Don’t Try To Lose Weight!

The other day I was thinking about some of my friends whom I have observed over the years, especially when it comes to weight loss. I had a profound realisation. Some of us try to lose weight and we do, but within a short while, most people regain the weight and are back to their unhealthy habits. Why does that happen and what can we do about this?

Hopefully, these tips and realisations can help you out:

1. Don’t try to lose weight! Ever!

Yes, you read that correctly. When people feel unhealthy or overweight, they try to lose weight.
But that’s a big problem because people make weight loss a goal. It becomes something we attain, and then what? That’s where the problem lies.

As you are all spiritual experts, you’d know that once a goal is attained, the desire to keep the goal alive gets extinguished.

Believe it or not, the same applies to weight loss. Once we have tasted the bliss of being fit and healthy, for maybe a month or so, we feel that we can afford to eat unhealthily and why not?! We ‘lost’ weight after all! But then the kilos start piling on faster than the clothes in your laundry room!

So what can we do about this? Read point number #2.

2. Never opt for weight loss diets. Ever. You will go back to being overweight sooner than you know!

Their short-term focus is detrimental to our health because once the goal is achieved, we go back to our old patterns, as mentioned above. I mean if you are getting married next month, this option might sound tempting but be prepared to gain weight again unless you turn it into a lifelong commitment.

3. It’s a lifelong thing! One day at a time.
Being healthy can never be a goal. It is here to stay… forever and starts today!

Keep things simple and go slow! Focus on a lifestyle change. Whenever I advise about weight loss, I always recommend a lifestyle change but a slow one. And this needs to be personalised depending on your habits, schedule and preferences. Never go for drastic changes unless you are the type of person who can keep up with your drastic changes.

4. Don’t exercise to lose weight!!!

‘Lifestyle change failed’ I hear you say!

I admit that even when adopting lifestyle changes, a person can be quick to go back to an undesirable weight shortly after achieving their goal. They stop gymming and it becomes a burden. Lifestyle change always includes exercising and this is often the first thing we stop doing, then we gain weight and feel depressed. Excuses are plenty. I am also guilty. Panic mode sets in and we are back in the rut of points #1 and #2. Do you notice the pattern? 

But why do we stop exercising?

5. Don’t turn exercising into a weight loss affair. It will be a burden 

The main reason why people don’t exercise, from my experience, is because it feels like a burden. If we have a belly or want to be slimmer and lighter, the effort required at the gym will feel humongous! 

Change your mindset. That’s the key to lasting transformation.

Exercise to be healthy. Exercise to let your body breathe, remove toxins, and sweat and get the blood pumping. Don’t exercise for the sake of it but instead exercise to be and feel healthy. There is a difference between focusing on weight loss and focusing on being healthy. I could starve for 10 days and lose weight, but it doesn’t mean I am healthy. But I could eat and be healthy, but not necessarily slim. I mean The Rock probably weighs 2-3 times more than me, but he is 10 times healthier probably. So, weight isn’t an indication of health.

All in all, these are the secrets to consistency, my friend. Don’t ever focus on weight loss, instead focus on eating properly, exercising to feel healthy (it doesn’t feel nice to be a cooked potato) and shift your mindset. If you are joining the gym to lose weight, you will lose motivation at some point, especially after you attain your goal.

So, next time you exercise and eat a healthy meal, pause for a moment and focus on how you feel. That is the feeling of good health. Yup! Hold on to it, and relive it every single day. Weight loss will happen automatically! 

I had no plans to write this post although I did think about the above points over the past couple of weeks. He had other plans maybe, so I got inspired by Om Swami’s post titled ‘Your health’ 

Hope this was of some help!