Everyone wants to be successful when they set a goal. No matter what your goal is, it’s going to require some sacrifices, struggles, discomfort, and some tough love. I’m guilty of some of these points myself, especially during competition prep. This post might not earn me any new friends, but it’s the truth and that’s what we’re all about here…

You aren’t THAT busy

Somewhere along the lines, society started to view being busy as a status symbol. It makes people feel important to say how busy they are. For the most part, we truly aren’t as busy as we say. Take an honest look at how much time you spend watching TV or sleeping each day – you’ll likely be able to find an hour or two each day to prep food or be active.

It’s ok to be uncomfortable

When you’re trying to change your lifestyle, you’re bound to be a little uncomfortable, and that’s ok. When trying to lose weight, generally you need to change how you eat and this might result in feeling hungry. If you’re adding activity, you’ll probably feel tired and sore. Embrace the new feelings.  *I’m not saying you should be legitimately starving all day. Often, we convince ourselves that we’re hungry out of boredom or stress. If you’re eating a healthy, balanced diet throughout the day, you can make it a few hours without food and be ok. Trust me.

There are no shortcuts

Just like everything in life, if it seems too good to be true, it probably is.  Any “quick fix” diet is just that – a quick fix, not a permanent or sustainable change. Drinking your meals all day is not realistic, neither is living off 600 calories and vitamin packs… Sure, you’ll see results, but as soon as you stop the diet, you’ll rebound. Or, you’ll pass out from lack of nutrients. Neither of these should sound appealing to you.

Get off your butt

This ties back to #1 – make the time to be active. A healthy meal plan is important and can go a long way towards changing your weight, but you also need to be active for general health purposes. Break the activity into smaller portions – walk for 30 minutes on your lunch break, do circuit workouts while watching TV, or wake up a little earlier and go for a walk. Just get up and get moving!

Cut the crap

The food industry has done us no favours by marketing and packaging processed food as “healthy”.  Yes, we’re all busy and frozen meals sound like the perfect solution because it’s not take-out, right? But, it basically is. Packaged, processed foods are full of additives and sodium. Again, making the time to cook REAL food will go a long way towards your weight goals. And you’ll feel better overall.

Just don’t eat it

There’s a commercial on TV which drives me crazy: a women talks about needing support when she’s at work and there are donuts she wasn’t expecting. What do you do? How do you possibly cope with these donuts? Just don’t eat them…  No one is force feeding you donuts, nor does your job or life depend on eating them. Side thought…Would it be easier if the donuts were expected?  I’m not sure.

Learn to say no

If you’re like me, you hate saying no to people. I don’t like feeling as though I’m letting someone down by saying no to something. But, if you have a goal, sometimes you need to put yourself first. Friends or family who want to constantly go out for food or drinks, or attending social events and parties, all the extra food can quickly add up and throw you off track. I’m not saying you have to be a hermit, because that’s not fun. You can go to these events and not have to eat, or you can plan events which don’t always involve eating. In the long run, it feels worse thinking that you let yourself down.

The weekend isn’t a free for all

It’s Saturday and you did really well all week; you ate all your planned, healthy meals and were active. Congratulations! Now, don’t throw it away on the weekend. Results come from consistency and taking two days off plan can essentially erase all the hard work you put in Monday to Friday.  Don’t look to food as a reward; find something else if you need to. Go shopping, get a massage, or plan a fun outdoor activity with a friend.

You have to want it. Like, really want it.

No one can want this for you. No matter what kind of support you have behind you, if you don’t truly want it, you’ll find a million excuses. Assess how ready you are to make these changes (honestly) and set yourself up for success before starting a new plan. There’s nothing more discouraging than feeling like you failed a few days in. Be your own motivation – think of the health benefits you’ll get from making these changes.