A year ago, when the pandemic started, and our lifestyle was completely turned upside down, when the gyms were closed, when we had to work 100% from home, and when we had to we move less and less, being isolated in our own homes, most of us have taken refuge in the kitchen or front of the TV. Little by little, we started to experiment with culinary recipes and some of us even discovered that we have talent in culinary art.
Others, however, continued to train at home, but over time, their enthusiasm disappeared. As this whole “static” period lasted from one month to the next, most of them have become very friendly with the refrigerator, being less and less attentive to what and how much they consume. So now, when things seem easy to return to normal, we realized that this whole period, which took us out of our comfort zone, actually made us so comfortable that most of us struggle now with those few pounds gained during this period.
And the hardest part is fighting the weight loss during the pandemic is not necessarily a proper diet or restarting training, but rather a lack of motivation to lead to actions that would help us reach again the desired weight.
Here are some simple steps to help you stay motivated to lose extra pounds and stay fit.
1. Elimination of extrinsic motivation
Nowadays, social media is more and more present in our lives, and we are more and more invaded by celebrities and public figures known or less known, who are promoted by the way they look. And certainly, most of us have already chosen such a character that we constantly follow on Facebook, Instagram, or other social channels. Most of the time we aim to get a body with dimensions as close as possible to what is being promoted, without taking into account the fact that each one is genetically different. Therefore, extrinsic motivation is when we are motivated only by external factors, in achieving our goal, without taking into account our desires, in reality, leaving us guided only by what is promoted.
2. Cultivating intrinsic motivation
I would say that intrinsic motivation is the very secret that can help us reach our best version in time, by maintaining healthy habits in the long run. First of all, you have to be honest with yourself and try to identify the reasons why you fail to lose weight. Maybe you should start cooking more at home instead of eating all the time in the city. Or maybe you should spend more time eating, and stop eating in a hurry. As long as all these reasons are valid and you will not focus only on extrinsic motivation, putting pressure on you through all those images with perfect bodies that you see posted on social channels, then your journey on the road to weight loss will be short duration, and full of compassion. These are factors for a healthy motivation to help you lose weight. Support yourself with positive thoughts, love, and confidence that you can get where you want to go.
3. Set realistic expectations
Unhealthy eating and sedentary habits cannot be changed overnight. You need to start gradually so that your body and mind understand what is happening, have time to adapt. If you set unattainable expectations from the beginning, then you will certainly not succeed. Moreover, you will lose your motivation to continue from the beginning. That is why it is recommended to start with small steps. For example, instead of aiming to wake up every day from 7:00, given that you are not normally a morning person, you better focus on training during the day, for 3-4 times, per week. One of the reasons we lose our motivation when we choose to diet and lose a few pounds is that we set goals that are too big, instead of setting some smaller but realistic goals that can be easily achieved.
4. Stay dedicated to your decisions
Be consistent and focus on the decisions you make. It doesn’t help at all if one day you have healthy eating and exercise behavior, and in the next three days, you get back to your old habits. With every step you take on the journey to weight loss, you can reward yourself with either a relaxing walk in the park or a light lunch in the city with friends.
It is said that the formation of a new habit lasts 21 days, and its implementation in our daily lives can take up to 66 days. So it takes patience, concentration, will, and especially understanding, that we can’t change everything overnight. In the end, regardless of the size of a perfect body, promoted by the media, a few extra pounds around the thighs are part of human experience and the most important thing is to know how to keep our motivation when setting a goal, no matter what would be this.
