Keeping Track of your Weight Loss
Keeping track of your weight loss progress is perhaps one of the most important aspects of a weight loss program. After you have set your weight loss goals and found the weight loss program that suits your needs and lifestyle, it is only natural that you keep track of your weight loss progress via a notebook or online diary.
Where do I start?
There are a lot of things that you need to keep track of during a weight loss program. First off – you need to always keep in mind the weight loss goal you are working towards. There is nothing worse than losing sight of the end goal of any project. You might get caught up with the bit concerns that plague a person working towards weight loss and quibbling over specifics may be detrimental to the overall big picture. Keep track of your ideal BMI as this will help you determine what weight you need to hit in order to be considered healthy for your height, gender and age bracket.
You also need to take stock of your current weight and calculate the realistic amount of time that it will take you to get to your ideal weight. Expecting a healthy weight loss of about two pounds per week, attributed to both healthy dieting and regular cardiorespiratory exercise, should be a helpful guide in your computations.
Count Your Calories
Keep track of the calories that you ingest per day. Every person has a recommended daily calorie intake that largely depends on the type of lifestyle that they lead and the weight that they find themselves at. Keep in mind that your recommended calorie intake will change once you begin losing weight and become more active in your exercise routines since more calories are required to produce the type of energy needed. Make sure that you follow your health care provider, nutritionist or fitness trainer’s explicit instructions regarding your health and diet. Weight loss is a good thing to be working towards but the ultimate goal should really be living a healthy and productive life.
Try planning your meals ahead and go a step further by doling them out in portions before they are actually needed. That way, when you feel the need to eat, you know exactly how much you’re taking in and it will also be easier for you to record it in your fitness journal or planner.
Weigh yourself once a week. This is the most straightforward way of determining your weight loss success or setback. Don’t be disheartened when the needle doesn’t land where you expect it to. Your body is a work in progress and there is no miracle treatment to get you where you want to be. It takes honest work to lose weight and honest is not always easy.
Have fun losing weight, don’t forget to treat yourself once in awhile!
Don’t forget to reward yourself when you manage to reach even a short-term weight loss goal. It is vital to your well-being and to the success of your weight loss program that you not lose hope in the process. It may take a while to work itself out but if you stick to the meal plan and exercise schedule that you and your fitness consultant have worked out, there is no reason for weight loss not to be within your grasp.
Don’t be afraid to ask for help. There are plenty of support groups out there and social networking sites devoted to people who have become more conscious of their bodies and are working towards making themselves better.
Make your weight loss progress an ongoing game. For every milestone reached, treat yourself to something that you’ve missed during your battle to get to your ideal size. Just keep in mind that moderation is key when you start thinking about chocolate cake. Why have the whole thing when in reality, a few spoonfuls would be enough? Think of it this way, if you eat the whole cake, you’re going to be working four times as hard to make up for it.
A moment on the lips, a lifetime on the hips.
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