Resolutions and Weight Loss

You'd think resolutions are all well and good. The trouble is keeping them. How many of us wake up on New Years Day with a stinking hangover thinking thats it Im going to be a totally different person?

No more alcohol, caffeine, drugs, chocolate, cakes, or any of the other indulgences that make life sweet. Yet, to give yourself any kind of real chance of keeping your resolutions and losing weight in the long term, you need realistic goals.

Resolutions Are Not Enough

In fact, its not so much about making resolutions. As they say the road to hell is paved with good intentions. You need more than this, you need determination and you need a plan.

Figure out what your lifestyle and eating habits are at the moment. Count up how many calories you consume in a day. What are your particular weaknesses and bad habits?

Alternative Ways to Change

Rather than putting yourself on some kind of punishment schedule that means eating nothing but carrots for a week, try to think of small ways you could change. Swap that chocolate bar for a piece of fruit for example. Draw yourself up a healthy balanced diet that includes lots of variety.

Try out different types of exercising until you find an exercise that you enjoy and where you can slowly build up your endurance. Don't set yourself up for failure by deciding you're going to lose four stone in four weeks. Short-term torture will not result in long-term benefits.

You should be looking for a way to adapt your lifestyle so that it becomes healthier in the future. You want to gradually ease yourself into looking and feeling better. Few of us can turn into saints overnight, but just a small amount of effort the whole year round can make a real difference.