Any self-improvement endeavor requires you to have a serious commitment to well-defined goals and behavioral changes. When it comes to weight loss, it is essential to start by thinking ahead to all the challenges you might face and clearing them away ahead of time. This will help you elicit the right behavioral response from your body, thereby focusing your entire system on your goal of losing weight in a timely, sustainable fashion.

Weight loss can be a true test of anyone’s self-discipline, patience and perseverance. One of the biggest challenges is that your body is used to a certain routine. Good or bad, you have a degree of comfort with your current home and work environment.

But these are the patterns that set you on a weight gain path. Therefore, breaking away from these routines is the first step to creating sustainability in the quest for a healthy body.

 

Exercise Control at Home

The common misconception people have is that to lose weight you must starve yourself. Actually, your eating habits at home just need to be based on necessity rather than whim. Eating right is the cornerstone of wholesome health and a maintainable, healthy body weight. On a weight loss routine, you need to get your body used to eating proper meals that have a balanced amount of the essential elements of a good diet—such as carbs, vitamins, proteins, and adequate water.

One thing that can help you is to make sure that your eating becomes a ritual that is not interrupted by other activities. Avoid the practice of eating while standing next to the refrigerator, watching television, working on your laptop, or reading. These habits prolong the amount of time you spend eating and create inconsistency in the portions you eat.

Another thing that will help you on your weight loss journey is to asses all the foods stocked in your pantry. Do they add value to your quest? Processed foods have high salt content that fills your body with bags of fat and creates health complications.

Junk foods escalate sugar levels, which then drop all at once, creating fatigue and making you feel hungry. These foods need to be cleared from the house or you will be set back. Instead of relying on such processed foods, take joy in preparing your own meals and snack on wholesome foods, like fruit slices and low-fat snacks.

 

Exercise Control in your Workplace

An important way to eliminate the chances of coworkers disrupting your routine is to make your weight loss plan clear to everyone in your work environment. This can also help to create a support system for you. Most people have unhealthy eating habits in their work environment, and this can make weight issues an inevitability.

Another tip for your work environment is to create a definitive plan for where you take your meals at work. This may mean being strict with yourself about not using your work station as a food pantry. Only eat at the workplace dining area and only eat foods you have prepared yourself.

Consistency in your eating patterns at work will gradually condition your body. If you are erratic with your mealtimes that will also fuel your need to snack—which is obviously not compatible with weight loss.

The workplace is also an environment that encourages the life of convenience. Many people drive to and from work or take public transit. Make it a habit to walk at least part of the way to your workplace. Or, if you dread not being fresh when you get to work, then make a habit of walking home. If you have free time in your day, spend it outdoors rather than cooped-up inside with a bag of chips.

 

Conclusion

Consistent behavior can help you generate positive mental responses towards even the most strenuous activities. If you follow these practices, within time they will be second nature. Then, instead of losing your will to live whenever you hear the words healthy food and exercise, when you open your eyes in the morning you will actually wake up looking forward to them.