Precision Nutrition's Success Tips - Part 3

What are the 10 Success Tips?  They are the foundation of  the Precision Nutrition eating program, a program designed to help women and men lose weight and gain control of their eating habits even if they have failed numerous times before.  That means it's geared for people like me who have made dieting mistakes too numerous to count!  

Precision Nutrition offers a free five-day video course for women.  Click here to check it out:  Precision Nutrition weight loss for women course.

Today we begin with Tip 7.  Please check out Precision Nutrition 10 Success Tips Part 1 and Precision Nutrition 10 Success Tips Part 2.

Tip 7:  Measurement and Expectations. Starting a diet is almost fun (well, perhaps "fun" is not the best word!) in that you usually see progress immediately.  Most diets promise a three to five pound drop in the scale the first week - and most will deliver if you follow the plan.  Yes, most of that is water weight, but you will lose weight nonetheless.

If you adhere to the diet you will see drops on the scale almost every single week for at least a month or so, assuming you have more than ten pounds to lose.  It's exciting to see the number go down each week.

Then the weight loss stops.

Does that mean your efforts are in vain?  Do you need to cut calories?  Add more exercise? 

Not necessarily.  Often changes are happening on the inside.  It's important to be patient and measure markers other than just body weight.  Anyone who has dieted knows that weight loss is not linear.  There will be ups and downs and plateaus. 

The point of Tip 7?  Be patient and persevere.

Tip 8:  The numbers paradox. I love this tip, although the official tip name is a bit vague.  What it means is that changing your eating habits is more than just reducing your numbers.  Whether the number is the weight on the scale, or body fat percentage, or waist measurement, you are actually changing other important markers.  Things like improving strength and stamina.  Lowering cholesterol, sleeping better, making your body healthier in many ways that are not visible.

Don't always focus on your weight or your lean body mass percentage.  Remember you are becoming a healthier YOU.

Tip 9:  Reasonable progress. Changes in weight and body fat take time.  Tip 7 already spoke to being patient, but Tip 9 refers to not only having reasonable expectations during your weight loss process, but also in celebrating "daily wins."

Daily wins are small victories such as sticking to your eating plan, skipping dessert, working out when you didn't feel like it, remembering to weigh weekly, encouraging a friend to sign up for a 5k with you, having five servings of veggies.

I have always been a fan of journaling, whether daily or sporadically.  Journaling your daily wins is a great way to stay focused and celebrate the journey.

Tip 10:  Maintain your rate of progress. As you get closer to goal it is tougher and tougher to take off those last few pounds.  Don't I know this from personal experience?!  It doesn't mean it is impossible to get off the last ten pounds, but what Tip 10 does mean is that you have to change things up.  You may have to lower calories or increase exercise duration or intensity.  You may have to vary your meal timing.

Frustrating?  Yes, but think of it as a mystery to solve.  Put on your detective hat and look at your food and behaviors and try a few tweaks and modifications. 

The Precision Nutrition program uses these tips as smart guidelines.  It's helpful to refer back to these from time to time, especially as weight loss progress slows.  The goal in the beginning is the master the basics, and then tweaks and individualization will come over time.

As Dr. John Berardi says, "perfection isn't necessary.  Consistency is."

I'm wishing you lots of consistency!