A study from the International Journal of Obesity looked at the differences between long term weight loss maintainers, weight loss regainers, and obesity maintainers. Participants were questioned about their efforts and their motivating factors. The study found commonalities between weight loss maintainers vs other participantes. The most successful weight loss maintainers listed a boost to confidence as a primary motivator, in addition, they also placed a higher value on attractiveness than the other two other groups.
Why Do People Want to Lose Weight?
The most obvious reason to lose weight is being overweight in the first place. For most humans, simply being overweight is not reason enough to make the effort to lose it. It’s unfortunate but true.
Why? Because losing weight is a psychologically difficult process.
It takes a conscious effort, even for healthy individuals, just to maintain their weight as they age. If the goal is to lose 10-20 pounds of fat, the process is not that hard, but still difficult enough to prevent that first step.
If there is a necessity to lose more than 20lbs, that first step becomes much more psychologically challenging to take. It’s easy to forget about it for now and deal with the problem in the future, or worse, just deal with being overweight and forget about changing.
Finding the right motivation to cling to can make all the difference. Focus on the outcome and find the reasons to commit to a lifestyle change.
Some of the Most Common Weight Loss Motivators
Be More Attractive
People that place a high value on attractiveness are more likely to maintain weight loss over time. Being more attractive is a fantastic motivator for a variety of reasons. For anyone with a high BMI, losing weight will definitely make them more attractive. Losing additional fat also has benefits to confidence and energy levels.
Let’s face it, we live in a social world. Being more attractive will have a tremendous benefit to our lives. Attractive people are known to be more persuasive and agreeable. Being attractive improves the interactions we have with other people on a variety of levels. Whether it’s your personal outlook, the sub-consciousness of those you interact with, or an improved selection of clothes, being more attractive is a great weight loss motivator to focus on.
Improve Fitness & Mobility
Losing excess fat is necessity for any and all athletes, except for maybe a Sumo Wrestler. Being able to run up a set of stairs without getting winded is psychologically understated advantage.
Fit people get more done. Being stronger allows you to carry heavy things. Being more flexible helps you avoid injury, and having a higher endurance enables you to push through difficult situations. An improved overall fitness is one of the best weight loss motivators you can focus on.
To Live longer
Some people are just afraid to die early. Maybe they want to be with their partner longer, or watch their kids grow old. Almost everyone wants to prolong life, especially after our lives have improved dramatically. Whether or not life extension is used as a weight loss motivator, it still remains as a great benefit to the losing weight.
Advice from Health Care Provider
When you’re doctor tells you to lose weight, it’s time to stop procrastinating. Unfortunately, this weight loss motivator does not always work as well it should. Even if the doctor’s advice is accurate, patients typically have some reason for being overweight in the first place. Overcoming whatever obstacle that is, does not dramatically change because the doctor told them to. Obviously, it’s important for everyone to use the weight loss motivator that works for them, but it may be more beneficial to focus on the positive aspects to losing weight. I’m not telling you to ignore your doctor, quite the opposite. I’m telling you to agree with your doctor and accept accountability for your situation.
Find a Partner for a Romantic Relationship
This weight loss motivator falls under the attractiveness portion, but it’s also commonly listed by itself. Losing weight definitely opens up new avenues when it come to finding that special someone.
Ridicule
As with the doctor, it’s probably not beneficial to use other people as a motivator. I’m not telling to not to. By all means, do whatever works. But avoiding ridicule is probably not the best long term weight loss motivator.
Major Life Changes
Sometimes we undergo major life transitions. Moving to a new city, getting a new job, or getting married are just few of the these experiences. Every few years we go through these changes, which gives us the opportunity to re-evaluate our life and consider the options for improving it.
- Change in relationship status
- Move to a new home
- New Job/School
- Having a child
- Health triggers
These changes can work amazingly well as initial weight loss motivators. The events can be physiologically powerful and open up doors for long term success. Maybe your new house is close to a farmer’s market or gym. Or maybe your new partner is excited about losing weight too. Regardless of the situation, it’s important to focus on the positive aspects. This allows you to maintain the motivation seek opportunity.
Influences from Other People
As mentioned earlier, losing weight for someone other than yourself is not always the best route to take. After all, we are the ones who care the most about our own lives. We are the ones responsible and ultimately the ones who have to suffer the consequences of failure.
With that said, there are some incredibly inspirational people out there. Sometimes they can be very helpful to achieving weight loss.
- Motivational speakers
- Comments/Insults
- Success stories
Making a Commitment
Sometimes it’s just time to start the process. Many of us have gained weight gradually, closely monitoring the decline. We have paid attention and made note of what is to come.
All we need is that initial trigger. We know it’s going to happen some day, we just don’t want to commit today.
For anyone in this situation, I would like to encourage to find the motivator that works for you. Consider all of the benefits to losing weight and think about the potentials after it’s accomplished.
If you’re overweight, committing to a plan is one of the best things you can do to improve your life now. Here’s a few tips to get you started on the journey.
Begin small, but challenge yourself everyday
Start today by planning a healthy dinner and going for a walk. No matter what, do something each day that benefits your health and fitness. Push yourself as far as you can go without destroying the motivation.
Focus on diet
Don’t go on a diet. Instead, change your diet to include healthy foods that you enjoy eating. What we eat is the most important factor with weight loss & gain.
Put your plan in writing
Develop a meal plan, fitness schedule, and set reasonable weight loss goals. By writing it down, you’ll not only remember more easily, but you’ll more likely to create a legitimate plan that works.
Invest heavily in the first week/month
Commit to week initially. Eat healthy meals and do 30 minutes of activity every day. When you finish the week, focus on the month. Feel free to use our 1 Day Meal Plan or 24 Minute Workout to get you started. The point is to do enough work that it becomes more important to stay committed than quit. If you eat healthy all month, you don’t want to blow it all be eating a large pizza by yourself.
I’d recommend you read the program overview letter for our Fit Father 30-Day Program (FF30X). Inside FF30X, you’ll receive:
- The simple & delicious Fit Father Meal Plan
- The metabolism boosting Fit Father 30X Workout (under 90 min/week)
- VIP email coaching where I’ll personally walk you through the program
*Please know that weight loss results & health changes/improvements vary from individual to individual; you may not achieve similar results. Always consult with your doctor before making health decisions. This is not medical advice – simply very well-researched info on getting healthy.
The problem isn’t the resolution; it’s your motivation to lose weight.
The motivation to lose weight is essential to get you started, but its habit that keeps you doing it.
The scales are not your enemy in your weight loss challenge, but they can be detrimental to your motivation to lose weight!
A journal can be your best friend. You can use it to record how you are feeling, when you have slipped from your healthy eating plan and when you have failed to exercise.
Stuart Carter 
It’s no secret that some of the most famous people in the world get up at the crack of dawn to workout.
But it’s not just us. Take a look at what some of these famous people do first thing in the morning:
Sleep is very important. You should get between 6 and 8 hours every night.
The secret to developing a habit is to keep repeating the same activity. In fact it is the first few weeks that are critical to getting the habit established.
Being productive means motivating yourself to complete that task, or exercise, to produce maximal results, even when you don’t feel the urge to do so. We can always be more productive in all aspects of life.
The idea of committing everything you have to a workout when you already feel exhausted is not appealing. But, thinking about the long term benefit might!
Recognize the support that the
There is little point in attempting a two hour run if you are struggling to imagine yourself running for that long.
Rules are made to be broken, but there is a limit to what you can achieve in a set space of time.
Imagine you cycled 20 miles every day for the past year. You’re probably be impressed with the habit you built and your improved fitness.
A great way of being productive is to disconnect from the internet. The issue is that we are constantly connected and checking the web for updates from friends and colleagues. This leads to wasting time looking at sites and other links that are not really relevant!
If you’re a parent you’re probably already familiar with bribery! It doesn’t need to involve money.
Finally, in order to reach your maximal productivity you have to appreciate that you cannot be productive all the time!
The modern era has generated a wealth of knowledge. Health and fitness are advanced topics that require a serious dedication to proper research. There are tons of scientifically proven methods to lose fat and increase muscle. Whatever your goals are, use data backed science to increase your productivity.
Research actually shows that people who procrastinate actually have 
The first thing you will subconsciously consider is whether you could fail at your task. No one wants to fail; especially not if others know about their goal, but you have to weigh the probability of success in order to know if the goal is appropriate or not.
By setting a time limit you will force yourself to place more effort into a specified task.
It is very easy in the digital age to be distracted by the internet or social media sites. When it is time to exercise, switch off all electronic products except for your music and any exercise related electronics.
As humans living in the modern world, we have a treasure trove of tools and information always available at our fingertips. We have the capability of transforming our own personality and skill-set to whatever we want.
Growth happens bit by bit, moment by moment. Every instance is a new opportunity to develop a positive mindset. Being cynical about your own life is never beneficial. Use each moment to grow as a man.
Being fit has a tremendous impact on one’s life. A healthy diet provides the nutrients necessary for hormonal and chemical balances. A fit body not only works better, but it’s attractive to others. Being fit also help reduce illness and injuries, and it improves your chances of living a long life.
Grit is the ability maintain composure and positivity in precarious situations. Part stubbornness, part toughness, and part determination, grit is what divides the exceptional from the average.
This is where it is necessary to redefine the goal. No longer should you look at what you hope to achieve. Instead, consider the process of achieving that goal.
This is not something that you need to reserve for the big goals in life. You can use process goals in every aspect of your life.