Your weight-loss success depends on your readiness to take on the challenge. These questions can help you judge whether now is the best time to start your weight-loss program.
• Are you motivated to make long-term lifestyle changes that require eating healthy foods and exercising more? Be honest. Knowing you need to make changes in your life and feeling up to the challenge are two different things.
• Do you currently have distractions in your life that may prevent you from committing to your weight-loss program? You may set yourself up for failure if you're distracted by other major events in your life, such as marital problems, job stress, illness or financial worries. Give your life a chance to calm down before you start.
• Do you truly believe that slower is better? Losing weight at a relatively slow pace has proved safe, healthy and effective over the long term. You should aim for a weight loss of 1 to 2 pounds a week.
• Are you realistic about your weight-loss goal? Remember, losing as little as 10 to 20 pounds can improve your health if you're overweight or obese. Ask your doctor how much weight you can safely lose.
• Do you have family and friends to support your weight-loss efforts? It certainly helps to have someone in your corner. If you don't have someone you can rely on, consider joining a weight-loss support group.
• Do you believe that you can change your eating habits? Sounds easy to do in theory, but in practice, it's often difficult. It's hard to cast aside established behaviors.
• Are you willing to become more physically active? Increasing your level of physical activity is essential to losing weight and keeping it off.
• Do you have time to keep records of your food intake and physical activity? Keeping records increases your chance of success. You'll be pleasantly surprised by how helpful it is to track your progress.
• Are you willing to look at past successes and failures in weight loss and other areas of your life? Learn from the past about what motivates you. Keep working to resolve barriers that might prevent success.
• Do you view a healthy-weight program as a positive experience? Lose weight because you want to and not because you think it's expected by others.
• Have you resolved any eating disorders or other emotional issues that make it difficult for you to achieve a healthy weight? If you have a tendency to binge, purge, starve or overexert when you exercise, or if you're depressed or anxious, you may need professional help.
• Do you believe that a healthy weight is a lifelong commitment? Achieving and maintaining a healthy weight is a lifelong process. There's no going back to your old behaviors. Are you ready to make a permanent change?
If you answered yes to all of these questions, you're ready to make the lifestyle changes necessary for permanent weight loss.
If you answered no to one or more of these questions, you may not be ready. And that's OK. Explore what's holding you back and face those obstacles. In some cases it may be a simple matter of timing. For instance, you may need to resolve other problems in your life.
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