Weight loss motivation is crucial in order to create and sustain the deep changes in behavior that can result in permanent weight loss.
Perhaps the most common way to summon weight loss motivation is through reward, hoping to elicit better behavior with a big reward.
On TV, the contestants on “The Biggest Loser” vie for money and other prizes. The long-term weight loss success is nil. (See Why I Hate “The Biggest Loser.”)
Many people attempt weight loss motivation through pleasurable rewards like trips, new wardrobes or, yes, food extravaganzas.
Every single client of mine who tried the Weight Watchers approach (hundreds of my clients through the years have attempted the diet) drove straight from their GOAL CELEBRATION WEIGH-IN to a fast food drive-thru restaurant and binged. The client who held the record among those folks tried Weight Watchers 22 times. SHE (not me) repeated the old definition of insanity – doing the same thing over and over expecting a different result – at our first consultation.
Movie and television stars are paid to be weight loss spokespeople, but quickly regain the weight when the contract runs out. Financial rewards motivate in other ways, with one spouse or partner often attempting to reward the other for pursuing a healthier weight.
All of these are utter failures as motivating techniques, because they are extrinsic, or coming from outside of us. They can also seem far away, or we can lose interest in them, especially if we encounter pain in the form of deprivation, hunger denial, and lack of enjoyment with food.
Also, when we feel the need to be repeatedly rewarded for something, we actually begin to wonder how much value it holds. In other words, sabotaging thoughts like “is it really worth it, if I have to be rewarded for doing it?” begin to derail motivation. Surprisingly, even children stop playing with their favorite toy, after they are given a treat for doing it several times!
Weight Loss Motivation that Works
Studies show risk aversion is more powerful than extrinsic factors. We naturally don’t want to lose something… so, for example, if you pay for a personal trainer or a coach up front, you are more likely to follow through and show up. The more paid, the better the results!
It’s easy to ignore the $59 fitbit when we don’t want to know the day’s results… but ignoring a big ticket coaching session or class feels wrong. We hate to lose our money!
Another aid to success is intrinsic motivation. This is where we are motivated by how we feel on the inside when we behave in desired ways. For instance, runners love the endorphin high they feel after running long distances. Hot yoga students who grow to crave their yoga class have developed an awareness of what detoxification of the body feels like – clean, light, sleek.
Long-term, permanent weight loss has its own inherent reward. The feeling of satisfaction in knowing that you beat the odds, and did something that will benefit the quality of your days throughout life, and most likely lengthen life, is something not many people can claim.
