Successful long-term weight loss depends on making permanent life style changes to both your diet and exercise routine. Are you motivated enough to make sure that you will not pile back on the pounds?
Here are a few tips to ensure that you have the right mind-set to achieve your permanent weight loss goals.
1.) What are your triggers? Do you know what triggers you to eat fattening or junk foods? Is it a form of comfort when you are stressed out? Are there certain emotional triggers that can make you eat that second tub of ice cream? Identify these triggers, maybe you don't like your job, or you are going through a divorce or some other emotionally draining experience. Maybe eating healthily at these times is the last thing on your mind... The key to ensure that you don't turn to the cheeseburgers is to identify these triggers and rethink how you let them affect you. It is important to re-train your mind to not associate fast or junk food with comfort... So the next time you have had a bad day at the office - stop off at the local supermarket and pick up some vegetable dip (carrot dip, or low-fat hummus for example) with some whole wheat pita bread. It makes a filling nutritious meal, but most importantly it will take even less time to prepare than your favourite microwave meal could possibly be packed with salt and fat.
2.) Be Realistic with how much and how quickly you will lose the weight - One of the main reasons why people fail to stick to healthier eating and exercise is because they try it for a short while, see little to minimal results and then give up before they have given it a fair go. It is important to have realistic expectations. If you have been eating unhealthy for 25 years, you are not going to look like a super model because you been eating healthier for the last two weeks.
Achieving and maintaining a healthy weight is a life-long process and should be seen as such. On average you should be looking to lose 1 to 2 pounds a week approximately. According to a weight loss article written by the Mayo Clinic, for this weekly target to be achieved, you need to burn 500 to 1000 calories more than you consume every day.
The best way to do this is by eating a low-calorie healthy diet and regular physical activity. It is quite common for people to initially lose weight quite quickly, then for their progress to be much slower after the initial stages. This is mainly due to them making significant changes at the start, while slowly slipping back into their more unhealthier habits. If this happens, you should quickly identify those less healthy habits and stop them immediately. Don't be discouraged if your rate of fat loss slows a bit after the initial bigger losses.
Remember, the trick to losing weight in the long term is not about how quickly you lose the weight but that you make steady progress to your overall target weight and maintain it.
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Nadine 'Diet Coach' Douglas lost over 25 pounds after being overweight most of her adult life. She now runs a successful weight loss website which gives information about great resources which can help you lose weight and be healthy for long term success.
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