Weight Loss - Sharing With Friends And Family

People by nature are generally social creatures, so it should come as no surprise to us that what those around us do and say is important to us. Often we can feed on that social input from friends and family to help us in our endeavours. If something is difficult, that support from others can be especially important.

That is certainly true for those embarking on a weight loss campaign. Losing weight over a period of time requires a lot of persistence, resilience and will power. If you try to do it alone, it may become demoralising quickly; but with friends, family or other people with the same weight loss aims, supporting you, losing weight can become a much more tolerable experience, and your weight loss targets that much more achievable.

The article below looks at why you should not "go it alone" if you want to lose weight, and some ideas to ensure you do have at least some support in your weight loss aims.

Go It Alone Weight Loss May Not Be The Best Way

Let's face it, we all like a bit of support in what we do. Whether it is encouragement to study and do well in exams as a student; get through a job interview successfully; achieve some monumental feat like swimming the English Channel. Furthermore, we like praise when we are doing well. That is particularly so when something requires long term endurance, as there are bound to be dips in morale, whatever it is you are doing. Embarking on a weight loss campaign is an endurance test, one that you will find more enjoyable, and achieve better results, if you are sharing your campaign with one or more other people.

You may start out alone on your road to a lower weight, but as you struggle and fight, exercise and sweat, it can become so hard to stick to a diet and exercise schedule that you give up. Nobody else cares, so why should you? You have nothing to lose, you tell yourself, so let's just get back to normal.

There comes a time, though, when we should recognize that asking for help is a sign of strength, not weakness. Enlisting the help and support of friends, family and a good weight loss support group can boost your efforts, and help you overcome setbacks and drops in morale which threaten to derail your attempts to lose weight. Instead of trying to go it alone, try a few of these suggestions to help you stay on track with the help of friends and family.

1. Find an exercise buddy to help you lose weight.

Just by making a date and a commitment to help support another person's efforts, will help you stick to yours as well. Do you think you don't know anyone you can exercise with? I read recently about two ladies who "met" at a regular time each afternoon.....by cell phone. They were online buddies, but decided cell phone would be a great way to help each other lose weight. They were hundreds of miles apart, but by keeping each other "company", they helped each other lose 25 pounds each, and cemented a friendship that will last a lifetime.

2. Ask your family to co-operate with your weight loss programme.

Husbands and wives, children and siblings can all play their part when you are trying to lose weight. Discuss it with them as you set out on your weight loss campaign. Explain why you are trying to lose weight, and what it will entail. With any luck your spouse will want to join you on your diet and exercise trail. But even if not, they can offer encouragement and support, and you may ask them not to keep putting too much temptation in your way.

3. Join a weight loss group such as Weight Watchers.

There's a lot to be said for seeking out the support of others who are fighting the same battle as you are. Not all people are motivated by the same things, but in a Weight Watchers group you will probably find the type of motivation you respond to best.

Throw in some healthy competition, companionship, encouragement, and applause plus practical, common sense advice from others seeking the same weight loss goals, and you will find it just that little bit easier to keep to your commitment to lose weight.