The Three Biggest Issues Preventing You From Losing Weight

Whether you're working on losing five pounds or fifty, everyone seems to have similar issues with starting a weight loss plan. Instead of making excuses, make your plan work by quashing the same old story when it comes to why you just can't lose weight. You can lose weight today by overcoming three basic obstacles: procrastination, food, and time.

Procrastination
How many times have you told yourself that you'll start losing weight on Monday? Or maybe it was after the holidays? Once the summer picnic season is over? The problem with this "I'll do it later" attitude is that later never comes. The major holidays end, but then you're going to parties, and another candy-focused holiday comes along, and then it's your birthday, and summer starts with picnics and vacations. In other words, it's a never-ending cycle of opportunities to pack on the pounds, and you need to stop making excuses and start losing weight.

How can you combat weight loss procrastination? The most important thing you can do is find a solid support system. Recruit friends to be strict with you when you're in a tough situation. If you have friends or family members that also want to lose weight, become weight loss buddies and motivate each other to start now, not after the weekend. Having a tough time sticking with it? Call up your friend and talk it out. Better yet, meet your friend for a walk or a movie, anything that will keep you out of the kitchen and on track.

Another big step in conquering the "I'll do it later" attitude is by not giving a time in the future. Start today. It doesn't matter if you had a big breakfast and went out for lunch, make your dinner sensible. Losing weight isn't something that has to start with your first meal of the day. Make the decision to start eating right immediately.

Food
Quick, how many times in the past week have you stopped by a fast food place for a meal? Everyday? Every other day? Considering that most meals at a fast food restaurant with fries and a soda pack in well over 1,000 calories, you really need to cut the fast food down to a once in a while thing. It doesn't hurt to have it once a week or maybe once a month, but if the drive through cashier knows your car and orders your usual for you before you ask, you're probably frequenting the restaurant too often.

Now, not everyone has time to make a home-cooked meal every night, but you don't have to. There are several methods of keeping yourself healthy by eating at home that don't take a lot of time. Keep bagged salads on hand, and mix in light dressing, pre-cooked chicken, and reduced fat shredded cheese for a quick lunch or dinner. Whole wheat pastas and sauce are a quick way to have a filling meal. If you stick with whole wheat bread, lean lunch meats, and reduced fat cheeses while skipping the mayo, sandwiches are perfect if you aren't in the mood to cook.

If you have a problem with snacking constantly, clean our your fridge and pantry and leave only healthy options. If you know that you're not going to have just one cookie, don't even start with one. An occasional treat is fine, but purchase an individual sized portion rather than a whole box or bag, even if it's more expensive to do so. Saving a bit of money isn't going to be helpful when you need to pay for a gym membership to counter the effects of too much chocolate.

Time
If you're eager to start an exercise routine, but can't seem to fit it in between work, chores, and helping out the kids, it's time to sit down and make a schedule. Remember that exercise and eating right are priorities, not luxuries that can be pushed out of your schedule. Look at what you need to do in the course of a week, and see where you can cut out a little bit of time. Can you wake up half an hour earlier? Spend half of your lunch break walking? If you live close enough to work, you could even walk or bike instead of spending your commute in your car.

Start small. Fit in a ten minute walk here and there, and you'll realize it makes you feel better. On days off, pick an activity that gets your heart rate up, but that you truly enjoy. Go hiking or swimming, or try horseback riding or indoor rock climbing. Losing weight doesn't have to be boring, and it doesn't have to feel like a chore. Take just a few minutes to work on yourself everyday, and you'll be amazed at how energized you feel.