Throughout my many years of helping people to lose weight, it is clear that everyone is looking for that elusive magic ingredient.
But the magic ingredient that everyone is looking for is not, as some would like to believe, the latest diet, but simply, motivation. In helping people to lose weight, I can provide the education, the facts, and the exercise plans, but the most important factor I have found is in helping people to discover the determination to succeed and to be motivated.
You will lose weight when you want to and you can do this by focusing on the solution, not the problem.
Step 1
Accept the problem. The scales aren’t wrong. Understand that being overweight comes from eating too much.
Step 2
Stop celebrating the problem. This means stop dwelling on your body and what you are not happy with. Stop thinking about food that you can and cannot eat. And stop believing that food will comfort you.
Step 3
Bring your future close. Decide what it is that you want to achieve, because in order to achieve your goal of losing weight you need to focus, not on the past or present, but on the future. A young girl who wants to look good for her wedding will achieve her goal of losing weight. She is motivated to look good for her wedding day. She is focusing on the future. A mother who had been overweight her entire life lost 38 kilos for her fiftieth birthday because she wanted to look good for a shopping trip to New York.
Personality has a lot to do with how you view a problem. Some people dwell on the past and find it difficult to move forward. Some spend all their time in the present celebrating the problem. And some are able to achieve their goals because they know what they want and work toward that goal. Motivation is the unique ingredient that lies behind every successful person.
Low Fat Recipe of the Week
Greek Lemon Chicken
Serves 6
Ingredients
44 ml (40 g) olive oil
44 ml (45 g) lemon juice
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. oregano, or 24 g fresh, chopped
1/4 tsp. pepper
680 g boneless skinless chicken breast halves
4 lemon slices
1 tsp. parsley, chopped
Method
Combine oil, lemon juice, garlic, oregano, and pepper to taste in a small bowl. Mix thoroughly. Place chicken breasts between two sheets of wax paper and pound lightly with a mallet or other heavy flat object to flatten slightly. Transfer chicken to a dish. Add marinade and refrigerate 30 minutes. Turn on broiler. Place breasts in a shallow baking dish. Brush with half the marinade. Broil 4-5 minutes. Turn, brush with remaining marinade, and broil another 4-5 minutes, or until browned. Serve with pan juices. Garnish with lemon slices and sprinkle with parsley.
Ask Alva
I have been reading your articles for the past few weeks and think they are inspirational. I know I am obese, and I need help. I know where my weakness lies; I am an absolute carbohydrate junkie! Could you please offer me some advice on how to avoid or at least substitute all the bread I eat... I have also started doing 35 minutes exercise in a day, 5 times a week. But I don’t know how to keep up this regime as I usually tail off after a few weeks of starting. Rachel K.
Well done for writing to me. That is a first, positive step towards controlling your weight. If you email to [email protected] I will send you a copy of my Healthy Eating Guide that will put you on the right track. Eating healthily is not so difficult, and if you follow my guide it will keep you to around 1,300 calories a day, which is all that a moderately active woman needs. As for your exercise routine — try to keep it to something that you enjoy, and that way you are less likely to give it up after a few weeks. Whenever I go to the gym and spend time on the exercise machines, I make sure that I have a good view of the television so that I can watch my favorite programs at the same time! Also, don’t set your self too high goals — that way only leads to disappointment.