Every year millions of people make a New Year's resolution that has something to do with losing weight.
By February, a lot of those people have already given up on their goal of losing weight because they got frustrated or lazy (or both), then quit.
Weight loss resolutions are easy to make but hard for most people to stick with for the long term.
There are a few things you can do to help make your New Year's weight loss resolution a reality.
Set Small, Short Term Goals Setting small goals is important because they are achieved much quicker than the larger goals, which helps keeps you motivated and on your weight loss journey.
Be sure these goals are specific and doable.
Don't set yourself up for failure by setting generic goals like "to get skinny" or "lose weight".
Setting goals like "lose two pounds per week" or "eating 300 less calories per day" are much better goals for the short term.
Set Long Term Goals Don't forget about the long term goal or goals that you have.
It's always important to have your heart set on the big picture so you don't lose focus.
Long term goals are things like "lose 50 pounds this year" or "lose 20% body fat this year".
Both are goals that you can work towards when you're working on your short term goals.
As you make your short term goals, you're also continuing to work on your long term goals.
Reward Yourself When you have achieved a short term goal, reward yourself, but don't reward yourself with food.
This includes taking an entire day off and eating whatever you want.
This will just cover up everything you've worked for during that week or time period.
Instead, opt for a new pair of sneakers or a new workout CD.
Give Yourself Breaks You don't have to workout 24/7 to see weight loss results.
Give yourself at least 1 day off per week and use it as a rest day.
Keep your caloric intake in check, but take the day off from working out.
Working out non-stop is a great way to burn yourself out.
Breaks are just as important as workout days.
It's also okay to give yourself a week off of workouts every 8 weeks or so.
Not everybody likes to take breaks for so long, but I find that it actually helps me.
After working out regularly for 8 weeks, it's nice to take a week off from training.
Then by the time it's time to start up again, I'm actually really excited to start.