Working as a trainer I have come across a variety of people looking to get healthy and lose weight. Most people know what they need to do, but cannot fathom the changes it takes (beyond diet and exercise) in order to accomplish their weight loss goals. Here is a brief list of the major points I believe are necessary for success in weight loss.
Commitment Adherence:
I've said it before and I'll say it again: to lose weight we need to
MOVE MORE and
LIFT MORE. Research supports that in order to increase your daily metabolism (RMR) you need to break away from sedentary behaviors. It is recommended that we get 30 minutes of cardio-activities 5-7x weekly. This trains our bodies to burn more calories by staying consistent with this habit.
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| Stop wishing and start planning...then stick to the plan. |
In order to further increase our metabolisms (remember that high metabolisms burn fat more efficiently) we need to engage in strength training 3-4x weekly. Why 3-4x a week? Again, research supports that 3-4x weekly is what it takes to
BUILD muscle efficiently. This goes for men and women by the way. I don't care how easily you put on muscle, this rule still stands.
Now that you know what you need to do (cardio x5, Strength training x3) you need to ADHERE to the program. This is the hardest part of the process. Here is when people start telling me about their busy schedules; kids, work, other commitments, etc. The reality is that you need to exercise
consistently in order to reach your goal. Commit to your exercise schedule the way you commit to scheduled meetings. You aren't going to blow off a meeting with your boss. Health is pretty important too, so don't blow off your workouts. Believe in the science of the body; you can gain weight and you can lose weight. Which way your body goes (the way of weight-gain or loss) is up to you. Give yourself over to the process. Accept that you need to workout regularly. No one ever said, "I wish I hadn't wasted that time exercising."
Body Weight Fixation:
There is more to your weight loss goal than simply "weight". Stop checking the scale every day. A good rule of thumb is checking once a week, or for my clients, once every two weeks. Your weight can fluctuate +/- 5 lbs everyday. It depends on how much water you've had the previous day (water weight), regularity, inflammation, etc. Checking the scale can become an obsessive behavior and doesn't serve a helpful purpose. Realize that change cannot happen overnight. Take that in; change cannot happen overnight. (Okay, maybe with surgery... but I doubt most of us have $20,000+ to throw at weight loss problems)
There is a point where body weight is an obvious indicator of your current health status. However, even at these times it is more appropriate to reframe your mind and consider the amount of fat your body holds. Body fat percentage can have a big impact on the way someone looks. Skinny people can carry a higher amount of body fat and still weigh under 120 lbs. Thin people (you might still consider them skinny) can weigh over 120 lbs and have lower body fat. It's all about the body type you want.
Damaged Relationships With Food:
Food is fuel. Yup, food is fuel for the body. Yes, it is enjoyable because we've conditioned our cultures to incorporate food-enjoyment into social gatherings. However, the reality is that food is necessary and actually enjoying our food is not necessary. Food is not evil. Food does not make you fat.
Bad habits with food make us put on body fat. Emotional eating... binging... starving yourself because you think you'll lose weight that way... it is all a huge problem for your weight loss goal. Food cannot soothe your emotions. Binging is a by product of not giving your body enough energy throughout the day. Starving yourself is disorder eating pure and simple. Most people who purposely fast throughout the day are convinced that NOT eating will cause their bodies to burn off their body fat. Funny thing about our bodies is that they rarely cooperate with our "wants". What happens when you starve yourself is that you end up storing more fat because your body believes that it won't be getting enough fuel. It goes into "squirrel mode" and stores everything it can in an effort to have enough fuel to run itself even in times of low-quantities of food. Surprising? Yes, you need to EAT to lose weight. Change your mind about food and you'll change your life.
Stressors:
Some might say: avoid stress. However, we all know that avoiding stress in American society is nearly impossible. Family, friends, work, lack of sleep, starving yourself... all are sources of stress.
We can all make a more serious effort to manage our stress. One great way to manage stress is to exercise regularly. Studies show that engaging in regular exercise at least 30 minutes a day can help people better cope with stress. For most of us, quitting our jobs and quitting our loved ones is not an option. Giving yourself the tools to cope with stress is the best thing you can do for yourself. Exercising has been shown to help populations sleep better. In fact, my clients have reported to me that they've experienced better sleep patterns since training with me.
I mentioned above how terrible starving yourself is. Talk about sabotaging your own progress! To get more into the science behind it, when you deprive your body of nutrients (AKA: food) you put stress on your own body. Your mind releases hormones like cortisol that triggers fat-storage in your body. Your body thinks you are in a situation of low-food sources; it has no idea that you are purposely withholding from food, so it tells your body to store ALL the nutrients it can. By starving yourself you are stressing yourself to the point of increasing your body fat. Please stop. Eat more, eat smarter, stress less.
Positivity:
There is a huge amount of power behind words. Words can illicit positivity and negativity.
A more positive outlook can cause you to trigger the "pleasure zone(s)" in your brain, which release chemicals into your body and effect your physiology. On the flip side, negativity leads to bad feelings, which can effect your brain in the areas that process physical pain. Imagine the chemical signals that travel throughout your body due to that... No bueno. A positive mindset leads to better adherence to the weight loss process and less stress.
Stay positive. Be patient with yourself. Be kind to yourself.
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