Sticking To Your Plan

It is crucial, of course, to keep your goal in mind - losing 10 pounds - and to realize that it's not going to happen if you don't stick to your plan. The two vital components to sticking to your plan are to make your plan specific and realistic, and to come up with a reward system.

As much as possible, have your plan include a specific thing each and every day. For example, come up with a specific meal you're going to cook, and a specific activity for every day of the week. Not only does this give you more direction, but allows for an achievable goal every day.

Once you've come up with your specific daily goals towards losing 10 pounds, think of some rewards. Keep in mind of course, that your rewards should not include unhealthy eating or activities. Tell yourself, for example, that if you meet all your goals for a given week you're going to go a movie or attend an event you've been wanting to see.

This sticking to your plan and rewarding yourself element is often overlooked in weight loss attempts, and is why many fail. The reason has to do with the cycle of self-esteem. If you've made the decision that you want to lose 10 pounds, it's likely that you don't feel as good about yourself as you could. If you fail to meet your goals and to reward yourself, this self-doubt will increase and it will be tempting to scrap the entire weight loss attempt.

Think of your goal of losing ten pounds as a project, and think of how a business approaches a project: with very specific and regular targets that are met. Your feeling of self satisfaction will grow as you continue to meet your targets, and as you begin to feel better about yourself it will become easier to set and reach loftier goals.