You are putting in a big effort to make changes to your health and you started seeing results, but now, you feel like you're losing your drive. It feels very tempting to go back to your previous situation and habits, since that's where your comfort zone has been for a long time. We've all faced this situation multiple times in our journey. The question is "What can we do about it?".
Fortunately, this bump in the road does not have to be the end of your health-improvement and/or weight-loss journey. Even if you dropped the ball and fell back to old routines (in my case, binging on chocolate), you can always get back on track in no time.
The first thing you need to understand is that "motivation" is not always going to be around. Many times, you will have to rely on other factors to keep you on track and ultimately achieve all your health and weight goals. And these things are exactly what you can focus on now to get you back on track:
1) Remember why you are doing this
You've got started for a reason. Perhaps your goal was to feel great, look good in front of your mirror, or just be healthier. At some point, you were very motivated by this goal but now that you are in the daily grind, you probably lost sight of it. So take a step back, think about your goals and try to visualize how the end result will look like. Sometimes, this change in perspective can make all the difference!
2) Remember who, besides yourself, you are doing this for
If we disappoint ourselves by giving up, we can live with it. But if we are disappointing our loved ones, we typically have a much harder time. It might sound a bit dark, but use this reality check to get extra motivation. "Hey, I don't want to disappoint my daughter by being a bad example!". If you react better to the positive approach, reframe it as "Hey, I want to be a great example and inspiration for my daughter". If you become healthier, who are you helping besides yourself?
3) Appreciate how far you have come
We are all experts on being frustrated by how slow we might make progress. But what we all could use once in a while (especially myself) is to reflect on how far we have come, what changes we have already made, and then to APPRECIATE how awesome we are for having come so far. This is a core part of our "better, not perfect" philosophy: "did we get better than we were before?". Quite often, the progress can't be solely measured in weight, but also how we feel, how we think...
4) Understand that this journey takes time and comes with ups and downs
You've probably heard "If it was easy, everyone would do it". There is a lot of truth in that, since many people are not able to find the drive on their own to go from the start all to the end. And just with anything worthwhile, it will take time, and you will encounter difficult moments. Once you accept this is as the reality of life, you can feel comfortable that there is nothing wrong, and you can just keep going.
5) Talk to people to get you back on track
Often, we just need some outside perspective to get ourselves back on track. It's best to talk to people that share your goals or at least support them, as they will be able to encourage you to keep going. That's where having a coach can make all the difference.
Conclusion
It's OK and absolutely normal that you are not always super motivated. Trust the process. If you work on it and stay on track, you will eventually get there. And if you wake up feeling demotivated and ready to spend the day on your sofa eating chips (that's how I felt this morning, honestly!) Just take one small step in the right direction, and then another, and in no time, you will be back on track!
Want to learn more about how we support our clients with their challenges? Or do you also want to reach your optimal weight, lose excess fat, and/or simply have more energy? Then discover our programs here
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Kevin Clement,
Founder Eat better, not perfect.
Questions or suggestions? Let us know at hello@eatbnp.com