Recently Kirstie Alley appeared on the Oprah Winfrey Show, proudly strutting her stuff in nothing more than a lacy bikini. This appearance was made after Kirstie bravely obligated herself to such a feat approximately a year prior, when she was several pounds heavier. She was determined to lose the weight she?d gained over the years, and it appears that by going public with the announcement that she would indeed lose this weight, she successfully shed many pounds. Could it be that the fear of humiliation resulted in Kirstie?s successful weight loss? I think so, and this may be the answer for you too.
If you?ve made several unsuccessful attempts at weight loss, you may want to consider the ?humiliation trick.? You see, by sharing your secret desire to lose weight with friends family and co-workers, you?ll be more determined to stick with your goals, if those you set are realistic. Perhaps you want to be ?bikini-worthy? or simply fit into a pair of jeans that you haven?t worn for years because your dryer malfunctioned and shrunk them (or you put on weight ? sshhh!) Whatever your goal may be, it?s important to remind yourself that if you want to achieve success, you need to be realistic. If you start out setting an unrealistic goal for yourself, you?re more likely to fail to reach that goal, which may discourage future attempts at weight loss.
Once you decide what your goal is, assign it a date (perhaps 90-120 days from now) and share this date with those closest to you. If you?re afraid to verbalize your goal, I can say with confidence that you?re not serious about losing weight. Someone very close to me once shared her secret desire to lose weight with only me and specifically said ?Don?t tell anyone, though, because if I fail I don?t want anyone to know that I was trying.? What? She immediately set herself up for failure with that frame of mind. If you want to be successful, you need to be mouthy; tell many people and often. Granted, you don?t want to become a pest, but if you happen to mention a few times a week that you only have so many days left, I don?t see any harm. If people are truly your friends, and want to see you succeed, they will not grow tired of hearing about your approaching deadline. By speaking about your goal often you?ll likely not forget about your desire to lose weight, nor will your close friends.
Once you?ve put the word out there and everybody is eagerly awaiting a thinner you, get to work. Be sure to have your cupboards and refrigerator stocked with foods that are healthy and low in fat and calories. This will help you avoid the temptation to snack on foods that don?t really qualify as ?healthy.?
Additionally, work on involving yourself in a regular exercise routine, which will include weight training. By working out with weights or weight resistance machines, you?ll build muscle, which is very important if your desire is to be thin. You see, muscle will raise your metabolic rate, resulting in your body burning calories, even while you?re at rest.
If you stick with the ideas I mentioned you?ll be certain to reach your weight loss goal. Not only will you receive praise and admiration from those with whom you?re close, but you?ll begin to realize that you?re capable of doing just about anything you desire. Congratulations on taking the first step to a thinner you. I wish you the very best for a successful transformation.
Susan Megge is the founder of http://www.40isbeautiful.com, a website designed to assist women as they experience weight gain. Susan, a health and fitness expert, started experiencing symptoms of perimenopause and weight gain several years ago and researched various avenues to deal with these symptoms naturally. This led to her discovery of the significant role that exercise plays in making these years very manageable, and even wonderful. Susan Megge is the author of "Being Beautiful Beyond 40," a book dedicated to helping women to be inspired, confident and beautiful as they approach menopause. | |
