How to Start your Weight Loss Journey with 3 easy habit changes
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If you’ve struggled with weight loss/fitness goals you know how incredibly daunting just starting back up is,
or maybe this is all new to you.
Whatever your situation I am here to encourage you and support you by sharing what has helped me already achieve a 20 lbs weight loss.
And let you know you can do it too.
Today I am sharing 3 easy weight loss habits to start your weight loss journey!
What is needed to begin losing the weight
Losing weight comes down to eating in a calorie deficit.
Being active and exercising will help the process along but is not absolutely necessary to lose weight.
Overall though I encourage both.
Exercise will allow you to build muscle and cardiovascular strength, and increase your energy expenditure.
The reality…
The reality though…is achieving consistency is harder than it looks on the surface.
So even though it may boil down to “just do it”, eat in a calorie deficit and exercise…
We know it’s not that simple in practice.
Your life is complex and filled with many variables contributing to your everyday decisions.
And when it comes to reaching your weight loss and fitness goals, we know our life experiences and learned behaviors play a major role.
As well as certain health conditions that can make losing weight more difficult.
I know exactly how it feels to not even know how to begin, or where to start.
But…there is hope
So where do we begin?
First off, starting your weight loss journey is going to start with a look at your habits.
I realized to lose the weight it came down changing my habits slowly but consistently.
I am here to show you how I broke down the “doing” part into manageable, easily actionable chunks to get you moving.
Bite sized health focused habits that add up to real change!
So the “doing” part doesn’t feel like a daunting mountain to climb.
These three habit changes I am about to share have helped me personally to begin my weight loss and fitness journey.
And I am excited to share them with you today!
Here they are: 3 easy habit changes to start your weight loss journey
Actionable Habit #1
- Commit to walking
Before I started any strength training or workouts I decided to walk.
One thing that always stuck with me was my Strength and Conditioning professor in college always praised walking, he would always shout “just walk”!
Most anyone can walk.
Walking is low impact and easy on the joints.
This is especially important to those with more weight to lose.
Extra weight puts extra pressure on the joints, which can make it easier for injury.
This is why walking is an amazing first step for weight loss!
Easy on the body, easy on the mind, and it gets you moving!
And it gets you one step closer to your goals…no pun intended, or maybe it was 😛
Get Moving ASAP
Start with whatever is the easiest for you to do and the easiest to fit into your day:
15 mins, 20 mins, 30 mins etc and work up from there
I am at an hour at this point in my journey and it has become such an enjoyable daily experience.
My dogs love it too!
Actionable Step:
Walking:
Decide when you’re most likely to go walking.
When do you have 15 minutes to carve out? Do you have the most time or energy in the morning, or do you have time at lunch?
Do you scroll through social media in the morning, would you be willing to trade that time for a 15 min walk?
Add your walk before other more pronounced habits.
Actionable Habit #2
2. Figure out how to be accountable
This was a big one for me personally, as I can be the procrastinating type!
Finding a way to track my progress and hold myself accountable during this weight loss journey was crucial for my success so far.
Because it’s easy to brush off a workout or walk when you have no accountability and nothing/no one to answer to.
You need to find what works for you!
Actionable Step:
Accountability:
There are many ways to track your progress and keep yourself responsible and accountable to your health and well being:
- Keep a journal that you simply jot down your activity for the day
- Use a fitness tracker, there are even simple apps you can download on your phone if you don’t have a fitness tracking device such as a fit watch
***I want to note that fitness trackers can be off with their numbers, but I think the benefits outweigh the con as long as you keep that in mind.
- Find an accountability buddy, someone to text or chat with to update about your journey, successes and setbacks
- My favorite way to track: using a calendar and stickers
I know it seems a little “childish” but it’s a fun and creative way to track your workouts/walks/and progress.
I get a cheap wall calendar from Target’s $1 spot and pick up a few packs of stickers from Michaels.
For me I chose a paw print for my daily walks and then something fun and vibrant for tracking my workouts.
When I walk with my dogs I get a paw print sticker, when I complete a workout I get a fun sticker, this month it is sparkly tropical fruits.
And it’s fun, exciting, and I can’t wait to “earn” my stickers for the day!
And this method is customizable to you, choose what you want to track and what stickers match or fit the mood
Sometimes we have to let our inner child shine!
And I love getting my stickers for the day, so motivating!
Actionable Habit #3
3.Add more fruit/vegetables to your current meals
So when we want to lose weight we know we most likely need to change our current eating habits.
And we know we need to eat in a calorie deficit to actively lose weight.
It can be a bit overwhelming to do a complete overhaul of our diets, especially when you live with others who may influence your eating choices.
My solution: don’t worry about it all at once, remember this is about small actions we change over time
You don’t have to be in a calorie deficit, fitness program and life overhaul all at once.
I mean you can be if you’re up for it but I have found that slower changes are the most sustainable!
And I have said it before and I will say it again: fitness and weight loss is not an all or nothing concept.
You are always going to be learning new behaviors.
Focus first on what you can do!
You have to ask yourself, Is changing my diet drastically going to set me up for failure?
If it has in the past, then consider the small changes you can accomplish with each day/meal and forgive yourself through this process.
This trick has made such a world of difference for me, and I no longer stress over “starting over” everyday.
A diet doesn’t have to be a “diet”, your diet is anyway you’ve chosen to eat, as long as you’re cognizant of what you’re consuming.
Actionable Step:
Adding veggies or fruit to each meal:
Take a step towards your health and fitness goals simply by adding more produce to the meals you are already eating.
Say you’re going to enjoy Sunday brunch, not known for being the healthiest am I right?
But you can still enjoy your favorites!
I serve up a reasonable portion of what I want and accompany it with a delicious fruit salad.
Or maybe you love sandwiches etc, turn that meal into a salad version.
Fill half your plate with lettuce and pile on some sandwich toppings, oh and don’t forget a slice of bread if you so choose!
The trick is to bulk up your plate with filling low calorie fruit and veg, and be more conscious of the higher calorie foods.
You’ll be taking in a smaller portion of the heavier food, helping you to regain portion control.
This is will start training your brain to make better choices.
But without the stress
You’ll begin to learn ways to incorporate healthful foods while still enjoying what you love.
Once you feel confident, you can move on to the next step in reaching your goals such as a calorie deficit.
Ok, so how are you feeling right about now?
How are you feeling about these 3 easy habit changes to start your weight loss journey?
Hopefully pumped to begin your weight loss and fitness journey!!!
Remember you got this! It’s all about simple actionable steps and before you know it, they become a habit!
Once you’ve established your new habits above it will become just part of your day, something you will even look forward to!
After you feel confident in your new routine, I want you to make yourself 3 new habits to work on.
Some you could incorporate next:
- Decide on a calorie deficit
- Decide on a workout program
- Drink more water in a day
In addition I have created a weight loss worksheet to help you connect with why you want to lose weight in the first place,
So you can really recognize what habits are holding you back from reaching your goals.
It includes three pages of easy prompts to get you writing about and thinking about why you want to lose weight, what you want to change,
and then to brainstorm the habits you wish to change!
You can download here:
And if you want to delve deeper into stacking habits check out the book Atomic Habits by James Clear
A must to understand how new habits are created and why it’s so easy to let our “bad” habits stick around.
At the end of the day our weight loss and fitness goals come down to habits, so I encourage you to check that out!
That book really changed how I viewed my own lifestyle and what I would like to change.
Oh and on one last note, I want to let you know I am here for you with any questions you may have
or you just someone to share what you’re going through.
Leave me a comment or find me on my socials, my messages are always open.
If you’d like to read more, feel free to check out my other posts
How to Track your Weight Loss without Using A Scale
Five Positive Affirmations for A Weight Loss Mindset
Until next time,
Love, Mel