by
Wendy Hearn
What
are the first things you think about if you
want to lose weight? Well, you'll probably
think about the foods you'll eat and the ones
you're going to reduce or cut out altogether.
You'll also consider what exercise you're
going to take and how often.
But
there's one critical factor that is often
overlooked or certainly not given enough thought.
It's the one thing that has the most dramatic
effect on your success with weight loss.
What
is it? It's a support partner, someone who
provides the motivation, encouragement and
support that you most need. After all, you
know enough about eating healthily and sensibly,
and exercising regularly, but it's actually
doing it that's the hard part.
When
you have someone on your side who will be
there with you whatever happens, celebrating
the successes and overcoming the setbacks,
you're more likely to keep doing what you
need to do. If you continue to eat healthily
and exercise, you will achieve the weight
loss results you want and keep the weight
off in the long run. Studies have shown that
people who have support, lose 2.5 times more
weight than those who try to do it alone.
Now,
you may have friends or family members who
are willing to support you and that's great
to an extent. However, generally, they will
know you too well and be used to accepting
your excuses and habits. To lose weight, you're
going to need to make some changes and you'll
need someone who's willing to make a stand
with you so that you don't slip back to your
old ways.
Choosing
an outsider who is independent of everything
else going on in your life is much better
at not only giving you what you most need,
but challenging you to see what you're doing
and holding you accountable for making the
necessary changes to lose weight.
Your
commitment is higher if you share with others
your intentions and you can recap with them
on how you're doing and discuss your intentions
for the next week. You'll also need to be
heard and understood, two very basic human
needs that most people don't get in their
lives and this often stands in the way of
you successfully losing weight.
So
where do you start? First have a think about
what support, motivation and encouragement
you most need and then define it specifically
in writing. To find the right support partner
for you, I suggest you consider the following:
·
What motivates you and what doesn't?
·
In what way do you need to be supported?
·
In what ways can someone most encourage you?
·
What do you want the person to be like? i.e.
a good listener, non-judgemental and a healthy
attitude to losing weight.
·
Someone who will keep reminding you of how
well you've done so far, reminding you of
your successes.
·
Someone who can empathise with you.
·
Someone who tells you what to do or doesn't
tell you what to do.
·
Someone who's fun and light-hearted even when
you're finding it tough.
It
will take a bit of time and thought to be
clear about the type of support you most need
and I really encourage you to do it. Knowing
this enables you to communicate what you as
an individual most need and get it. Once you
have the right support partner for you, you'll
find losing weight much easier.
Don't
miss out on this one important factor if you
want to be successful with your weight loss.
Find a support partner now. For individual
support with a buddy see http://www.weightlossbuddy.com
or professional support in a group see http://www.weightlosscoaching.com/WeightLossGroupCoaching.htm
Wendy
Hearn, Weight Loss Success Coach
Author
of "What's Eating You? - The Top 10 Things
That Stop YOU From Losing Weight" http://www.PositiveWeightLoss.com
Subscribe to her Weight Loss Success Newsletter
mailto:weightloss@wendyhearn.par32.com
Wendy works with people who want to successfully
lose weight. http://www.WeightLossCoaching.com
