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Stopping the Yo-Yo and Starting Healthy Habits

We are posting a variety of articles that discuss the pros and cons of  yo-yo dieting. The other articles can be found here. We are adding this post into the mix, because it talks about developing the right mindset to stop yo-yo behaviors (fitness and diet)

* Skinny Gene Healthy Lifestyles Partner Post

By Maria Crompton, a fitness guru and personal trainer with

Fit for Life in San Diego, California.

 

 

Have you noticed a pattern?

You’ll spend a couple of weeks eating clean, exercising and losing weight, but then the pendulum swings and you spend the next week or two indulging in your old unhealthy habits.

After too many days where you’re not feeling so good, you’ll get back to your clean habits, and so the yo-yo goes.

It’s time to stop this vicious cycle that never brings you all the way to your goal – keeping you comfortable enough, yet frustrated.

The good news is that your yo-yo days could be quickly and permanently turned off with this simple mindset change.

Photo from Competitor

Find your reward in the process, not in the results.

When it comes to weight loss, we’ve been brainwashed to focus all of our efforts on the “results”. Your desired result is the ideal body that you dream to have – it’s your reason for passing on dessert and the image you hold in your mind as you toil through burpees and mountain climbers.

News flash: If you only find reward in the results, you’re likely to fail.

What?!?

Think about it. Results are abstract.

Oh sure, you can picture it in your mind with crystal clarity, but what reach does that image have on you when you’re lured into the drive thru?

Let’s face it – future results are easy to lose focus on. Try not to focus solely on images all the time, think about your health, and just take it a day at a time.

The Process:

This is the act of working toward your goal – your meal plan, your exercise routine and your healthy life style choices.

If you had a map of where you are today (blue dot), and where you’ll be when you reach your goal (red dot), the process is that black line connecting the two.

When all you’re focused on to reinforce your journey is the promise of results, it’s easy to wind up lost.

Finding Reward in the Process:

Make a new habit of feeling rewarded after every day on your chosen path.

Completing your diet and exercise each day needs to become its own reward. Look down and applaud yourself for each step forward.

When you find reward in the process, the results will take care of themselves. 🙂

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