Thursday, September 10, 2009 by Dea.

So, in case anyone was doubting the power of the mini-goal (read: me), here’s proof that each mini-goal achievement is priceless!  I just hit my 10 pound goal!  I also feel like a million bucks. 

I set ten pound goals as I lose weight.  I like nice, round numbers, for one thing.  And this feeling, this exuberance and walking-on-air, this is the best reason of all for setting mini-goals.  

I may only be 1/7 th of my way through my weight loss, and I may still have 60 pounds to lose, but reaching this goal makes me feel like I’ve conquered something.  I feel like I look better in my clothes than I did yesterday.  I feel more energetic.  I feel, in short, fabulous.

So here’s to setting those mini-goals.  You’ll be glad you did when you get to have this mini-celebration!

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Tuesday, August 18, 2009 by Dea.

We are all unique, like snowflakes.  So why is it we assume that one weight loss plan will work for everyone?

What works for me is to restrict my portions, rather than any one food group.  I’ve tried going the restriction route.  It does not work for me.  I wind up torturing myself by withholding something like, say, carbs, and then going off the deep end a week later, rolling naked in a pile of Snickers bars.  Ok, maybe not naked, we own quite a few mirrors, but you get the point.  I know I just can’t live like that. 

I respect that carb cutting is ideal for other people.  If something doesn’t work for me, I can’t assume it won’t work for anyone.  Somehow, other people do not offer me the same respect.  I have frequented weight loss boards in the past, and people can get very militant about weight loss programs.  I’ve been called names, had my intelligence questioned, just because I didn’t follow a person’s method of weight loss.

I personally think that whatever you do in a healthy way to get to a better, healthier you, is the right way.  We’re all doing things to improve our quality of life, and if one person finds it easier to cut carbs while another does Weight Watchers, who are any of us to say someone is wrong?  We can all benefit from tips and tricks that work for others.  I’ve incorporated things I learned from other people, even if we aren’t n the same “plan.”  So what is your weight loss identity?

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Monday, August 17, 2009 by Dea.

I think one of the hardest parts of weight loss can be setting reasonable and achievable goals for yourself.  So often good intentions will be wiped out by huge disappointment when a goal that was set too high isn’t reached.  It’s important to avoid high expectations, which often lead to feelings of failure.

One guideline for weight loss goal setting is the 10% rule.  With this rule of thumb, you set your first goal to be losing 10% of your body weight.  For my starting point, that would be 25.3 pounds for my first goal, as my starting weight was 253 pounds.

A goal of 25.3 pounds is a lot less daunting than the full 75 pounds I want to lose.  It is still rather a large number, however.  To avoid feeling like it’s utterly hopeless to lose all the weight I want, I set several types of goals.  The first goal I determine is the total amount I want to lose.  I call this my Long Term Goal.  I want to eventually be 180 pounds.  So this is my Long Term Goal, and that means I have to lose 75 pounds total.  Seeing that large number can create panic, though, so I set my Intermediate Goals.  These are not nearly as large as my Long Term Goal.  For this, I use the 10% rule of thumb.  For other people who have less to lose, this can be a halfway or a third-of-the-way sort of thing.  Anything that divides the Long Term Goal into portions can work well here.

Since I have so much to lose, I find that my Intermediate Goals are still rather large.  I need encouragement and success to keep me going, which I am sure is something that helps any person trying to reach a goal.  So I set my Minor Goals.  These, for me, are 10 pounds.  Each time I lose 10 pounds, I reward myself.  Normally, I buy myself a new top or a pair of jeans.  Reaching an achievement point is a big boost to self esteem.  It can make or break a person’s journey.  This is why setting reasonable goals is so important.

Expecting a body that gained the weight over time to lose it quickly is unhealthy both for your bdy and your mind.  It’s important to maintain a healthy rate of weight loss.  Losing 10 pounds in a week isn’t sustainable weight loss.  And the following week, if you only lose 1 pound, you might feel like a failure and quit.  Which is better - consistently losing 1 to 2 pounds a week, or losing 10 one week and 1 the next then quitting and gaining it back?

So be kind to yourself.  Set several types of goals, small, medium and large.  Reward yourself in different ways each time you reach a goal.  And in regards to time limits, be reasonable and don’t expect more than a 2-pounds-per-week loss.  Remember - a journey of 100 miles is not finished in a short time.  And you must take the first smaller steps in order to get to the finish line.

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Wednesday, August 12, 2009 by Dea.

Women, overall, are very hard on themselves.  We expect perfection from ourselves in anything we do.  Be it at work, at home, or in the gym, we want to achieve everything at 100% success rates.  Is this realistic?  Not really.  But knowing that doesn’t mean we expect it any less.

I know that I will beat myself up for eating fast food, or too much candy.  Is that fair to do to myself?  I’m not sure.  It isn’t a question of whether I want the end result bad enough.  It’s more a question of whether or not I should expect myself to never eat anything that isn’t good for me.  Sometimes, a chocolate bar, or a small french fries, is good for you.

If I expect 100% healthy eating from myself, I set myself up for a huge letdown.  Basically, if I choose one thing “off course” then I might scrap the whole day, and give in to eating all junk, all day.  One small diversion from the path you’ve set out for yourself doesn’t ruin the entire day.  Or week.

It’s about the small victories.  Like when you go out to a restaurant, and choose to put half your order into a box and take it home BEFORE you start eating.  Or when you get up off the couch and go for a walk.  Each small improvement, every single minor change, adds up to a big difference.

So I keep this motto I learned at Jenny Craig foremost in my mind, so that I won’t expect the impossible, and I will celebrate the positive steps I make.  “Progress, not perfection.”  It’s a good thing to remember, because it helps you love every small positive, and let go of any negatives.  The more you celebrate, the healthier you live.

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