Have you ever looked at an overweight person, maybe even yourself, and thought, “That person just needs discipline. If only they’d expend a little effort and self control they wouldn’t be fat anymore.”?
But why not? We all know what it takes to lose weight–eat less and move more. Why do so many of us find it so hard?
Why do we start with the greatest enthusiasm and the best of intentions only weeks later to throw in the towel?
In a word, habit.
The things we do over and over again are our habits. Some are good and some are not. It’s their consistency that both makes them a habit and gives them their power.
For most of us the reason we fail at losing weight is that the habits of poor eating and not enough exercise are stronger and more established than the new habit of good eating and exercise we are trying to establish.
And therein lies the first problem, we don’t acknowledge that it’s a habit we are trying to change or recognize the difficulty in doing so.
Which is by no means a suggestion that we shouldn’t try, just an acknowledgement that the issue is more involved than we might first assume.
If we are to be successful in any endeavor we have to be able to assess the entirety of our situation and develop a competent strategy for change. Here is where THINK! and Lose Weight can help.
There are no new secrets to weight loss. There is no magic wand, elixir or pill that can change the process, make it faster or less arduous. Burning more calories than you consume on a consistent basis is the only way to lose weight.
It is to the marketer’s and charlatan’s advantage that the issue is made more complicated than it needs to be.
However, within the rubric of “eat less do more” a surer path to effective weight loss can be found. This is the path of effective strategies, of understanding why you eat too much, of destructive habits and how to convert them into constructive ones. This is the path laid out in THINK! and Lose Weight: the 7 Habits of Effective Weight Loss.
Along the way you will learn the habit of success, a habit that can be applied to any endeavor and with great reward.
Each chapter focuses on one habit and how acquiring that habit is essential to successful weight loss.
Beyond the habits are several appendices with real-life strategies for organizing your exercise and diet and bringing them into compliance with not only your weight loss needs but your lifestyle as well.
So, while the formula for weight loss is the same it’s always been–eat less and do more–THINK! and Lose Weight offers strategies designed to help you effectively change your life, to make weight loss a consistent part of your lifestyle and ensure your continued success.
Great article Mike. The thing with people that start with the greatest enthusiasm and the best of intentions only weeks later to throw in the towel is that they typically become inspired or experience the initial motivation in front of others. True character is defined by what you do when nobody is looking. Your habits ultimately stem from your character.
Take care
-David M
ps THINK! and Lose Weight is awesome!
Just read the book Think and Lose Weight. Great information presented in a easy to understand, you can do this manner. Anyone who is looking for a good system to follow and is willing to make it a way of life, this would be the system.
Well done!
Roy Gutierrez