How to Develop a Weight Loss Plan

Learn How to Develop a Weight Loss Plan to improve your health and lose weight in the new year. These helpful tips are a great way to get started!

With the new year approaching, now is the time that everyone starts to think about how to develop a weight loss plan as part of their resolutions. One of the most popular resolutions people set is weight loss. To begin January 1st on the right foot, you need to have a weight loss plan developed for yourself. If weight loss is among your resolutions in the coming year but aren’t quite sure how to get started, check out these helpful tips on How to Develop a Weight Loss Plan.

How to Develop a Weight Loss Plan

It’s hard to follow a weight loss plan that someone else has created for you. You can certainly look over other people’s plans, but you need to tweak and tailor them to your own your needs and preferences to increase the chance of success!

1. Assess where you are right now. How much weight do you need to lose? What are your current eating habits? Do you exercise regularly? Considering your current lifestyle habits is a step in the right direction to creating a weight loss plan you can follow.

2. Think of where you want to be. Once you have reached your goal, what do you imagine your life will be like? Will you be stronger? Slimmer? More energetic? Happier? Picture the end goal to create a program and weight loss plan that will stay motivated to lose weight and get healthier.

3. Note common struggles for your weight loss. Most people that have tried any kind of weight loss plan without success know their pitfalls. Maybe it’s carbs, chocolate, not sleeping enough, drinking too much caffeine, or not exercising. Make a list of these struggles you have with each weight loss plan, and find ways that you can beat them.

4. Set several different goals. You want to have an overall goal – a place you want to be in the end. However, if you have a long way to go to reach that goal, thinking only of the end can be a bit traumatic.

Instead, create mini-goals that will lead you to achieving the end goal. If you need to lose 50 pounds, set goals of 5-10 pounds. Give yourself a timeline to complete each goal so you remained focus and determined. Once you reach each small goal, reward yourself…with something other than food. Ideas include a new outfit, music CD, trip to the movies, or a pedicure!

Another important goal would be to lose body fat percentage instead of just numbers on the scale. A good scale will include checking not just your weight, but also your body fat percentage to track as another mini-goal.

5. Create a list of healthier foods and snacks. Sometimes, we just need to make substitutions in our diet to really drop the pounds. If you enjoy ice cream, give yogurt a try. For those that can eat a bag of potato chips in one sitting, switch to light, air-popped popcorn or crunchy, raw veggies instead.

Some of my favorite healthier foods:

6. Keep it fun! Overall, you want a weight loss plan that doesn’t feel like a chore. You want it to be filled with fun challenges for yourself, or between you and a friend. Find new ways to exercise too, to keep from getting bored.

Creating a weight loss plan that is functional for yourself is all about knowing what your own triggers and needs are. Taking time to make a plan in advance will help you be truly successful this year.