At the risk of sounding like I've stumbled across a moment of common sense and are trying to make it out like a great revelation, my actual greatest revelation so far from losing weight is this (from my first post which is quite excellent and you should definitely read, by the way):
You are going to need to make changes to your relationship with food and exercise that will last a lifetime.
It really is common sense. If you lose a stone or two then revert back to what you're doing before the start of your journey, eventually you will end up as square one.
Hopefully you'll get to a point where you're happy to maintain but there's no getting away from it - it's a big step to choose to lose weight and it's hard work. That's why it's so important that you acknowledge that it's hard work and also why it's vital that you have to find a routine that you enjoy and works for you.
I hate going to the gym. I hate being at the gym. I hate almost everything about the gym. In previous attempts to lose weight, I went to the gym. I managed this for maybe 2-3 months tops before I lost all enthusiasm for trying to get into shape and went back to square one. Disheartened, I was no longer in the mindshape to try to get fit.
Why would that outcome be a surprise? You're committing to a lifestyle change that you will need to stick to and be consistent with (and be prepared for the word consistency to be used a lot in the future) and if you're putting yourself in situations that you don't like or deny yourself the food that can make a bad day a little bit better you are not going to succeed.
This is why losing weight is primarily a mental battle.
If you don't care about yourself enough to make good decisions even when it's the toughest option, you're going to make the easy decision. The first few weeks of eating more healthily are the most difficult. In the same way that someone trying to give up cigarettes will have the parts of their brain that deal with cravings and impulses telling them to light up a cigarette louder than ever before, scientists have found that the brain will give off huge signals to eat sugary, fatty and generally unhealthy foods - these are our cravings. It'll release a burst of endorphins when you give in. You're in a battle against yourself.
The good news is that if you can hold out and not give into these cravings, they will become much, much quieter and the part of your brain that deals with willpower and being resolute will become a lot stronger. This makes things a whole lot easier to make good decisions.
If you spend some time before you start planning your activity and food plan then you're making an incredibly positive step to succeeding. Figure out your favourite foods - the ones that if you've had a bad day are guaranteed to pick you up - and use the likes of Pinch of Nom (their website is packed with wonderful healthy recipes that feel anything but) to figure out if you can make it in a much healthier manner. If you can't, put that aside as an occasional rainy day treat. I've found ways to make kebabs, pasta dishes and more in a low calorie, low fat manner. Pizza - not so much. That's an occasional treat.
It's the same with your activity. An adult is recommended to get two and a half hours of moderate aerobic exercise a week or an hour and a quarter of vigorous exercise (the stuff that gets you well out of breath). What do you enjoy doing? What did you enjoy at P.E. at school? Do you prefer working out alone or in a team? However you get it in, find something you enjoy.
I play two hours of football a week. One hour in the Man v Fat Football leagues (more on that in a future post) and another hour with friends. I like cold water swimming so try to do that once a week. I also use the step counter on my phone to consistently (yes, that word again) take 10,000 steps a day.
None of that feels like hard work to me. It's enjoyable. I've stuck to it every single week other than when I picked up a calf injury in September last year and an ankle injury in November. It's not a hardship to do it. It's taking hard work and making it not feel like hard work. Finding healthy alternatives to my favourite meals (and yes, I will share recipes soon) make dieting and sticking to a calorie count not feel like hard work.
If you can't be bothered reading through all that (and if you can then it's time to ask what you're doing with your life) then here are my top tips on preparing and planning for a weight loss change of routine:
Get your head in shape
You've got some difficult decisions to make in the future. You need to care about yourself enough to make the right decision as opposed to the easy decision. Talk with friends, family or even a helpline to get yourself into the headspace that you need.
Figure out what you enjoy and plan that into your new routine
What workout will get you up and at it if it's howling with wind and rain and you just want to sit on the sofa? What food that makes you feel good can you make healthy? What can't you do? What won't be satisfying to eat? This is a long term change of routine so make sure it's as as enjoyable as possible. If you don't enjoy what you're eating or getting active with, you're not going to stick to it.
Record everything and find a way to make yourself accountable
Record everything that you eat and drink (the app MyFitnessPal is wonderful, the free version is perfect). Record the activity you do, record how many portions of fruit and veg you have in a week and record how much water you drink. Record how much you sleep if you want to. If you run a calorie deficit (more on that again in the future), take on enough water, take on board enough fruit and veg and get your sleep in then you will lose weight. If you have a friend or family member who you can show this to and they won't mince their words and most importantly you are brutally honest with your diary then it's much easier to stick to.
Take photos of yourself before your journey begins. When the weight begins to drop you'll enjoy comparing yourself to that first set of photos.
To begin with, do it for those around you. When the cravings subside, do it for you
Finally, be prepared for the cravings. I worked a day in a shopping centre with my job whilst out on the road and my cravings were off the scale. Opposite us was a Starbucks. A Cadbury's store was within eyesight. McDonald's and Pizza Hut were upstairs. Every minute my brain would crave a new unhealthy food. Absolutely hellish. At that point I didn't want to let the team mates down in my football team by putting on weight and that thought was enough to help ignore them. Having to show a food diary to my coach also helped.
Now the cravings have subsided, you better believe that I'm entirely doing this for myself. If the weight loss football league I'm a part of was to stop tomorrow, I know that I'd keep these good habits going forward. Beforehand when the cravings were at their worst, not so much.
Set yourself rewards for hitting your targets. Today I went round some of my favourite shops (charity shops in posher areas, natch) and treated myself to some discount designer clothing as I've dropped one or two shirt sizes and the same in trousers. It's all things that will give you greater motivation and will make it less likely that you'll be blown off course in the future.
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