This seems to be an easy question but if you really think about it, it is more serious than that. You need to understand yourself very well and listen to your body. By doing this, you will be able to find out some things that you haven't even realised before. So, here’s the question again to reiterate, what motivates you to lose weight? Personally, this is very important for me to start my own weight-loss journey. I must really know my goals and plans clearly in order to adjust my schedule to meet my lifestyle. Many factors affect our decision to want to lose or shed some pounds. As society requires us to be more fit and to be good-looking on the outside, you just can't help but abide by those social expectations.
Some people are doing it because they want to please their parents. Some people would like to feel good about themselves. Others do it because they want to look good to please the people around them. Some do it to land on jobs requiring them to dress up well and some do it because they want to fit in smaller-sized clothing to become more fashionable. We have different reasons why we want to maintain our normal weight. When you are younger, you tend to look at things in a different light. Most of us think about it aesthetically or how you appear
externally but not necessarily doing the right thing for your body or eating right when dieting. As I grew older, I realised that it was not about my physical appearance which was the most important reason. This pandemic is an awakening, a realisation to take care of our health and there comes eagerness to maintain a healthy lifestyle so that we may have more energy and to stay away from any kind of disease that might develop. I really appreciate having good health especially now that we have uncertainty rolling over the years and all we want is to have a quality of life.
Just imagine if you have everything in the world but you don’t have peace of mind, then the riches and material things don't really matter anymore. It is the same with losing weight. When you long for a perfect body because this is what society dictates or expects of you, then your reason is completely wrong. I believe our perspective changes once we reach our 30’s, we are doing it more for our health than how we look physically, and this is also based on my own experience. Weight issue is something that is not only what you want for yourself to
address or about the pressure from the people around you. It can also be because of something deeper in one’s perception of herself/himself. Some people might have anorexia or depression by not appreciating themselves enough hence, not being happy about themselves or may even question their existence. The pressure may lead to uncontrollable struggle for the youth to be accepted and to belong. I guess these people need serious support and understanding in terms of dealing with weight issues because it can also affect mental health.
Now going back to the question, what motivates you to lose weight? Do it for yourself, not for anybody else! When things get harder during your weight-loss journey and you feel like giving up, you can always go back to thinking why you wanted or started it in the first place. It is time for lifestyle change! :)
You can always download a Workout planner or Healthy Habits planner where you can write down your daily food intake and exercise schedule to keep track of your progress. First, you can record your ‘before’ weight and from there, set a goal. Try to lose a certain number of kilos for 3
months and see how you go. Next, you can record them all in your planner to have a guide throughout your weight-loss journey. Everything is accessible online so you can always download an app to help you, or you can also buy a planner from a bookstore. When you want to accomplish a goal, you must have a plan to make it achievable. It actually helps you build your confidence and will encourage you to do well. Personally, I am a hoarder of journals and I'm not able to use some of them as much as I use my planner for the year. So if you have a spare journal then you can always use it to keep track of your improvement.
Of course, things can still be a little difficult even if you are serious about it and your appetite itself can trigger you from eating excessively again. So there are a lot of factors where you may find yourself struggling to keep up and you may feel like quitting. Also, there will be days you might feel sad for doing it because it is getting too stressful. There is also the feeling that you are restricting yourself from eating anything that you like. It will be good to have a reminder for yourself to just keep going and set your mind into it in order to achieve your goal effectively.
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