The #1 reason why you will quit

Let me ask you one question - are you obsessing over your daily weight? 

If you are it can be a slippery slope and in no time you can have yourself throwing the scales out the window, eating yourself into a coma and cursing The Lady Shake for making you think you stood a chance!

One of the major discouraging factors for achieving long-term weight loss was frustration with weight fluctuations. Every day we have messages, emails and calls from customers freaking out over an overnight weight gain or small loss from the day before. In that mindset, they go into self-destruction mode because the program isn’t working “So what’s the point?” Many people throw in the towel because they are shocked by the random weight gain or loss of just a few grams.

We are here to tell you that weight loss isn't a consistent line down but in fact, can be a rollercoaster with loops and all. It's 100% normal to have a weight fluctuation of around 1-2% These short-term changes are driven by short-term fluid shifts in the body.

Think of it like the stock market. If you invest, you know that getting emotionally invested in the day-to-day changes in the value of your investments is going to drive you crazy.

But you wouldn’t sell a good investment because of a single bad day in the market, so don’t give up on a good program because of a few bad weigh-ins. 

Below are our proven tips to help you stay on track to not only help you get to your goal weight but maintain it for the long term.

Start with the small things you can do every day and stick to them like only weighing yourself once per week at the same time in the same clothes. This will give you a better picture of your weight loss over time. It will also help you keep stay strong emotionally and focus on goals over the week instead of freaking out over 24 hour period.

One of the biggest indicators for success in long-term weight loss was continuous monitoring of food intake. Now we're not saying go and count every single calorie (cause that's not what we are about) but it is important to understand at a basic level what you are eating because it's been proven that we can underestimate what we eat by 50%!

One of the best ways to keep track is to use a food diary or app like myfitnesspal. That way if you have an off week you can review what went in and adjust from there.

You can watch all the motivational and inspirational videos you want on YouTube but nothing will motivate you more like progress.

Maybe a compliment from a co-worker, pants down a size or you lost 1cm off your chest. Either way, motivation is a key indicator to keeping weight off over the long term but it's also different for everyone so it's important to find something that works for you.

One of the best ways to stay motivated (that isn't the scales) is taking progress pictures or measurements and comparing them along the way. The scales might move but you might see something steadily change or shift and I tell you to know that is all the fuel you need to get over the hump.

A lot of ladies find motivation in others who have done what they hope to achieve. So places like our online community group The Lady Shake are great to keep that fire under your backside lit!

Having clear, self-defined, personalised goals is one of the most important factors in long-term weight loss. They don't have to be mind-bending huge goals but it won't hurt to have a final destination. Some of the best goals are short-term defined goals that you can hit and grow in confidence.

Something as simple as setting a goal of having two shakes per day in your first week is a goal in itself or even having a goal of avoiding your favourite bakery for a certain period of time. Set goals on what's important to you.

Another goal that many involved in the study suggested was that sports events goals (fun run) or joining active sports again was a popular choice to help maintain long-term weight loss.

Overall, the most important thing to remember is how important your mindset is. You will hit road bumps and it will kick you off the wagon, down the hill and into a tree.

From there it's up to you to dust yourself off, stand up and fight for yourself to keep on moving forward because no one is keen on a pity party. Just when you think you can't go on then it's time to ask for help from family, friends, and workmates or even send us a message because they might surprise you.

At the end of the day weight loss is not a clear or straight line to success but a messy, tiring and often testing thing to do but it's 100% worth it.