Understanding weight loss motivation is the key to weight loss success. However many people start out motivated but lose that initial excitement. Your weight loss has more to do with your motivation than it does with what you are eating or how often you are exercising.
Learning how to get motivated to lose weight is a critical part of your weight-loss journey. Motivation fuels the dedication and perseverance required to achieve and maintain a healthier lifestyle. Without proper weight loss motivation, initiating and sticking to weight loss plans becomes a challenge, leading to potential frustration and setbacks.
Staying motivated to lose weight can be incredibly difficult for various reasons. Life's unpredictability often interferes with weight loss motivation and weight loss plans, which can cause stress and take your focus away from your health goals. Additionally, emotional difficulties such as depression can hinder motivation, making it even more challenging to find the determination to lose weight and exercise consistently.
Without the right weight loss motivation, self-doubt creeps and you can be discouraged by what you think is slow progress. That can further reduce your motivation so it’s clear to see that motivation is intrinsically tied to your weight loss journey. Let’s get into what you should do to stay motivated over time.
In order to stay motivated, adopt one or two new healthy habits each week like including protein and fiber in each meal. Create one or two simple habits each week like incorporating protein into each meal.
Why Staying Motivated is the Hardest Part of the Weight Loss Process?
Staying motivated throughout your weight loss journey can be incredibly challenging because losing weight involves changing ingrained habits and behaviors. It can often feel like an uphill battle as you face temptations, setbacks, and fatigue. To achieve your weight loss goals, it is essential to stay motivated and committed to your plan.
Fortunately, there are proven techniques that help you figure out how to get motivated to lose weight. We here at Fitmate have numerous success stories that have happened because of motivation. Some of the things that help you with weight loss motivation are setting realistic goals, getting practical feedback, and developing accountability structures.
Key Aspects That Will Keep You Motivated
Up next we’re going to help you answer the question, “How do I get motivated to lose weight?” There are some key actions that you can take to make the process easy and help you push through to your desired goals.
Focusing on 1-2 Healthy Habits Each Week
Instead of trying to completely revamp your whole life instantly, start with changing 1 to 2 habits per week. Adopting just one or two habits each week is how to get motivated to lose weight over time. As you start to see progress in these areas, you will naturally feel more motivated to continue working on additional habits.
For example, on the nutrition side, you could start by adding proteins to your breakfast or drinking enough water to promote fullness. On the physical activity side, it could be adding one or two 30-minute walks a day for those getting back to physical activity or incorporating higher-intensity activities for those who are already active.
Figuring out how to get motivated to lose weight and exercise is easier if you adopt the most doable habits first. That means if you know you can add protein to your breakfasts pretty easily but will have a hard time going for a morning walk, then adopt the protein habit first. Choose the habits that work with your goals and also ones that take into account the other priorities in your life.
It's natural to want to improve as many habits as possible at the beginning when motivation levels are high. However, it’s better to start in a sustainable way so that you can keep going for the long term. Once you are successful in changing those first few habits, you’ll feel confident and motivated to make more sustainable changes.
Setting Realistic Goals
One of the best ways of maintaining weight loss motivation is to set specific yet achievable goals. The goals will motivate you because they provide concrete targets and milestones to aim for. Weekly victories boost your confidence, and in turn, boost your motivation.
For example, a good starting point is to aim for four protein-rich breakfasts per week. This can be a doable goal and protein promotes fullness and helps with weight loss. Your ultimate goal is weight loss, but this weekly goal will help you create a new habit that can help you reach your goal.
By setting specific weekly goals related to the new habits you want to acquire, you ensure that you’re working your way towards achievable targets that help with weight loss motivation.
Getting Practical Feedback
How do I get motivated to lose weight? You get motivated by receiving feedback that applauds your successes and provides guidance for improvements. Boosting your mastery in these improvement areas increases your willingness to tackle new challenges and makes the journey more enjoyable and easier to stick to.
For example, if you successfully added proteins and fiber to your lunches, like a chicken salad with a lot of green leafy vegetables. And doing that helps keep you full until dinner without any hunger pangs, you’re going to feel the weight loss motivation to repeat this action. And getting feedback telling you what a great job you’re doing will make you further want to continue with that action.
Let’s say you had that chicken salad with a ranch dressing and the guidance you received suggested that you could make your lunch even more nutritious and lower in calories by reducing the amount of dressing. You would be motivated to try out the suggestion as you don’t have to eliminate anything, but you could benefit from reducing it.
With feedback and practical trial and error, you can move from the "all or nothing" mentality that can tank motivation. Instead, you can keep your weight loss motivation alive with trial and error to figure out what works best for you.
Planning Your Week Ahead
Planning your week is an important part of sustaining weight loss motivation. That’s because you have the chance to identify potential barriers that could come up in your week and solve them. Planning also reduces the time and effort your brain has to take to make decisions during the week.
For example, meal prepping healthy meals means you only have to worry about eating the meal each day, rather than trying to decide what to cook while hungry. This strategy is particularly important for people who are very busy or have many responsibilities like children, housework and employment.
That’s because willpower can start to decline as you get closer to dinner time and also later in the week. That willpower decline can cause a weight loss motivation decline. By offloading decisions in advance, you reduce the odds of failure and set yourself up for success.
Checking-In Your Progress Regularly
Monitoring progress toward weekly goals also helps with how to get motivated to lose weight over time. That’s because monitoring highlights your daily successes and it also keeps you accountable for your actions. It's not just about progress towards your weight loss, but specifically checking off accomplished goals, like having four protein-rich breakfasts each week. Every time you tick that box, your weight loss motivation kicks in and helps you move steadily toward your goals.
Addressing Setbacks
Setbacks are inevitable, but the key is to address them quickly to prevent spiraling into a self-destructive mindset. Identifying the root cause of the setback enables you to adjust your approach and overcome the setback in the future while keeping your weight loss motivation intact. It's essential to understand that setbacks are normal and won't significantly affect your weight loss goals in the grand scheme of things.
For example, if you didn't do your cardio after work, rather than ruminating on your failure, ask yourself why it happened. You might discover that you are simply too tired to commit to this after a long day at work. Understanding this, you can plan your cardio sessions at a different time, setting yourself up for success.
Also, if you’re wondering how to lose weight while depressed, be gentle with yourself. Remember, this isn’t an all-or-nothing kind of program. If you’ve had a rough few days, it’s alright, just remember the successes you have had and try to recreate them. We all have setbacks and it’s completely normal to have them and then get back on the horse.
What to Do to Lose Weight
There are some pretty logical things you can do to lose weight that also improve your understanding of how to stay motivated to lose weight. Our tips help it easier to stay full and help you stop obsessing about calories.
Have a Good Sleep
Getting at least 7 hours of sleep is crucial for weight loss, as insufficient sleep can increase hunger hormones and decrease your weight loss motivation. One of the best motivation tips for how to stay motivated to lose weight is giving yourself the pleasure of sleep. Knowing that sleep is not only good for you but also necessary for weight loss, may help you prioritize it more. Get serious about your sleep hygiene and make it a goal to get the best sleep each night.
Maximize Proteins and Fiber
One of the best tips for how to maintain your weight loss motivation is to include proteins and fiber in your diet. This will help you feel full, prevent overeating, and motivate you to continue your journey. Aim for lean proteins in every meal, and focus on fiber-rich foods such as green leafy vegetables, beans, and whole grains in your lunches and dinners. The key is to discover plenty of delicious options, making your eating plan more enjoyable and sustainable than going on a restrictive diet.
Don’t Obsess With Calorie Count
You don’t need to obsess over your calorie intake to lose weight. That’s because when you eat foods that fill you up like fiber and proteins, your body will naturally know when to stop eating. Calorie counting can be helpful short term, but it becomes unnecessary as you learn to listen to your body's signals. Feeling full on nutritious, delicious foods is how to stay motivated to lose weight over time.
Do Cardio and Strength Exercises
If you want to know how to stay motivated to lose weight and exercise, you should look at cardio and strength exercises. Both cardio and strength exercises are important if you want to accelerate your weight loss due to their complementary benefits. Cardio burns fat, while strength training builds lean muscle, which helps burn calories even at rest. That means the more muscle you build, the more calories you are burning, even when you’re not doing anything.
Manage Stress
Stress eating is a major contributor to overeating so you need to make stress management a part of your lifestyle. You can’t figure out how to stay motivated to lose weight if you’re constantly stressed. Learn effective stress-relief techniques to keep your weight-loss journey on track.
These techniques can range from relaxing activities like meditating or taking a bath to more specific techniques like addressing the root of your stressors. Even if you don't fully manage to overcome your stress, there are techniques you can adopt to minimize stress eating. Simply being mindful of whether you are eating because of hunger or stress is a strong first step.
The Connection Between Motivational Support and Weight Loss Success
Adopting the routines mentioned above can help you figure out how to stay motivated to lose weight over time, but it can be difficult to go at it alone. This is where professional motivational support comes in to guide you through these routines and help with weight loss for a lifetime.
How Can Coaches Help Individuals to Lose Weight Faster?
A human weight loss coach skilled in weight loss motivation techniques and weight loss principles can help you develop a customized plan and keep you motivated and accountable. With their support, you are more likely to stick to your plan and achieve your goals. A coach can help you put into practice all the techniques discussed in this article and over time help you build the skills needed to both lose weight effectively and remain motivated to maintain your progress.
For many people, working with a coach is key because not only do you learn how to stay motivated to lose weight, but also because they can better help you implement the correct routines. Emotional support and accountability coming from a human coach are essential in helping you apply those routines consistently.
The Bottom Line
Working with a weight loss coach can provide the necessary support to create a tailored plan that keeps your weight loss motivation steady throughout your journey as weight loss is a marathon, not a sprint. You learn how to stay motivated to lose weight and also how your daily practices affect that. By focusing on developing healthy habits, setting realistic goals, and consistently monitoring your progress, you can achieve lasting weight loss success. Connect with a FitMate Coach today and take the first step towards a healthier, happier you.
