Self-motivation is one of the keys to successful weight loss. But how do you keep yourself motivated when faced with food temptations or a lack of desire to eat right and exercise?
Develop a personal weight loss mantra.
I have always been interested in marketing and advertising slogans that large corporate brands use–like Nike’s “Just Do It” or Burger King’s “Have It Your Way.”
When you hear those slogans you instantly know what those brands stand for and what message they are trying to convey. A personal weight loss mantra can do the same for you.
A mantra is a phrase that is repeated to give you focus. A weight loss mantra motivates you to keep working on your weight loss effort no matter how hard it seems. I developed my weight loss mantra during my final weight loss. After mulling over different ideas, I came up with a simple three-word phrase.
Never go back.
Even after I completed my weight loss, my mantra is still present with me. Choices I make each day are filtered through it. It motivated me then to move forward losing weight, and it motivates me now to maintain a healthy weight.
Developing and using a weight loss mantra has several benefits.
1) It’s Personal
Having your own mantra is a personal motivator. Whether you borrow mine or develop your own, it becomes a phrase you can repeat to yourself when you are feeling unmotivated or tempted.
2) It’s Positive
Most people I talk to do not find losing weight to be a positive experience. A mantra is positive reinforcement because it moves you in the right direction and takes your mind off the difficulty of making the right food choices or exercising when you don’t want to.
3) It’s Persuasive
A mantra should be persuasive. My mantra reminded me of where I had come from and persuaded me to continue reaching forward.
Use your mantra when faced with challenges. For example, if you find yourself lying in bed debating whether to get up and exercise, repeat your mantra to yourself. Then get out of bed.
When you see a sweets table at a meeting or wedding, say your mantra in your head. Then walk away from the table, confident that good choices now will pay off later.
Here are some tips for developing your own mantra:
· Keep it short.
· Make it simple.
· Use a phrase that works for weight loss and maintenance.
· Write it down.
· Try it out for a day or two.
· Change it if you decide you don’t like it.
I’ve put together 20 sample mantras. Take one as your own, tweak it to suit your needs, or use one as a springboard for a completely different mantra.
1. Always make the effort.
2. Don’t give up on yourself.
3. Always finish what you start.
4. Make your dreams a reality.
5. Make my children and my spouse proud.
6. Be brave. Take risks.
7. Don’t give up at the end, go harder.
8. Don’t EVER give up.
9. Strength, Focus, Discipline.
10. I am going after what I want.
11. I am important.
12. Excellence in all things.
13. I love myself enough to stay strong.
14. Tomorrow is too late.
15. Take action today.
16. Creating a new me one day at a time.
17. Keep on fighting.
18. Can’t is not in my vocabulary.
19. I’m doing this for me.
20. I can do more than I think I can.
My mantra, “Never go back,” motivates me to stay at a healthy weight, gives me the boost I need to get off the couch and exercise, and reminds me of where I came from.
Find your personal weight loss mantra, and use it as a daily inspiration. Write it down, embrace its meaning, and stay motivated to lose weight and keep it off.