike Roberts of “Motivation To Lose Weight”. For more tips, tools and resources to stay motivated to lose weight, visit motivation to lose weight.