5. What is Your Purpose for Losing Weight

WHAT IS YOUR PURPOSE FOR LOSING WEIGHT?

Let’s examine your motives, why do you want to lose weight. We saw in the last few posts some great reasons for losing weight, but unfortunately some motives can be less clear. Really examine your motives; you might want to pause here. Go somewhere quiet and reflect. It’s very important to understand why you want to do it.

Turn it into a positive

Quite a lot of people chose to embark on a fat loss programme for reasons, which are actually negative, such as the effects of negative comments by others. For example when someone offers a throwaway remark like “You look well, have you put some weight on?”


Comparing yourself unfavourably with others

This is especially true with celebrities in magazines, on TV or the internet. We are bombarded with images of young waif-like models all of the time.
Because you heard the latest scare story on the TV, radio or internet
These are all valid starting points, which will often be the kick we need to take action. It’s essential now for you to convert your motivation into a positive one. Positive motivations would be health, feeling good or higher esteem. The reason for this is that you want to stay motivated. If you have a negative (moving away from) motivation, you will abandon your new lifestyle when you reach your target weight. Remember this is about permanent change, so choose a positive motivation to keep you slim and healthy forever.
Imagine what you will feel like and the things you will do. Focus on these. What will really get your juices flowing, what will get you moving on a cold morning? Really add emotion to it. What will you feel like wearing the new clothes? What will the buzz feel like when you step on the scales and they show you that you are at your target weight?

Overeating

Overeating is usually an effect of other issues, such as low self-esteem, stress, boredom etc. Be honest with yourself, is there something else that needs addressing? Is it on a deeper level? Is the overeating just a symptom of something else? The last thing I want is for you to be thin and depressed. Losing weight may help as part of an over-all look at your lifestyle.