Looking to Lose 10 Pounds?

There a few different ways to approach the weight loss journey. You can pick a number on a scale and make that your goal – when you get “there”, you’ve made it. This is the most common and popular goal to set. It’s not a bad one, as long as you’ve selected a reasonable number and given yourself a reasonable timeframe. There are, however, other ways to measure success and other goals you can set for yourself to venture toward. For example, perhaps your goal is to improve your fasting glucose and your lipid panel. Perhaps you want to get out of the pre-diabetic range or get your HDL above the minimum. Or maybe you want to be able to walk around the entire park with your grandchild/spouse/child without needing to take a break. Perhaps you wish to feel better about the person staring back at you in the mirror. These are all great goals. In fact, some of the latter ones can be much more beneficial and a better measure of success than a mere number on the scale.

This post was going to be about how to lose the last ten pounds, or five pounds. Those final few steps that often seem to elude us just as we get close to our pre-determined finish line. I will mention a few things to help with that, but I want to first emphasize the importance of seeing success outside of the scale. Sometimes, the weight we set for ourselves as our “goal” is just not reasonable. Sometimes, it’s way too low. Sometimes it’s really too high and for true health, more weight needs to be shed. Sometimes, our bodies just can’t reach the number we’ve set without extreme exercise and deprivation. That’s no way to live your life. And, if you’ve been doing the workouts and exercise that really should go hand-in-hand with any weight loss plan, you may find that the number on the scale isn’t moving nearly as much as you would like as your body sheds fat in favor of muscle.

Now, I don’t want anyone to think that I’m advocating for you to not focus on losing weight or that there aren’t real dangers to excess fat. There are and weight loss is a key step in preventing disease, restoring health, and giving you the best chance for a long, healthy, enjoyable life. But, fixating on the scale or the number on the tag in your jeans isn’t healthy either. The weight loss journey is often a long one; I want you to be able to enjoy the entire journey, not just the moment you reach the finish line. At CoreLife, we advocate for the best version of yourself today, tomorrow, and ten years from now. The best version of yourself today may not be what it can be and really should be, but that’s no reason not to celebrate each day of success. Maybe you ate a salad instead of French fries next to your burger. Perhaps you took a 30 minute walk instead of a 15 minute one. Maybe you drank one more cup of water and one less can of soda. Each one of those steps makes a difference. Don’t miss out on the changes that are taking place and the new things your body is able to do as you progress because you’re too focused on a final “result”.

With all that said, if you’ve made a goal of a certain weight, and are finding it a bit difficult to move the last few pounds on the scale, there are a few things I recommend to help get over that hump. First, make sure the weight you’ve chosen is a reasonable one. The CoreLife team can assist in ensuring that you’ve selected a weight that is achievable and maintainable. Second, examine your exercise routine. Have you been doing the same thing for a while now? Your body may have gotten used to the stress put on it by these workouts and need a bit of a change to jolt it back into burn-mode (CoreLife Personal Training). Talk with one of the trainers for some suggestions on how to shake up your routine to help get your body burning again. Third, much like your workouts, look at your diet. Has it gotten a little stale? Same thing every day, over and over? Your body gets bored, too. Think about switching things up. If you typically do a roasted veggie with dinner, maybe try a salad or raw veggie option. If your go-to breakfast protein is eggs, maybe try yogurt instead. Four, how’s your stress? Stress is the enemy of weight loss (and health!). Are you getting enough sleep (at LEAST 7 hours)? Are you finding time to wind-down and relax, or are you constantly rushing from thing to thing, never taking a moment for yourself? Are you pushing too hard in your exercise, always feeling sore and never taking time to let your body repair itself? And finally, if you didn’t have a scale, if you had no idea what you actually weighted, how would you feel about where you are? Do your clothes fit like you want them to? Are your blood work results where they should be? Are you feeling good about yourself? Are you able to do the physical activities you want to do? Perhaps your body is telling you you’re where you need and should be. Don’t be afraid to enjoy the current success and just aim to maintain for a bit. Perhaps taking off the extra pressure will be just what you need to move the last few pounds, or maybe you’ll discover you’re right where you really want and need to be. Click Here to Schedule with us today.

Aubrey Phelps, MS RDN