List of Weight Loss Goals

Celebrities, professional bodybuilders, and athletes can afford to hire personal trainers, dietitians, nutritionists, and lifestyle coaches to help them lose weight. What about the rest of us? How do we set goals to help us achieve healthy weight loss?

Don't dive into the deep end of the weight loss group without planning ahead. The way to approach healthy weight loss is not to rush without a clear plan or goal. Start by thinking about it before you start doing it. Deciding on some weight loss goals can mean the difference between success and defeat.

Be specific:

You can have many goals with your weight loss. “I am going to lose 10 pounds in 30 days” is a good specific goal but “I am going to lose a lot of weight as quickly as possible” is not. You can also have goals like not snacking on junk food after dinner, or adding two servings of raw vegetables a day to your diet, or calories burned workout 20 minutes every morning. These goals lead to good habits, just make sure you’re not trying to change too many things all at once.

Be realistic:

How much weight do you need to lose? What’s your time frame for losing it? It’s okay to have a big goal to lose a lot of weight, but realize it could and should take you awhile. Factor losing 1 to 2 pounds per week into your time frame. Losing weight gradually is the healthy way to do it. It’s not the dramatic pound dropping you wish for, but if you lose weight slowly and incorporate lifestyle changes you are more likely to keep it off. Check in with your doctor as to how much he/she wants you to lose on a weekly basis. They’ll know about any health factors you have and can advise you.

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Set a start date:

If you don’t pick a date to start your weight loss program, you might fall into the trap of “someday”. “Someday I’ll start eating carrots and stop drinking soda…” or “Someday I’ll go on a diet”. Pick a date to start because then it will feel real to you and you’ll have no choice but to begin.

Track it:

After you have spent time coming up with your goals, write them down. Tracking your progress, especially your successes, will give you motivation to continue. Write down your plan to achieve your goals. If you want to lose one pound a week, you need to cut out x number of calories or up your exercise by x amount. You can’t lose the weight just by wanting to… have a plan of action and make it reasonable and doable for you.

Get a little help:

There are lots of online weight loss support groups. Do a search and find a forum that resonates with you. You can also join a support group in person, if you’d like that route better. For some people, finding a weight loss partner, a supportive spouse, or a personal coach works best. Getting support is an important element in going after any goal and that’s especially true with weight loss.

Taking the time to set some goals for weight loss before you start your program can be a positive first step in achieving what you set out to do. Be specific and realistic with your goals, pick a start date, keep a journal, and get support to tip the scales of success in your favour.

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