I'm not talking any ordinary goal setting here, what I am about to tell you will not only change the way you think about fat loss but your whole mind set and the way you think about yourself. In fact this information could be the most important tool you have learnt so far on your fat loss mission.
One of the most common mistakes for falling off the "fat loss wagon" is not setting goals at all or properly. You may have heard this before but if you don't know where you want to be then how are you ever going to get there? Its ok saying you want to lose weight but how much and when?
There is so much more to goal setting than you think. It's not just about saying "I want this by such and such a time". You know "SMARTER" right? Specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, etc, etc. Well, as I said there is much more to it than this.
First off, are you in the right frame of mind for success? If you haven't set your goals then you're probably not ready to achieve the body you desire. If you haven't focused your mental energy in such away then no amount of training and nutrition planning will get you to your goal because you will always "sabotage" yourself and "fall off the fat loss wagon".
Why do you "sabotage" yourself and "fall off the fat loss wagon"? It's due to that constant war between knowing what you should be doing and doing completely what it is you shouldn't be doing. This is your conscious mind saying "that's not going to help you lose weight" and your subconscious mind saying "go on, one more won't hurt". Your subconscious mind guides you through life. How many times have you tried to lose weight and gone off the rails? You know you shouldn't have had that piece of chocolate but you can't help yourself, right? This is your subconscious mind and we need to reprogram it.
We need to reprogram your mind for success, which can be very challenging at first. It can almost be like a tug of war between your conscious mind and your subconscious mind but it can be done.
One way of doing this is by not only writing down your goals but writing your goals as positive affirmations.
For those of you that are not familiar with affirmations here are a few examples:
Negative affirmations, the ones that people use most of the time!
I can't lose weight I hate being fat
I have a slow metabolism I will never be slim
I don't have the time
I hate cardio
I can't lose this last stone
Positive affirmations, the ones that people should use if they want to achieve success!
What can I do today that will make me lose more fat
My metabolism is like a rocket
I like the way I look
I'm getting slimmer by the day
What ever it takes, I'll do it
I love going to the gym and burning fat
I love the complements I get when people notice how much weight I have lost
Can you see the difference between them? If you always focus on the negative then you will always stay that way. However, if you focus on the positives even if they are not currently the case you will become them.
Henry Ford once said "whether you think you can or you can't, you are right"
Start thinking positive and train your mind for success. Not only make your own affirmations but write them down. Make your affirmations are positive, personal and present. The act of simply writing them down becomes an intermediary step in going from an untouchable state of thought to a concrete, tangible state of form that is realistic and achievable. Once you have completed this stage you then need to reinforce what it is you want to be daily. Write your goals and affirmations again and again, visualise and feel how you want to be and, what people say to you, etc.
From then on you need to act the part. A wise man once said "Act as though you are and you will be". All great actors live the part first. You need to act out what you want to be. This will feel strange at first and may take some time but keep doing it, keep doing it until it becomes natural, a habit and then real!
People that set goals in this way are achievers. But not only do they set them, they write them down, read them every day and visualise what they want to achieve. They are 100% focused and know exactly what they want.