It may not always be fun or enjoyable; however, when you have clarity about why you need to make these sustainable lifestyle changes, the process will be a lot easier. Furthermore, when you learn to break the process down into bite sized pieces, you begin to appreciate how easy it can be. The problem for many is that they look at the whole thing and immediately feel overwhelmed and quit before they even try.

LET US ADDRESS LOSING WEIGHT

If you have been following me, I like to stress losing excess fat. If the weight you are losing is your muscle mass, that will compromise your health in the long run. Thus, the goal is to lose excess fat. Then we remember that when we focus on gaining health, rather than losing weight, it is more inspiring, and you are more likely to be more diligent.

There is something else you can do right now to really help you stay the course when things get rocky. You have identified the “WHAT,” now it is particularly important for you to identify the “WHY.” I did not realize how important that was in helping one to make sustainable changes until I did it myself.

Your “WHAT” is to lose weight (gain health).

Your “WHY” is ??__________________________________.

HAVE A COMPELLING REASON ‘WHY’

If there is not a compelling reason why this change is important to you, it will be extremely difficult for you to make the sustainable changes. Furthermore, it becomes difficult to resist the temptation to fall back into the unhealthy patterns that caused you to gain weight in the first place.

The interesting thing is that one would expect that getting and staying healthy (being disease free) would be a compelling enough reason; however, that is often not the case. Take Arodne, she wanted to lose weight and she had a slew of medical problems: high blood pressure, diabetes, elevated cholesterol, and joint pain. She was told that losing the excess fat would go a long way to lowering her blood pressure, reversing her diabetes, fixing her cholesterol problem, and decreasing the pain in her joints.

Obviously, being healthy was not a compelling enough reason for Arodne because she never lost the weight. Therefore, take the time to really discover your compelling reason. Use the eight levels deep dive technique.

YOU MAY ALSO NEED ANOTHER STEP

You have your compelling reason, and you still find that you are struggling with making the lifestyle changes you know you need to make. You start off enthusiastically and then falter after a week, perhaps a month, or even a year later. You did not make the change in your unhealthy patterns of behaviors. Do you remember my acronym, M.A.P.? ‘P’ stands for the patterns or practices, also known as habits, that you consistently indulge in at certain times of the day or in certain situations. Thus, the other step that you need to take is understanding your patterns. Gain clarity about the situations or the emotional states that leave you vulnerable and prone to reverting back to those unhealthy patterns, practices, or habits. Remember, you are 100% responsible for creating your emotional states. Yes, the stimulus may be external, but you are the only one that can create the emotions and feelings that you have in any moment.

THE FINAL PIECE TO THE PUZZLE

Please take a moment to identify the limiting beliefs and toxic thoughts you have about yourself as they pertain to your ability, your value, your worth, and your lovability. If those are not grounded in truth and love, it will be impossible to make the sustainable changes you desire.