I recently approved two more Rebels into maintenance coaching last week.

One of them, Jackie, lost 150 pounds in 12 months on Code Red.

Another, Deana (pronounced like DEE-nuh), lost a total of 103 pounds. It took Deana longer because, by her own admission, she didn’t always stick with the program.

Yet she kept coming back to Code Red and finally made it to GOOOOAAAALLL!

On a recent Ringside live Q&A with me, someone asked Deana and Jackie what their advice would be for people still in weight loss mode.

Deana said, keep your nose to the grindstone and don’t ever cheat, ever! Decide you want it badly enough and keep going.

Jackie’s advice was to stay connected, keep it simple, and stay firm. Don’t be swayed by the “best of intentions” from family and friends (who may not support you or don’t understand how important your journey is to you).

Lory Stobart, our 2023 Rebel of the Year (and this year’s Event Director for the September Code Red Retreats) hit goal last year after dropping 205 pounds.

Lory’s advice for people still losing weight is to ditch the all or nothing mindset, adding that if she’d had that mindset, she wouldn’t have made it (especially through a long grind). Instead, she said, get right back on track immediately and keep going.

Losing 100+ pounds is no joke. I don’t say that from experience, because I’ve never had 100 extra pounds to lose. I say it from almost three decades of seeing what people who have that much weight to lose go through.

Whether someone has 10 pounds or 210 pounds to lose, the people who stay connected and keep going even if they mess up are the ones who get there.

Sometimes they turn what could have been a six-month weight loss journey into a two-year weight loss journey by not consistently following the program, but if they keep going, making it all the way is inevitable.

“But Cristy, it’s exhausting to have to keep losing this weight.”

Yep, it is.

And what’s the alternative?

To quit on yourself again?

To give up on YOU?

To settle for something just because it’s easier than what you really want?

There’s a “price of admission” to get to goal and stay there, it’s true.

But you pay a price when you give up on yourself, too.

So don’t give up.

Keep going until you get there, even if it takes longer than you want.

Jackie, Deana, and Lory made it, and so can you.