How to Change Your Habits for Permanent Weight Loss: One Habit at a Time
How to Change Your Habits for Permanent Weight Loss: One Habit at a Time
One of the services we provide at Custom Body Fitness is follow-up coaching.
During these follow-ups, I don't just ask our members how their workouts are going. We talk about their nutrition, their habits, their challenges, their progress, and what is happening in their everyday lives.
After doing this with many members, I have noticed something very important:
The people who continue getting results and are able to maintain their weight are usually the people who change their habits gradually.
They don't try to completely change their life overnight. They change one habit at a time.
Why Fast Results Often Don't Last
I think many people who want fast results are willing to change their habits—but only for a short period of time. They follow a strict diet. They exercise every day. They eliminate all their favorite foods. They completely change their routine. And they get results.
The problem is that eventually, they get tired of living that way. They go back to their old habits. And when the old habits come back, the weight often comes back with them.
On the other hand, people who are serious about long-term results understand that changing their lifestyle takes time. They may take longer to reach their goal, but they are building something they can actually maintain.
The goal should not be to change your life for three months. The goal should be to build a life that allows you to maintain your results for years.
That is why, during our follow-ups at Custom Body Fitness, we focus on changing habits one at a time. Here are some of the strategies we use.
1. Choose Three Habits at a Time
Trying to change every habit in your life at the same time can become overwhelming. You can't really focus on changing anything when you are trying to change everything. Instead, I recommend choosing three habits to work on during your first month.
You may need more than a month to make those habits consistent. That's okay. The goal isn't to rush. Once those habits become part of your normal routine, you can focus on three more.
For example, your first three habits could be:
Exercise three times per week.
Eat a healthy breakfast every morning.
Stop drinking soda and replace it with water.
Those three changes may sound simple. But if you have been living with unhealthy habits for years, making those changes consistently can be a big accomplishment. Once those habits become normal, you can move on to the next three.
Small changes repeated consistently can eventually create a completely different lifestyle.
2. Don't Just Eliminate a Habit—Replace It
One of the biggest mistakes people make when trying to change their habits is thinking only about what they need to stop doing.
You also need to think about what will replace the old behavior. For example, let's say you normally come home from work, sit on the couch, and watch television. Now you decide that you are going to exercise three evenings a week.
You have to replace the old routine with the new one. Instead of:
Work → TV → dinner → bed
you might create:
Work → workout → dinner → relax → bed
Or perhaps you exercise in the morning instead.
The same thing applies to nutrition. If you normally skip breakfast or grab pastries on your way to work, don't simply tell yourself:
"I'm not going to eat pastries anymore."
Decide what you will eat instead. Prepare a smoothie. Eat eggs and fruit. Prepare overnight oats. Choose another breakfast that fits your goals and your lifestyle.
If soda is part of your daily routine, don't just think:
"I can't drink soda anymore."
Think:
"What am I going to drink instead?"
Water. Sparkling water. Whatever sustainable option works for you. A habit is easier to change when you have a replacement ready.
3. Remind Yourself Why You Are Changing
This is one of the most important parts of changing your habits.
You need to remember why you started. Maybe something happened in your life that made you realize you needed to take better care of yourself. Maybe you are tired of feeling uncomfortable in your body. Maybe you want more energy. Maybe you want to be able to play with your children or grandchildren. Maybe you want to feel stronger. Maybe you want to improve your health. Maybe you simply want to become the person you know you can be.
Whatever your reason is, don't forget it. Because changing habits isn't always easy. There will be days when you don't feel motivated. There will be days when you are busy. There will be days when you are stressed. There will be days when you want to go back to your old routine.
That is when remembering why you started becomes important. Your reason gives your habits meaning.
4. Put Your New Habits on Your Calendar
Don't leave your new habits to chance. Put them into your plan. If you decide to exercise three times a week, decide which three days. If you want to prepare your meals, decide when you are going to prepare them. If you want to drink more water, set reminders. If you want to go to bed earlier, establish a bedtime.
Write your goals down. Put them on your calendar. Set reminders on your phone. The more specific your plan is, the less you have to rely on remembering what you are supposed to do. This is one of the reasons our follow-ups are so important at Custom Body Fitness.
We don't just ask:
"How did you do?"
We can ask:
"What happened? What worked? What didn't work? What are we going to change this week?"
That is how you turn a goal into a process.
5. Repeat Even When You Relapse
This may be the most important lesson of all. Changing habits isn't going to be perfect. You are going to have setbacks. You are going to have days when you don't follow your plan. You may eat something you weren't planning to eat. You may skip a workout. You may drink the soda. You may spend the evening watching TV instead of exercising. And that's okay.
Don't turn one bad day into a bad month. If you relapse into an old habit, recognize what happened, learn from it, and get back to your new routine. Don't say:
"I messed up, so I might as well quit."
Instead say:
"I messed up today. Tomorrow I will continue."
The more you practice your new habits, the easier they can become. You are essentially practicing a new way of living.
Your Habits Dictate Your Life
If you think about it, much of your life is made up of habits. What you eat. When you sleep. Whether you exercise. What you do when you are stressed. How you spend your free time. What you do when you are tired.
These repeated behaviors eventually influence your body, your fitness, and your lifestyle. That is why permanent weight management is about more than losing weight. You have to change the behaviors that contributed to where you are now.
And you don't have to change everything tomorrow. Start small. Choose three habits. Replace the old behaviors with new ones. Remind yourself why you are doing it. Put your plan on your calendar. And when you fall back into an old habit, get back up and continue.
Slow Changes Can Create Permanent Results
One of the things I have seen through years of follow-ups with Custom Body Fitness members is that sustainable change usually doesn't happen overnight. It happens through repetition.= One better breakfast. One workout. One glass of water instead of soda. One planned meal. One earlier bedtime. One more day of following your routine.
Eventually, what once required effort starts becoming part of your normal life. That is the real goal. Not simply losing weight. Not simply getting smaller. Not simply getting through another diet.
The goal is to become a person whose everyday habits support the body and lifestyle you want. At Custom Body Fitness, we don't just give our members workouts. We follow up. We help them identify the habits that are holding them back, create practical changes, and continue adjusting the plan as they move forward. Because getting results is one thing.
Learning how to keep those results is what creates a real transformation.
Comments