We Prioritize Career Skills - So Why Expect Weight Loss to Come Naturally?

In the workplace, we hire people with essential skills to do the job correctly. Then, we invest time and money to train them properly to make sure they’re set up for success. And on our own, we have invested YEARS in our education to ensure we have the right skills to support our careers. But when it comes to maintaining a healthy weight, we believe it should be something we know how to do naturally. The problem is that there’s nothing natural about maintaining a healthy weight in today’s age! It’s pretty damn hard to do so between a society that rewards overworking, being sedentary, and consuming ultra-processed engineered with the “bliss point” combination of sugar, fat, and salt to trigger pleasure centers in our brain. Just as you do with your career, parenting, and other areas of your life, developing specific critical skills will allow you to lose and maintain weight successfully.

Losing weight and keeping it off isn’t just about dieting or hitting the gym—it’s about developing critical skills to help you navigate the challenges of weight loss and long-term maintenance.

So, what essential skills do you need to master for lasting results?

Goal Setting

Weight loss requires changing your habits. And making habit changes is hard! To do this properly, you must have clear and specific goals to provide a roadmap to follow and help keep you motivated. Whether it’s losing a certain number of pounds, fitting into a favorite dress pants, or improving your energy levels or sleep quality, having concrete goals allows you to track progress and stay focused.

How to do it: Break down your overall goal into smaller, manageable milestones. For example, instead of aiming to lose 25 pounds, start with a goal of losing 5 pounds. Celebrate each small victory to stay motivated.

Self-Monitoring

Having a process to check in with yourself is a powerful tool for losing and maintaining weight. This skill involves regularly tracking your progress toward your daily habits that will support weight loss – calories, steps, sleep, workouts, biofeedback, weight/measurements/progress photos can all help ensure you’re staying on course. By paying attention to the data, you become more aware of your habits and can make necessary adjustments based on facts and evidence versus emotions.

How to do it: Set up a way to track your daily habits, whether it be on a Google sheet, in an app, or even with pen & paper! The key is consistency—track regularly to spot patterns and make informed decisions.

Balanced Eating

The key to maintaing weight loss is to eat in the same manner when dieting that you plan to eat the rest of your life. Yo-yo dieters struggle because they eat “good” and are in a calorie deficit during the diet but can’t keep it up or return to their regular eating habits. Those who maintain weight loss change their eating habits permanently.

Learning to eat in a balanced manner where you know how to pay attention to what, why, and how much you eat is a game-changer! This skill helps you tune into your body’s hunger and fullness cues, allowing you to enjoy your food without overeating. It also involves making conscious choices about the types of food you consume, focusing on nourishment rather than just satisfying cravings.

How to do it: Learn about macros, portion sizes, and how to incorporate a variety of protein, fat & carbs/fiber to fuel your body. Eat slowly, savor each bite, and avoid distractions like TV or smartphones while eating. Listen to your body and stop eating when you’re satisfied, not stuffed.

Time Management

Repeating basic daily habits to support weight loss is a heck of a lot easier when you know how to make the best use of your time. You don’t have extra time, so you’ll have to learn how to make better use of your time and build rituals and routines to meal plan, workout, and keep up with your steps every day without quitting your job!

How to do it: Plan your meals and workouts in advance. Set aside time each week for grocery shopping, cooking, and exercise. Use a planner, calendar, or app to schedule these activities just like you would any other important appointment.

Problem-Solving

Life will happen! Sick kids, work trip, aging parent. Challenges and setbacks are inevitable in any weight loss journey. The ability to problem-solve allows you to identify obstacles, develop strategies to overcome them and stay on track. This skill helps you adapt to situations like social events, travel, or emotional eating triggers.

How to do it: When faced with a challenge, pause and assess the situation. Ask yourself what the obstacle is and brainstorm solutions. For example, if you’re attending a party with tempting foods, plan to eat a healthy meal beforehand or bring a healthy dish to share.

Stress Management

Stress is usually the most significant barrier to losing weight. When stressed, your body releases cortisol, a hormone that can increase appetite and weight gain. Learning how to manage stress effectively is essential for preventing emotional eating and staying committed to your goals.

How to do it: Develop ways to relieve stress that don’t involve food and booze. Incorporate stress-reducing activities into your routine, such as yoga, meditation, deep breathing exercises, or regular physical activity. Prioritize self-care and ensure you’re getting enough sleep.

Consistency

Consistency is THE key to achieving and maintaining weight loss. It’s not about being perfect every day but sticking to your healthy habits most of the time. A 10 minute workout is better than no workout! Consistent actions, no matter how small, lead to lasting results.

How to do it: Establish daily routines that support your goals, such as a regular workout schedule or a balanced breakfast every morning. Remind yourself that progress, not perfection, is the goal.

Accountability

A support system significantly impacts your weight loss journey. Whether it’s a friend, family member, coach, or group, having someone who can encourage you, provide feedback, and hold you accountable will help you stay on track.

How to do it: Share your goals with someone you trust and check in with them regularly. Join a group or community focused on your goals, or consider hiring a coach to guide you through your journey.

Flexibility

Life always seems to go differently than planned and is always unpredictable! Being flexible and adjusting your approach when necessary is crucial for long-term success. Whether modifying your workout routine, trying new meal strategies, or adjusting your goals, being adaptable will help you maintain weight loss over time.

How to do it: Embrace the idea that setbacks are a natural part of the journey. If something isn’t working, be open to change and try a different approach. Remember that progress is still progress, even if it looks different than you expected.

Weight loss and maintenance require more than just willpower; they demand the development of critical skills that empower you to make sustainable changes.

With so many skills critical for losing weight, going at it alone is HARD. That’s why I created The Weight Loss Blueprint, my group program that provides a step-by-step process to achieve weight loss and then keep it off.??

• Goal Setting: I help you identify exactly what you will work to achieve.
• Self-Monitoring: You’ll get access to all my tracking tools and weekly self-reflection & check-in process to monitor your progress.
• Balanced Eating: I’ve got you covered, from Macros 101 to mindful eating habit lessons, you’ll know what and how much to eat to achieve your goals.
• Time Management: You’ll be a pro at time blocking and planning out your days and weeks by the time we wrap up.
• Problem-Solving: We have multiple lessons on handling when “life happens,” where you’ll get actual strategies to use, like navigating eating out, traveling, sickness, and more.
• Stress Management: We’ll cover why your body reacts the way it does and how you can support it so you stop thinking there’s something wrong with you or that you just need to try harder.
• Consistency: You’ll learn to ditch the all-or-nothing mindset to keep showing up for yourself each day.
• Accountability: Between live office hours with me, weekly self-reflection and check-ins, you’ll have what you need to hold yourself accountable.
• Flexibility: Lessons are short and audio-based, so you can fit them into your busy schedule and access them at your convenience on the go!

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Ready to learn more? Check it out here!