25 Weight Loss Survival Skills

October 16, 2003

>

>> Fwd: 25 Weight Loss Survival Skills

>>

>> > 25 Weight Loss Survival Skills

>> >

>>

>> > IVILLAGE.com Reader Tips:

>> >

>> > 1. Food may taste good, but no food tastes as good as how being

>> > thinner feels.

>> >

>> > 2. You've had that food before. You KNOW what it tastes like. (Put

>> in

>> > here any food you are craving that isn't a good thing for you to be

>> > eating for your body.) You don't have to eat it!

>> >

>> > 3. Even losing just 17 lbs. made me move easier and caused me to go

>> > down two pants sizes. That's a good deal! Imagine how I will feel

>> > when I have lost more!

>> >

>> > 4.Keep lots of apples, pears, carrots, celery around for those

>> > emergency cravings so that you won't grab something naughty instead.

>> >

>> > 5. You can do this! You are worth it! You are important!

>> >

>> > 6. Fat goes almost immediately to storage in your body. It slides in

>> > there easier and faster than any other type of food. Stay away from

>> > it! Bye-Bye, butter!

>> >

>> > 7. Pay attention to how your clothes fit and how they are getting

>> > looser. This will provide real incentive!

>> >

>> > 8. You need to do some kind of exercise if you want to get off your

>> > plateau and continue to lose more weight.

>> >

>> > 9. Find what feels right for you. Read lots of books and articles to

>> > find out what has worked for others. Try tips you read about to see

>> > if they are right for you.

>> >

>> > 10. Participate in a messageboard such as this to gain and give

>> > support from others. These people have been there and understand

>> > where you are right now. You can help others, too, by sharing your

>> > discoveries.

>> >

>> > 11. Choose an easy goal like only losing 5 or 10 lbs at a time.

>> Don't

>> > put pressure on yourself to succeed in a certain time frame or

>> > else... What's the else? Are you going to quit because you failed?

>> > Failures are a given. Pick yourself up and dust yourself off and do

>> > it again and again and again until you get where you want to be.

>> > Remember you are losing for you and only you. So why add stress to

>> > the equation.

>> >

>> > 12. Start reading about nutrition and exercise and read as much as

>> > you can. Subscribe to magazines that interest you. Find videos that

>> > appeal to you in addition to having a club membership if that's your

>> > interest.

>> >

>> > 13. Learn to read nutrition labels on cans and boxes. Every calorie

>> > counts even that whole box of Tic Tacs you ate today. Moderate your

>> > diet. If your metabolism says you can eat 2000 calories than cut

>> back

>> > some if you want to lose weight and eat as little fat as you can.

>> > Invest in a book about fat-free cooking and learn the secrets.

>> Eating

>> > your own food will cut your fat severely if you learn to cook fat

>> > free.

>> >

>> > 14. Treat yourself occasionally to foods you like and do things that

>> > please you.

>> >

>> > 15. Keep a journal of your exercises and foods you ate. You don't

>> > have to write volumes. Track what you are interested in learning

>> > about yourself. If you feel better writing it all down then do it;

>> if

>> > you don't, just write what you do (exercise & calorie tally).

>> Keeping

>> > a journal helps because you will feel bad if you don't have

>> something

>> > to enter into it everyday, which is why it keeps you going.

>> >

>> > 16. I lost over 60 lbs. over the last 10 years. It was a very slow

>> > and healthy process including adding healthy lifestyle changes. What

>> > is working for me right now is to get very clear on what has worked

>> > for me in the past, not dwell on the negatives, put one foot in

>> front

>> > of the other and keep moving.

>> >

>> > 17. Wear clothes that fit you now and feel comfortable. If you are

>> > squeezing into your old things to punish yourself, you will be sad

>> > all the time.

>> >

>> > 18. Remember your beauty all the time. What I am about to say is

>> > harsh but it's true: If you were to, God forbid, be hit by a bus

>> > today and killed, you would be the weight you are and the way you

>> > look. It would not change. How much of a shame would it be if you

>> > left this planet planning to be someone you aren't? Love who you are

>> > now. The change you are making is because you love yourself and

>> > deserve the best. Not because you are a bad person and have to

>> change

>> > to be loved.

>> >

>> > 19. Reward yourself for your success. It's ok to use food as a

>> reward

>> > once in a while. Plan for it. You can also use a new item of

>> > clothing, a trip to a book store, a new CD, a spa treatment...

>> >

>> > 20. Don't beat yourself up for over-eating. Accept it and move on.

>> >

>> > 21. Exercising when I don't want to. Sometimes I can list a dozen

>> > things I could be doing instead of exercising. It's hard not to give

>> > in. The only thing that gets me to exercise when I don't want to is

>> > to think about how I will feel afterwards, knowing deep down that I

>> > have done something that is far more beneficial than color-coding my

>> > closet. Another way I get myself to just do it is to go ahead and

>> > change into my exercise clothes, even if I think I don't feel like

>> > exercising. Most of the time, I'll go ahead and break a sweat since

>> > I'm dressed for the occasion.

>> >

>> > 22. Water. To me, the most beneficial weight-loss strategy is

>> > drinking plenty of water. It makes a huge difference. Not only does

>> > it help shed pounds, but it improves your complexion, too! I know 8

>> > glasses of water seem like a lot, at the start it was, but the body

>> > adapts to all that water intake and craves more, so it becomes

>> easier

>> > with time to drink more. I have to personally vouch that it works.

>> > Not only is it completely healthy for you, and something you should

>> > be doing already, its also a natural appetite suppressant, in fact,

>> > many times you feel hungry for a snack, you are really just thirsty.

>> >

>> > 23. Emotional and social connections.

>> > I think the most helpful thing for me was identifying/separating

>> true

>> > hunger from emotional/social eating cues and developing strategies

>> > and new habits to replace them. For example, going out with a group

>> > of friends and eating foods mindlessly when I'm not really hungry.

>> > The real reason I went out was to socialize with my friends. Another

>> > example is when I've had a bad day and I would previous reach

>> > for 'comfort foods' to placate myself. Instead I phone a friend to

>> > chat, take a relaxing bath, or go to the gym and work off the

>> stress.

>> >

>> > 24 Exercise! Both cardio and weight training. Both are essential to

>> > long-term health.

>> >

>> > 25. Keep the exercise promises you make, regardless of what other

>> > tempting offers come your way (or you're tired or have to clean or

>> > make phone calls). Remember it is the best thing you can do and you

>> > never regret having gone to the gym. I have never been sorry I went,

>> > only that I didn't go. Plan exercise with friends. I have invited

>> > friends to spin class or out hiking with me. It feels great and

>> > healthy rather than getting coffee or going to a bar or the movies.

>> >

>>

>> ----------

>>

>> >

November 21, 2003