10 Tips to Help You Keep Your Weight Loss New Years Resolution

These tips helped me lose over 80 pounds in 2010, and my partner succeeded in losing over 50. You can succeed with your weight loss goals also. Keep these proven tips in mind and watch the weight fall off this year.

Don't give up! I really think this is the most important thing to remember. Any diet will fail if you give up the first time you perceive yourself as imperfect. Here is a typical scenario. You are trying to limit yourself to under 1800 calories a day. You go out to dinner and have the 1000 calorie dessert after already going over your calorie limit for the day. You feel like a horrible person and know that there is no way you can ever lose weight. That is the end of your weight loss plan.

When you do something less than ideal, let it go. Then keep on tracking. Whatever your plan is, it is bound to succeed at least partially if you implement it at all. Do not expect perfection.

Concentrate on doing better than you would have before. This goes right along with number one. All that really matters in your weight loss attempt is that you eat less or move more than you did before. (Ideally you should do both!) Instead of beating yourself up for eating that dessert, remember that before you would have had dessert and an appetizer, and perhaps a less healthy meal than you chose this time. You know your own habits. Aim to do slightly better than you would have last year. Before you know it, you will see the numbers on the scale drop.

Focus on food. Calories count. Refined carbs count. You should eat less of these than you use to. Measure your portions whenever you can. It is so to easy over estimate even if you have been a life long dieter. There will be times when you can't measure. Let those times that you can make up for it. If you have type 2 diabetes or pre-diabetes, all carbs count. Cutting back on calories and carbs was the backbone of my weight loss program. I recommend this proven weight loss technique to everyone.

Find tools that work for you. It is important to track what you eat. Everyone is different, and you need to find a tracking tool that works for you. Some people are able to gain better control simply by using a pen and notebook. Some people want more information about the food that they are eating. They might chose to download a calorie/nutrition counting program for their cell phone or for their computer. Some people like community. There are numerous weight loss communities online that provide tools such as food journals, calories counters, forums, and blogs. A quick search is sure to provide you with several to try until you find the one that is the right fit for you.

Don't be afraid to leave something that isn't working and try something else, but at the same time, don't be a perfectionist. When you find something good enough that is helping, stick with it, and weight loss will follow.

Move. Exercise is a mixed bag when it comes to weight loss. Although it can seem obvious that exercising burns calories and increases weight loss, in some ways this is compensated for by our bodies urging us to eat more and move less after exercising. Unless you already enjoy an exercise routine, I don't recommend starting one. Instead, I recommend simply moving more. Be a little more active, and it is sure to boost your mood and help you stick to your eating goals. Set a timer when you are doing sedentary work and intersperse it with movement. Park further away. Take the stairs. Shovel the walk instead of asking your kids to do it. These little things will add up to a more active lifestyle and a healthier you.

Enjoy the results of your success. Dieting can seem like a life of deprivations, but as you lose weight, even small amounts, you will notice benefits. You may sleep better. You may have fewer digestive upsets. It might be easier to move, and you may find your scheduled movement times getting longer and longer because it is more pleasurable for you. Clothing will fit better. My favorite benefit is being able to have those who love me wrap their arms all the way around me. Focus on how great you feel, and continuing with your diet plan will be easier than ever.

Keep it quiet. I find that when I announce my diet plans and my weight loss success, I am more sensitive to my own failures. I start to worry about letting people down. This stress makes it more difficult than ever to perservere when temptations strike. By keeping your diet low key, you will be able to remember that you are so much more than your current weight. When you receive compliments, casually respond with a thank you. If someone whom you care about asks about your success, go ahead and share a few of your secrets, but for the most part, keep your weight loss low key, and you won't feel the weight of others expectations heaped upon your own.

Have a plan for dealing with temptation. The worse food temptations are presented by those we love. Have a plan for dealing with the offer for a piece of cake that you don't really want or particularly a second piece of cake. This can be tricky when you don't want others making decisions for you or thinking that you eat by a list of rules. It can be best to just say that you are full and be assertive. If some people or situations are particularly hard to deal with you may want to avoid them altogether. Do not let anyone coerce you to put food into your body that you don't really want to eat.

Expect plateaus and setbacks. A year is a long time! There are going to be weeks when you don't lose weight. There may even be weeks when you gain weight. In the grand scheme of things, that doesn't mean that you are failing. It just means that you are a typical person with normal variations in your schedule and eating patterns. When these times strike, breathe deeply and remind yourself that you know how to do this and that you will prevail. Then get back on your program, make sure that you are using your chosen tools, and measure and monitor extra carefully for a bit. It won't belong before the numbers on the scale start to go back down, and you will be glad that you didn't give up.

Become friends with your scale. Weigh yourself every day. Learn to not think of yourself in terms of those numbers. The numbers are just a symbol of one part of you, a tool you can use to keep yourself healthy. Daily mindful weighing of yourself will eventually fine tune your intuition so that you can more easily regulate what you eat to keep the numbers where you want them. If you weigh everyday, you will know what normal fluctations are for yourself. For example, I am prone to water retention. I can gain five pounds in one day because of it. I know what sets it off. Because of this, I would not blink an eye at a one day five pound weight gain. It is just part of my normal pattern.

It is typical to over respond to the number s on the scale and to worry a lot about weigh-ins while dieting. Daily weighing will get you over this fear and keep your program on an even keel.