Obesity - Planning The Weight-Loss Diet

Overcoming obesity can be done without resorting to gastric-bypass surgery. A sound weight-loss diet plan is one of the tools need to achieve your goal.

Before taking actions in any problem we encounter, there should always be a plan first. That is, if we want to come up with positive results. You wouldn't want to enter a battle without preparing how to defeat the enemy, would you? Operating a task without planning is like building a house without a blueprint or fighting against a basketball team without a team play with your teammates. How would you expect a good outcome?

Losing weight is not at all different from the above mentioned plan-necessity situations. It also involves taking actions and proper ways that need to be perfectly planned in order to bring satisfying results.

Setting a Diet Weight-Loss Goal

Okay, so your weight is 20% above the considered normal for your height. You tend to eat more than 5 regular meals a day. You're certain that you're physically unfit. Now, the question is, what do you want to happen?

Setting a goal is the first step in planning. Know what you want to accomplish. This way, the road you are taking is clear. You can keep track of your journey - whether or not you are going along the right direction. With a goal in mind, you are always motivated to finish a task, or in some cases, to start doing it.

Be Definite About Your Weight-Loss Goal

Setting a specific goal, when planning to lose weight, improves your chances of success. Only, be clear and definite with what you want happen. Vague aims such as 'I'd like to be healthier' or 'I need to lose a few kilos,' tend to produce half-hearted efforts and poor results. Instead, state your goal distinctly: 'I want to lose 2-3 kilos this week and every week' or 'I will trim my waist line from 40" down to 32" by the end of the month.' If you need to, write it down and put it where you will always see and read it. This way, you'll always be reminded of what you want and need to accomplish by the end of the month, the week, or even the day.

Set A Realistic Weight-Loss Goal

In establishing a definite goal, make sure that it is possible and doable - realistic, in simpler terms. How can a goal like 'I'll lose 15 lbs. in just a week' happen if even the most accurate weight-loss diet suggests that you can only burn 6-7 lbs. in a week? That is, if you follow strictly what the diet recommends. Goals need to be sensible so that it won't be far from coming true. What happens when you set a goal and didn't happen no matter how hard you tried because it wasn't really achievable is that you will only get depressed and disappointed which are some of the psychological causes of obesity. And the problem just goes in circles without really an end to it.

Weight-Loss Strategizing

After carefully deliberating a goal of what you want to achieve and keeping it in mind, the next step is planning on how to accomplish it. Planning involves proper scheduling of activities to be done throughout the whole day for a certain period of time including exercises, meals, and sleeping and waking. It comprises of the time these activities should be done, the duration, and in the case of eating meals, the food to be consumed. This way, inappropriate spur-of-the-moments decisions can be avoided.

Proper and effective plan consists of quality time for performing such activities. That is, ample and enough time so as to meet the objectives correctly. For example, sleep should be scheduled to last for around 7 to 8 hours a day so that you'll be able to get enough rest. Lack of sleep may cause improper eating habit the next day.

Again, plans should be relatively realistic. Include only time and activities you know for yourself you can accomplish for a given period of time. Also, as you finished preparing the plan, you might want to write it down since you can't always keep that it mind. Post it in a place where you can always see and read it to remind you what your plans are for the day. Try your best not to skip anything in your scheduled plan so as not to ruin the effectivity of it.

A sound plan for someone to lose weight looks like this:

Plan according to the examples above. Remember that sleeping, exercise, and meals are the most essential elements to include in your daily schedule. Take note of the calorie intakes (through foods) and calorie burning (through exercises) for efficient results. (See Appendix B for Food Calories and compare it with Appendix C for Calorie-Burning Exercises)

Weight-Loss and The Role of Positive Thinking

The earlier mentioned goals like "I'll lose 3 lbs. this week," or "I'll trim my waist line down to 10 inches" are examples of affirmations. Affirmations are positive thoughts that when truly believed will somehow help in making things happen. Positive thinking produces positive reality by triggering our body to do what it says; thus, providing you with will power. For example, if you truly believed that you will lose 3 lbs. this week, your thoughts will command your body to do things this week in order to lose 3 lbs. until it really happens.

Affirmations, positive statements about yourself or your intentions, are a deceptively simple aid to achieving a goal. They work by imprinting themselves upon the subconscious mind through regular repetition - saying, reading, or writing them down over and over again. Some people even record their affirmations on audio tapes and listen to them repeatedly to make sure that the thoughts are planted on the mind.

If you truly mean your affirmations and want them to come true, then they will. They do require a little discipline, but their benefits will surely outweigh the time and effort you spent.

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