Losing weight, and keeping it off, is a life-long commitment. It means dedicating yourself to eating healthfully and exercising daily and to not only changing your diet and exercise habits, but also to changing your lifestyle. Successful, long-term weight loss combines a number of factors, both physical and mental, and it may require the help of your family, a counselor or other professionals to keep you on the right track. For now, you can get started by making several changes today that will help you lose weight now and stay slim.
Step 1
Write down your commitment to yourself to start losing weight, record it and post it on a sticky note to remind yourself every day of your commitment to living a healthier lifestyle. Make the commitment to lose weight and continue to do whatever it takes to keep the weight off.
Step 2
Get off the couch and take a walk, once, twice, or three times a day. Take a dance class, ride a bicycle or go for a swim. If you've never been to a gym before, go take a tour. If you have the money, hire a personal trainer to teach you proper exercise technique and to keep you motivated and accountable. It doesn't matter what you do to get yourself going, just move as much as you can.
Step 3
Throw out all the junk food in your house, your car and your office. If you're not sure whether it's junk or not, consult a professional, or look online for some nutrition advice. A good rule of thumb is to avoid processed foods, snack foods and foods with high fat, sugar or salt content, which you can find by reading the nutrition label. Stick to fresh fruits and vegetables, lean meats, whole grains and nuts.
Step 4
Lower the stress level in your life by addressing any unresolved emotional, professional or personal issues. Practice meditation, take a yoga class or relax with a warm bath. Do something each day that helps you relax, whatever that is. Stress causes the body to hold on to calories in case of an emergency, which then turn into fat.
Step 5
Keep a food log by tracking what you eat every day and making notes about where you might have gone wrong and where you need to make improvements. It may not happen all at once, but you can change the way you think about food by being conscious about your actions.
Step 6
Ask your friends and family for support. Ask them to support you in your desire to eat a healthy diet and get more exercise. The sooner you get them on board, the faster you'll see results. Successful, long-term weight loss is about making changes to your lifestyle that will affect your friends and family.
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