Finding the Motivation

For most of us, motivation is what makes or breaks our weight loss efforts. Finding the motivation and discipline to stick with changing to a healthy lifestyle can seem impossible at times.Finding the motivation that works for you is almost as important as the decision to make a change. Just Doing It

• Doing it for your family: As mothers, it is not in our nature to think only about ourselves or do something just for us, so when somebody says "Do it for yourself" that is hard for a mom. So, do it for your new baby and your family. Make it so that when they grow up you can run around with them, or chase them across the field. You want them to have a mommy who can keep up with them and play with them. Use the image of you and your family having a snowball fight, or playing soccer motivate you to get yourself into shape so you can be a participant in these activities rather than a spectator.
• Doing it for spiritual reasons: Many people are able to stick to something if they feel they are fullfilling a spiritual obligation. Make a commitment to God to keep what he made a temple and keep it in the healthy shape he intended (or Buddha, or whatever spiritual affiliation you may have).
• Doing it for competition: Some people are competitive by nature. Set up a Biggest Loser contest at work. Or you and a friend can make a bet that whoever gets into their "skinny" jeans first, the other person has to take them to dinner.
• Doing it for an end goal: There are those people who need to train for something specific in order to get moving. Sign up for a 5K and find a friend to train with or getting a training schedule from a running magazine. You can build from that and if you are so motivated maybe one day sign up for a marathon.

Motivational Tricks and Tools

1. Charts: try tracking your progress on a chart. Make a starting point at the beginning and your goal at the end and every month mark how far you have made it towards your goal. This works well for visual people who like to have an end in site.
2. Pictures: you can put a skinny picture on the fridge motivating you to become skinny or a fat picture on the fridge motivating you not to be fat. Whichever, the idea is the motivation will keep you from opening the fridge when you don't need to snack.
3. Journal: keeping a running journal about what you do each day for exercise can motivate you if you are the writing type.
4. Checklists: if you are a diehard checklist person this could really work for you. Knowing that you need to check off exercise from you list can motivate you to exercise when you don't feel like it. Or, checklists can help you keep track of your water intake, amount of veggies you ate that day etc.
5. Girlfriends: being accountable to a friend or a group can help keep you ontrack. If you know that someone is going to ask why you didn't make it to kickboxing class you might be more likely to go instead of making excuses to yourself about why you can miss a class.
6. Skinny Jeans: I'm gonna leave this one up to you. We all have them and we all wish we could fit back into them, enough said.