Accountability is very important on a weight loss journey. We think that accountability is difficult but it’s not. All you need to do is focus on simple things within your control regularly. There are three major factors that you need to hold yourself accountable during and beyond your weight loss journey.
What is your why?
The first thing is your Why? Why do you want to lose weight? Why do you want to be healthy?
Your why should always be at the back of your mind every time. Without a big why, motivation can only last for a while.
Your why helps you stay on track even when you don’t feel like it but more importantly, your why is the reason you get back on track when there’s a setback. So what is your why? Write it down and paste it where you can see it every morning.
The second factor is tracking
The 3 important things to track aside from your food intake includes sleep, water intake, and your weight.
Sleep
Sleep is very crucial because it’s during sleep that the body rejuvenates itself and hormones are regulated. Poor sleep makes it difficult for you to lose weight. Sleep is important. I know you will probably roll your eyes at me if I say you should sleep for 8 hours in a day but you should get at least six hours of sleep in a day especially if you have hit the weight loss plateau.
Water
A lot of us are struggling with drinking water during the day. You should drink at least three litres of water daily if you’re on a weight loss journey. I cannot overestimate the benefits of drinking enough water on a weight loss journey. It curbs your cravings and keeps you hydrated and full. If you’re doing Intermittent fasting you need to make sure you’re staying hydrated during your fasting period, if not you will exceed your calorie intake for the day. Start your day with 500mls of water every morning to get a head start on your water intake for the day.
Weight
Tracking your weight is very important. It lets you know if you’re on the right track or if you need to make some adjustments. A digital scale is the best when it comes to tracking your weight. With analogue scale, you have to worry about parallax error or an assistant to help you check your weight. Weekly weighing is better than daily weighing for people with anxiety to avoid the daily fluctuations that can occur on a weight loss journey but research shows that people adhere to their plan more with daily weighing. Either of the two is fine as long as you keep in mind that some factors like ovulation, menstruation or changes in hairdo can affect your weight even when you’re in a calorie deficit.
Community Engagement
The third factor is community engagement. We all need validation, motivation, and support.
Community engagement keeps you on track, and gives you motivation to keep going.
Join a weight loss challenge or a support group. Be in the midst of like minded people so you can encourage and support one another or at the very least follow fitness accounts on social media so you can be motivated and possibly learn new tricks.
If you hold yourself accountable by constantly reminding yourself of your why, tracking your sleep, water intake, and your weight regularly, this journey will surely be much more enjoyable.
Adebusola Adefeso is a Medical Doctor, Certified Personal Nutritionist and a Weight loss Expert.
She’s the Founder of Fit4healthng, a weight management, health and wellness company.
She became passionate about weight loss, health, and wellness after seeing a lot of patients suffer from diseases that could have been well managed if they were at a healthy weight; she personally addressed her own belly fat struggles.
She does not only offer her professional expertise but also incorporates her first-hand knowledge of weight loss and healthy living in providing simple and actionable strategies for her clients.
She has used her successful lifestyle change to touch the lives of thousands globally.
She’s a strong believer in empowering people for a healthy lifestyle and she has shared her expertise on platforms like docotal, thriveglobal, newmumshub, smooth FM etc.
