If you struggle with weight gain it's a good bet that you have tried at least one of the "fad" diets that crop up on a regular basis.
The truth is that some of these diets may grant you temporary weight loss. In the usual case, however, the weight returns as soon as you stray from the diet.
The bottom line is that you gain weight because you consume more calories than your body is able to use and no diet is a substitute for good eating habits.
Your body requires a certain number of calories in order to function properly. If you truly wish to lose weight, you must burn off more calories than your body requires.
In this guide you will learn ways to reduce the number of calories you ingest as well as tips and techniques to help you burn off unnecessary calories.
Before we begin, however, it's important that you fill your arsenal with every possible tool available to insure your success. The most important tool in your weight loss program does not include diet or exercise.
There is no special equipment you need to purchase. You don't need to join a gym or health club. And, you already have every component you need to put this tool to work for you and begin a successful weight loss program. What is it? It's your mind. Having said that, let's get started, shall we?
If you have tried every diet on the planet, every exercise program from the latest fitness guru and repeatedly failed to achieve your weight loss goals you probably need a "check up from the neck up."
Successful weight loss doesn't just happen. It took more than a few days to reach the point where you are at right now. Give yourself a break and expect it to take awhile before you see measurable results. Take a leap of faith and follow some basic principles.
Begin with your "self talk." This is the conversation that runs through your brain continuously. What kind of conversation do you have with your self talk? What type of negative self talk has kept you from reaching your goals in the past?
If you had a chance to do it over again, would you change the dialogue? That's a no-brainer isn't it? Well, the good news is that you can turn the tide of negative self talk beginning right now. It's never too late to begin and you start by reprogramming your self talk.
A good starting point is to begin with positive affirmations. Positive affirmations spoken aloud with authority and belief, positively affect your attitude, focus your thinking and lead to a course of action that will help you become the person you want to be and have the things that you want to have.
Begin by writing your affirmations on paper. You need to take some time for this exercise. You can begin with something like, "I want to lose 25 pounds before Christmas." That's a worthy goal and attainable, but we need to put some work into structuring the affirmation.
First of all, "I want" gives the impression that what you desire is always in the future. In order to re-program your self talk, you need to trick your mind into believing that you have already achieved success. This is how your subconscious mind functions.
Your subconscious mind has no capacity for understanding the concept of time. Everything is in the moment . . . here and now.
When you tell your subconscious mind you "want" that is exactly what you will get ... want. You will get "want", without ever achieving fulfillment. Unless you change your mental tape recorder, you will achieve exactly what you are telling your subconscious, that you "want to lose 25 pounds." You will "want to lose 25 pounds" for the rest of your days unless you change your self talk.
If your weight is 150 pounds and you desire is to weight 125 pounds, then you need to "be" 125 pounds from the moment you make the decision to change your self talk.
What if you write your affirmation to read something like this: "I am healthy and fit, weighing 125 pounds."
What are you telling your subconscious now? It's extremely important that you phrase your affirmation as if you have already accomplished what you desire. Work on writing it out until you have it precisely as you wish to become.
It is particularly important that your affirmation is crystal clear because what you affirm is exactly what your subconscious mind will bring you.
You needn't limit yourself to one affirmation either. Write another one that reflects your new exercise program. "I enjoy my healthy new exercise program," or, "I love the healthy foods I eat."
Write and rewrite until you are absolutely certain that you have written your goals "in the here and now" AND to represent precisely what you desire. Then, and only then, begin to speak it aloud and do so several times a day.
Remember to use the present tense. "I acknowledge achievement in all my weight loss goals." "I have the skill and talent to exercise every day." "I am a winner." "I am grateful for all of my accomplishments no matter how small."