You’ll hear me say it a lot: We don’t have a weight GAIN problem, so much as we have a weight RE-gain problem.
Seriously, think about it. How many times have you lost some, most, or even all of your weight?
How many times did you believe it was the last time you’d ever have to go around the weight loss mountain?
And how many times did you turn around and gain it right back?
Probably so many you’d rather not think about it, right?
So what the heck is it about weight loss that makes keeping the weight off seem so freaking hard?
And IS it really that hard to keep the weight off?
My answer: It depends on these three factors:
1. How you lost the weight.
2. WHY you lost the weight.
3. How deep into the diet mentality you are.
Let’s start with number one: HOW you lost the weight.
When you stop doing what got the weight off, you’re probably gonna gain it back (especially if you go straight back to what you were doing before).
That’s why, if you really do want the weight gone for good, you have to lose it in a way that you can see yourself doing for the rest of your life.
On Code Red, we eat real food, drink water, and sleep, both to lose the weight AND to keep it off. That’s about as sustainable as it gets.
If you can’t see yourself drinking shakes, taking diet pills, counting points, eating dry chicken breast and rice six times a day, or spending three hours a day in the gym for the rest of your life, you’re probably not gonna lose any weight you keep off.
Pick something that works AND feels sustainable to YOU.
Next, let’s look at WHY you lost the weight.
Did you do it to make your ex jealous?
Did you do it so you won’t be the “fat mom” at your son’s wedding?
Did you do it to look good in a dress for ball or other special occasion?
The problem with all these reasons is that they’re temporary.
What will drive you after the wedding or special occasion?
What will drive you when you get tired of your life revolving around making your ex jealous?
Permanent change requires something a LOT deeper that surface-level reasons like these. You’ve gotta find the why that makes you cry.
Finally, let’s talk about the diet mentality.
The diet mentality is when you make a temporary change to lose the weight, then go back to what you were doing that got you fat and sick, and expect to keep the weight off.
Permanent results (like keeping the weight off) require permanent change.
If you make temporary changes, any results you achieve will be temporary.
“Diets” don’t talk about keeping the weight off, because they’re not concerned with your long-term success.
They want you to keep buying the shakes and magic pills so you keep failing, and keep thinking you need the shakes and magic pills.
No one “needs” shakes and magic diet pills. Your weight problem isn’t a shake or diet pill deficiency.
It’s a combination of too much food and the wrong kinds of food.
If you want the weight gone for good, find a lifestyle that works for YOU, and is sustainable for YOU, and stick with it.
Community is another HUUUUUGE factor in keeping the weight off. A community of people – not a bunch of enablers, and head-patters, but people who, like you, are determined to succeed – provides inspiration, motivation, and support to supply strength when you feel weak.
Get connected to a community, too. It makes SO much difference.
Bottom line: Keeping the weight off is SIMPLE when you find what works for you. It only feels hard because you either lose your weight in an unsustainable way, aren’t ready to make permanent changes, and/or underestimate the power your old ways have on you (in which case, more support REALLY helps).
You CAN keep the weight off, when you’re willing to do what I talk about in this post. I’m rooting for you!
Have you created your free Code Red Lifestyle™ network account yet? If not, here’s how to get your account!
1) On your computer, create your account at www.CodeRedLifestyle.com/App.
2) If you want the network on a mobile device, go to the App Store or Google Play Store and search for Code Red Lifestyle.