Written by Ryan Hall
When we look at weight loss and dietary changes, people are generally fairly good at sticking with a new plan for several weeks or months, but then they slide back into old habits. Long term maintenance boils down to the following: doing more things “right” relative to “wrong.” Are you sleeping enough? Are you getting up and being active enough? Are you making generally good choices? When things go south, it’s usually not just one thing, it’s everything. We stay up late, we skip our workout for the day, and somewhere along the line we start keeping sketchy food in the pantry, which – surprise, surprise – we eat way too much of.
In order to stay motivated for the long haul you need a strong “why.” You need a reason to make changes and to keep making changes even when your motivation tanks. Long term goals are great. I’ve got mine; their names are Adrienne and Jacob. But if you need binoculars to see that goal, the motivation to keep going will dwindle. Sometimes it’s the short term goals that will affect us more. Instead of fixating on your whole life, just focus on getting the next meal right, or getting enough sleep tonight, or making sure you get off your fanny go for a walk. I’m talking about one meal (or step, or nap) at a time, one day at a time.
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