| |
| |
|
Weight Loss Information |
|
|
|
Walking for Weight Loss: Walking with a Purpose
I wrote this article back in the late fall when I was struggling with weight loss motivation. Since January I have embarked on a serious weight loss journey and I have lost 37 1/2 pounds. "Walking with a purpose" was the first step in making exercise a regular routine in my life. Let me start off by telling you: my purpose was walking for weight loss. For all of you goal oriented people out there, you might be thinking, "Ok, she has a goal, what's the problem?just do it! I enjoy walking very much but I do have to admit that sometimes "life" gets in the way and I don't "just do it". I manage to come up with all sorts of excuses as to why I can't fit a walk into my schedule on any given day. I must admit I don't like this trait but I wasn't able to find a way to break the cycle, even though I knew that walking for weight loss was the key. I thought that maybe if I didn't concentrate so hard on losing weight but instead focused on the other benefits of walking I might be encouraged to take my walks on a more regular basis, thus increasing my weight loss motivation. On a long walk one day I started to think of my walks, my weight, and what the benefits of exercise are. I decided I would establish a purpose for walking other than losing weight. I decided there were probably thousands of reasons why a person could walk to include: physical, emotional, spiritual, environmental, educational, philanthropic, and economic. (Just to name a few!) I started to focus on this concept and it has really worked for me. We are all different so my purposes might be very different than what would work for you. But once you understand the concept of doing something for a purpose I am hoping it will help to motivate you too. This is how it works: Each time you want to take a walk, think about the purpose. The purpose can be extremely simple or complex; it can focus on only you or it can involve others. The important thing is that it encourages you to continue. Sometimes my purpose is downright silly but it motivates me; and deep inside I know if I keep walking, I will ultimately achieve my original goal. Purpose: *Collect trash?make your community a nicer place to live. *Collect cans to recycle...do something good for the environment and put money in your pocket too! *Listen to music from when you were in college...focus on memories *Watch and admire nature?how much wildlife can you see in a given time? *Connect with people?say hello to at least 10 people on your walk?more is even better! *Think?pick a subject and focus on it for the entire walk. *Walk to places you might usually drive to?saves gas money! *Admire the yards in the neighborhood?make a mental note of things you want to remember to do in your own yard. *Look at holiday displays *Collect objects from nature to use in arrangements/decorations for your home (one of my favorite purposes for walking) *Participate in a walking event?earn money for charity *Devise a "mental game plan"?.for the day, week, or upcoming month. *Take the dog with you?he needs exercise *Take the kids or spouse with you?.yup, they need exercise too but more importantly...it is a wonderful way to spend time with your family. *Discover a new walking trail or path...adventure! *Listen to a self-help tape?learn something new about yourself. *Walk at a faster pace?complete the "old boring walk" in record time. *Take scenic pictures?be artistic *Walk in the snow?look at the beauty around you. *Walk in the rain?feel like a kid again by splashing in a few puddles. *Go to the store?buy what you need and carry it home. I think you get the idea. Walking with a purpose is highly motivating because it really makes you think and come up with creative ideas prior to hitting the trail. When I walk with a purpose it seems to take the stress off of me when I start to think I can't possibly ever reach my weight loss goal. "Walking with a purpose" encourages me to walk more often and I will let you know when I do reach my goal! If you too are having a hard time losing weight and staying motivated, give "walking with a purpose" a try! Your weight loss motivation will skyrocket! Visit me for information on walking for weight loss and other weight loss tips or stop by Weight Watchers Blog to see how I have lost weight and stayed motivated.
MORE RESOURCES:
Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Dieting? The Real Secret Your Non-Conscious Mind is 98% of your full power.Your Inner Knowing is about 986,743 times more powerful than your non-conscious mind. Break Your Weight Loss Plateau How to Break Your PlateauToday is a typical morning like any other for you. You get up, go for your workout at the gym or go for a nice run, before you start your day. Fast Weight Loss Takes Time I recently received the following email:Q. Five weeks ago, I began an exercise program and so far I have not lost any weight or gained in muscle tone, which is my goal. Prejudice and Obesity - Have You Been a Victim? It's a sad comment on human nature that prejudice and obesity go hand in hand. Ask any person who has battled with obesity and they'll be able to reel off a list of examples. Who Else Wants To Lose Weight? Stop Dieting! From personal experience I have myself like all of you at one time or another tried dieting. I have lost weight on some plansbut in the long run was not able to sustain it. Tell Me - Do You Really Like Being Fat? Once upon a time, I fretted about going to a family wedding because I was - gasp - 142 pounds. I am five foot three. Fitness Wars: Revenge of the Girth As of the writing of this article, May 16, 2005, we are all almost 5 months into our New Year's Resolutions.Are you skinny yet?Did you find your six-pack?Does your butt look like you wanted it to in those jeans?For a lot of you, the answers to these questions are going to be "No, No, and, I took the jeans back to the store". Top 15 Reasons to Avoid Low Carb Diets Low carb (carbohydrate), high protein diets are the latest dieting craze. However, before you jump on the band wagon, you may want to consider a few things: 1. Easy Steps To Weight Loss It can be intimidating to follow a weight loss plan, right? Sometimes there are so many rules, and so many major changes in your life required. Is there another way? Not just another diet or plan, but a whole different approach?Try Small Changes To Lose WeightIf a diet or a complicated weight-loss system is just too overwhelming, try making a small change instead. The R Factors - Your Answer For Getting To The Perfect Body For Fitness And Health Building a Perfect Body for Body Perfect Fitness and Health Is just Four Factors Away!!! The R Factors!!!!What are they?Rev upYou must incorporate an on-going Aerobic (with oxygen) exercise program in each of your weekly goals. That means a minimum of 3 times per week, you must work on strengthening and protecting your heart from the risks associated with a sedentary lifestyle. The Low Carb Craze and Other Dieting Mistakes Dear BMTers,Low carb this and low carb that?that's all you hear nowadays. Kinda reminds me of something that was the craze a few years ago?The Low or No Fat Craze?Can you remember where that got us? Still Fat!!!Well my friends this Low Carb Craze is going to bring us to the same exact place?Yep?Still Fat!Listen, anyone who tries Low carb dieting will experience some Short Term success?but it's only short term. Plan Your Way to Weight Loss Success Like millions of men and women, I started resolving to exercise more and lose the weight for good. Months later, I haven't been to the gym any more frequently than last time I resolved to lose weight and exercise. A Full Scale War It happens every morning when you mosey out of bed, somewhere between the time you take off that robe and the instant you step into the shower. For others, it happens immediately after a workout, as soon as you peel off those sweaty clothes and stand aimlessly in your birthday suit. Weight Loss and Dieting Secrets - What You DONT Want to Know! Some of you will not like what I have to say, even though it is the truth. And that may be where the problem of American's health problems lies. On A Diet? Ensure You Get Enough Nutritional Supplements For Your Good Health There is never any absolute certainty about what the nutritional requirements are for the human body of a certain age, size and gender. Scientific research on the subject takes a long time, and results are often not that clear. When Gaining Love Means Gaining Weight! Do you tend to find your weight increases when you enter into a relationship? During weight management coaching, I use a tool called the "lifeline" to help my client and I understand what life events occurred around the time of gaining and losing weight. As my own experiences testify, I have found that many of us tend to put on weight when we enter into a relationship. Dieters : Questions You Must Ask Yourself when You Want to Lose Weight Now I know you're always asking yourself questions.You know the ones like "Why can't I lose weight?" and "Why does everything that's bad for you taste good?". Diet and Exercise Evolution: Adaptation (part II) -- Examples and Practical Advice Understanding the theory of adaptation (see previous article, Adaptation I) will give you the tools to evaluate your diet and daily routine. If you have any question about whether something is good for you, always examine both the immediate effects and the adaptation effects equally. Pizza, French Fries, Beer and Other Diet Foods Now this is the real American Dream! I'm here to let you know that it is totally possible to lose all the fat you want while eating nothing but junk food. The only hitch is that all the fat you want to lose is going to have to be zero!Here are some tongue-in-cheek (or burger-in-belly) suggestions for how you can turn even the greasiest, sugariest, most overprocessed calorie bomb into lean, mean diet food. Weight Loss : Keep It Simple An increasing trend over the last few years has been for diet books to make things complex.I expect it's because each one vies with the other to come out with some brand new theory or other about why we gain weight and why their diet plan is the only one to help us lose it.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |
