How to Successfully Prepare for Your New Year’s Resolution to Lose Weight

So you’ve set a New Year’s resolution to lose weight? Have you taken the time to prepare for your resolution in a way that almost guarantees your success? You see, planning for weight loss is just as important as following the steps to reach it. After all, you can create an environment that helps you succeed or one that helps you fail. Which one would you prefer? If you answered the former (which hopefully you did), here are some things you’ll want to do before you begin your weight loss journey: Stock up on healthy food If you don’t have healthy, nutritious foods on hand, you are going to make losing weight harder than ever. Good options to make sure you have in your refrigerator and cupboards at all times include: lean proteins (like chicken, pork, beef, turkey and fish), fruits, veggies and complex carbohydrates (such as whole grain products, barley, and oats). Any foods that you intend to use as snacks should be cut up right away for easy access. Don’t be the person that buys a lot of fruit and veggies just to throw them away when they spoil after not being eaten. Also, remove any visible fat from your protein sources before cooking them. You can also get fat out of other dishes by cooking them and then putting them in the fridge, allowing you to easily skim the fat off the top when it hardens and floats to the surface. Get ready to measure portions Part of losing weight is monitoring the portions you eat. You can do this a number of ways. One of the easiest is by using portion control plates and bowls like the ones that SlimPlate offers. That way you will never question whether you are eating the right amounts of food (and the right combinations of food) – you will know. You can also buy scales and measuring cups or use visual cues too (such as a muffin tin being roughly half a cup or a large potato being the size of a light bulb). Whatever option you decide will work best for you, be sure you have the tools on hand before you need them so that you have a greater chance of meeting your weight loss goals. Set up your exercise equipment and/or room If you truly want to lose weight and get healthy, you need to incorporate exercise into your daily routine. This is one area where your environment can either make you or break you as workout machines that lie under a foot of clothing aren’t going to be used. Also, if you keep your equipment in the basement yet never go down there, what good is it going to do? You want to create a space that you can use for exercise on a regular basis. Ideally, it needs to be a space that you don’t have to set up and tear down every time you need it as you’re not likely to make that effort. Instead, leave it set up all of the time so that it is easy for you to go there and get to sweating. Create your motivators Weight loss, like any other goal, requires that you constantly stay motivated. You have to keep renewing your energy so that you finally hit your goal once and for all. Therefore, you’ll want to have your motivators set before you even begin your weight loss journey. Here are some to consider using that can help you if you view them repeatedly:Collages of photos or quotes that inspire you to reach your goal to lose weight
Mantras that you can say to yourself over and over to reaffirm your weight loss goal
A list of all of the reasons that  you want to lose weight
You can also motivate yourself by constantly reading articles about weight loss, such as those written by those that have succeeded at losing weight and getting healthier themselves or engaging in motivational weight loss programs (have you signed up to join our FREE Weight Loss Seminar yet?). Find what keeps you going and keep it in front of you to remind you why this journey is so important to you. Tend to your motivation the same way you would tend to a fire. Add fuel to it often and keep the flame burning! Prepare to successfully meet your goals and that is exactly what you will do. Your future you is waiting!