Weight Loss and Sacrifice

As I reflect back over my weight loss journe in 2006, when I lost 40kgs, and my observations of other peoples journeys, it occurs to me that if you really want to lose a significant amount of weight, more than anything else, it requires sacrifice. Forget motivation, motivation is here one day and gone the next. You have to decide that you want to lose weight MORE than anything else in your life. Yes, ANYTHING.

Knowing how much weight you have to lose, you can estimate how long it should take you if you stick to the plan. Then for this period of time, you have to be prepared to prioritise the plan over everything else. For example, yes, I mean it has to be more important than the kids. Whaat - nothing is more important than my children you say. But for this period of time, you have to be able to, and prepared to, make the tough choices in this area if needed. It may come down to a choice between watching your child's sport one morning or getting your own exercise in. Yes, obviously you try every other avenue first, but if there are no other alternatives, are you prepared to make this sacrifice? Remember its a short term sacrifice with huge long term gains for your children. It also has to be more important than work. But I have to work you say. Yes, you have to work. When I started my job as Community Health Director I agreed that I would give it 110% DURING WORK HOURS but I also told my boss that I would have to leave work at 5pm each day for my gym classes. He had no problem with this, lets face it a fit, and active employee is far more efficient than a sluggish overworked one. So when the going gets tough at work and you are faced with the decision of working back late, or hitting the gym - can you make the tough call? Is weight loss really the most important thing to you? If its not and you have more than a few kilo's to lose, you're not giving yourself a fair go. It also has to be more important than food. Fairly obvious you say? Make sure you mean it. When it comes to a choice (repeatedly) between the chocolate cake and mums famous potato bake at the family birthday party vs weight loss in this specified weight loss time, can you make the hard decision and sacrifice the social expectations?

It is worthwhile negotiating these planned sacrifices in advance with a relevant "other". For example I negotiated going to the gym every night after work with my husband until I reached goal weight. It was a big sacrifice for all of us - it meant travelling to work every day in separate cars, and either having tea later every night or him cooking. But we agreed it had to happen. Once I reached my goal, we renegotiated the frequency of the gym and bought more equipment for home use and dropped it back to a couple of times a week.

So do you want this more than any thing else, and are you prepared to make the sacrifice? The proof is, of course, in the pudding.