I was standing in front of the mirror holding my belly fat in both hands, wondering if I’d ever have a “normal” body. I was 19 years old and honestly, it was probably the lowest I’d felt in my life. Weight loss was always something I struggled with.
For the last 5 years, I had been anxious & worried about my weight. Trying any and every diet I could get my hands on. Low carb, slimming world, weight watchers, shakes, keto – you name it, I tried it.
But nothing worked.
Sure, I lost a little weight at the start, but the results weren’t what I expected. I fell into a cycle of losing and gaining the same 5-10 lbs.
Why am I telling you this?
Because at my lowest point, at my heaviest weight, something changed…
and I lost over 50 lbs.
I want to share the 4 key elements of this transformation.👇🏼
Because the same elements will help you, regardless of whether you need to lose 50 lbs or 5.
Weight Loss Key 1: Start Small
Whatever your goal is start small. Don’t think about losing 20 lbs. Think about losing the first 2lbs.
When you set big goals, you have a long way to go before reaching them.
Seeing how far you have left to go is daunting.
Setting smaller expectations will keep you focused. It gives you a target to hit sooner.
That builds motivation.
Break your big goal down into smaller milestones and aim for those to stay motivated.
Weight Loss Key 2: One Day at a Time
The main reason why I hadn’t succeeded before was that I wasn’t consistent.
I’d jump in ready to go and then 1 week later I was bored/fed up/burned out and ditched the diet.
I did too much too soon.
Sound familiar?
Instead of trying to change as much as I could, I picked 2 things to do every day.
Once I was hitting those consistently, I’d step it up.
For me, that started with swapping fizzy drinks for the calorie-free version and walking 15 minutes a day.
Once that was my new normal, I replaced sweets with fruit and started walking for 30 minutes.
Before I knew it, I was only snacking on fruit, drinking more water and walking 5km every day.
They don’t seem like big changes. That’s the point.
Because the truth is, life is going to get in the way.
A row with your partner, caught working late, a flat tyre – life throws any number of obstacles at us.
But when you’re just focused on 1-2 small tasks, it’s less likely to knock you off course.
Which leads nicely into the next key…
Weight Loss Key 3: Go Easy on Yourself
No matter how hard you try – things will get to you and you’ll slip up.
That’s life.
It doesn’t matter how simple your daily targets are, life can always throw a spanner in the works.
What matters is how you react.
If you don’t get out for a walk, if you have an extra serving at dinner, maybe sneak in some chocolate – who cares?
It’s not the end of the world.
Once you’re hitting your daily targets more often than missing them – you’re golden.
Sure, it’d be great to walk 15 minutes every day this week. But if you only did 4 that’s still great.
I was the worst in the world for being self-critical. I expected nothing less than 100% commitment and dedication to the goal.
That’s why I f**ked it up so many times…
Play the long game, take things easy on yourself and you are far less likely to give up.
Drop the “all or nothing” approach.
Weight Loss Key 4: Eat Your Greens
This could honestly be the number 1 key, but you’re probably sick of hearing it.
I’m not gonna insult your intelligence here by explaining why veggies are important.
You already know they are.
But for weight loss, they will change the game. For real.
You’ll have more energy, better digestion, feel less hungry.
Literally no downside.
And if you are like I was, you may think you’re just not a veggie person.
So here’s how I went from no veg to a salad with every meal.
Try something new 2-3 times a week.
Buy 1 new vegetable and try it out.
Like it? Great, eat it more often.
Don’t like it? Cool, don’t get it again.
It’s that simple.
You don’t even need to buy new or different veg. Why not try preparing the veg you have differently?
You’re not gonna like every vegetable, it’d be insane to expect that. But it’s almost impossible to not like any.
Once you find veg you like and start eating them regularly, your taste buds adapt. Meaning you might find you now like veg you previously didn’t.
Don’t believe me?
Just ask my mam how much I hated turnips and sprouts when I was younger. Now, I eat them at least twice a week!
So what next?
Take these keys and start applying them. These are the 4 key elements I used to lose over 50lbs. I still use them today to maintain that weight loss 10 years later.
These are the same keys I use with my clients. It’s not about how fast you can reach your goal; it’s about reaching it.
Slow progress is still progress, and when you make that progress a habit, you can’t lose.
If you want help breaking down your goal into actionable daily tasks and setting up your own roadmap to the body you deserve – I’d love to have a chat and see if we’re a good fit for each other.
No matter where you are in your journey, there’s a way for you to make progress. Regardless of what challenges you face.
I’m here to help show you the way.
Ready to get your own results?
If you want to see how I can help you lose weight, fit into that dress that hasn’t looked at you in months and overcome your setbacks (no matter how many times you’ve tried before), just drop me an email or send me a DM on Twitter and let’s chat.
