6 Unexpected Reasons You Find It Hard Sticking To Your Weight Loss Plan

You're fed up with how you look and feel being a weight you are unhappy with and have decided, once again, it is time to do something about it. This time it's going to be different, you're going to stick with your plan and reach your goal weight no matter what, sound familiar?

Why do so many attempts to lose weight end up falling apart within a few weeks? Healthy eating choices slip, exercise schedules fall by the wayside and the scales are simply not budging.

Perhaps it could be for one of these reasons, many of which people don't realise can have a significant impact on weight loss success.

1. You Have Other More Important Things To Worry About.

When attempting to lose weight there are going to be certain aspects of your eating and lifestyle habits that have to change. These types of behaviour changes need you to be able to focus on them, at least for a short time while new habits are established, but this can be very difficult when you have other more important issues taking your attention.

The types of things I'm referring to are situations like unsettled relationships, either with spouses or family members, financial troubles, work problems or health concerns. It seems the bigger the issue, the less likely you will be able to keep up the focus you need, because your attention is always going to be drawn away to the most important problem in your life at any given time. When this happens, it 's easier to revert to default behaviours and habits that we're used to, that's why we develop habits in the first place, because they don't require much of our attention for them to happen.

Takeaway Thought: There's never going to be a 'perfect time' to embark upon a weight loss plan, but if you have any serious problems or other more important areas of your life that need your attention, it's probably best not to attempt any major weight loss until that situation has been at least partially resolved. That way you can avoid any feelings of failure building up. Instead try to aim for creating a healthier style of eating that will keep your energy levels up and maintain your weight, or maybe result in a very small ongoing weight loss. At least that way you won't gain weight, and it will be easier to make the transition into a weight loss period when the time is right.

2. Your Reason For Losing Weight Is Not Powerful Enough

This may seem an odd reason, but it can definitely be a deciding factor between success and failure in my opinion. If your reason for wanting to lose weight is powerful enough it will hold you on track better, and interestingly enough simply wanting to lose weight is often not a good enough reason.

If you can find a really powerful reason for wanting to eat healthier, exercise more and improve your overall lifestyle, something that gets your emotions really fired up, it will help keep you motivated when things get a little tricky, which they will, it's all part of the experience.

Takeaway thought: Powerful reasons for wanting to eat healthier and exercise more could be things like having a positive impact on the health of your children, achieving a fitness dream such as completing a race or event in memory of a loved one, or setting a goal to be able to do something you have never done before because of your weight.

3. Your Servings Are Too Big

Even though you may be eating healthily, you can still be eating too much. Lots of people swap unhealthy foods for healthier options, which is great, and will most certainly have an impact on your overall general health, but if you're still eating more calories than you need on a daily basis, then your weight isn't going to drop the way you want it to.

This can leave you feeling like you're being healthy but not getting anywhere, so what's the point you may as well go back to how you were eating before.

Takeaway thought: It's important to remember that just because a food is healthy doesn't mean you can eat as much of it as you'd like. Portion sizes and the total number of calories you consume each day relative to how many you need, still has to be taken into consideration.

4. You Are Eating More Because You Are Exercising More

A common reason for lack of weight loss, especially among people new to exercising, is to feel, either the need to eat more because they are exercising more, or that it's OK to eat more because they have burned extra calories. Unfortunately many people underestimate the amount of calories burned during exercise and then actually eat more than they burned, which obviously results in no weight lost. Again, this can lead to feeling like you're doing all the right things, but not getting anywhere.

Takeaway thought: It is important to learn, if only the basics, the number of calories you want to be aiming to eat each day, as well as an accurate estimate of the calories you burn whilst exercising. Most people new to exercising will not be burning sufficient calories to warrant any extra food.

5. You're Thinking Like You're On a Diet

A big reason for unsuccessful weight loss and especially weight regain is the 'diet' mentality. When you go on a diet, and change how you eat, what you eat and how much, perhaps increasing exercise activities as well, you see the benefits of this reflected by a weight reduction. The problem is, if you can't sustain this way of life and way of eating, you will at some point return to 'normality', at which time you will most likely regain any weight you lost.

Takeaway thought: Try to avoid the diet mentality by making healthy eating and exercising choices you can maintain indefinitely. So rather than going without everything you love to eat and exercising 'til you drop, think more along the lines of cutting back on your less healthy food choices and introducing exercise activities at a level you enjoy.

6. You Don't Believe You Will Ever Do It

If losing weight is something you 'wish' for, but don't really believe you will ever achieve, you are almost doomed to fail. Our beliefs are some of the most powerful influencers in our life and have the ability to cause de-motivation, increase stress and have a negative effect on our abilities to succeed.

For most people changing beliefs can be a tricky business, it requires a certain degree of self-reflection, and could release some powerful emotions you may have associated with food. That is not to say you're stuck with them by any means, just that you may need to become aware they exist in order to move forward and achieve the weight loss you deserve.

Takeaway thought: If some of your food based habits relate to emotional situations, such as comfort eating or stress eating, you may need to work through these with someone in order to successfully find your way to a healthier style of eating that will enable you to reach a weight you will be happy with.

Research shows that successful, permanent weight loss can be significantly improved when the approach is personalised to suit you as an individual.

No more dieting, no more going without, no more feeling unhappy with how you look and feel. Just straight forward guidance, support and information on food, nutrition, healthy eating, changing habits and overcoming barriers that have prevented you from losing weight in the past.