A struggle that’s common to all dieters is how to sustain motivation.

It’s likely you’ll see your desire to choose weight loss over the foods you crave come and go. This will happen, especially if your progress isn’t constant. One goal is to learn how to remain motivated while on your diet.

Adapting your lifestyle to include more healthy habits isn’t a one-time thing; it’s a big decision made up of lots of little choices.

Tips

To ensure that your motivation level always runs high, follow these simple tips:

Use a food journal

Write down everything you eat to hold yourself accountable. This record of your nutritional intake will become a powerful resource for helping you identify the habits that are holding you back. 

Find a diet buddy

Friends and family can provide great support along the way during the hard times and will be with you to celebrate your success.

Fitness peer groups are another support system to help you maintain motivation. Sometimes you need accountability to get the job done!

Consider hiring a dietician

Maintaining a diet may be a struggle, therefore a dietician will be beneficial. They will provide a complete diet plan and practical ways to help you follow through. 

Use calorie-tracking software

Smartphone apps and free website services will make tracking your diet incredibly easy. Many like MyFitnessPal and Lose It! have built-in barcode scanners, recipe analyzers, and nutritional charts to help you visualize your success.

Try new recipes

Experimenting with healthy alternatives can keep your diet more interesting. Do your research and search on Google where you will find endless options ranging from local to global cuisine. 

Use herbs and spices as often as possible to boost flavor

These won’t add any calories and may offer health benefits. Your food will taste better and may help you to stay the course. Bland food is not very tasty and may push you back toward the bad food items of your past.

Never start the day without a plan in place for what you will eat

Write an outline in your food journal, or choose your recipes ahead of time. After a while, choosing healthy meals and snacks will be a no-brainer. Some dieters even make an entire week’s plan at a time.

Focus on food quality and choose organic when possible

Think about the health benefits you’ll reap from eating right, like increased energy and improved digestion. This can be motivation on its own. 

Prepare food as often as you can ahead of time

This will help you cut back on the time commitment it takes to eat according to your current plan during a busy week. Remember, leftovers will keep in the freezer for weeks at a time. They will make nightly meals easier and more enjoyable.

Add one new vegetable to your diet each week

Sticking to this tip, will boost your nutrition and make your diet more interesting. Include new vegetables on your shopping list. Also, remember to take the list so that you stay on course with your diet regimen.

Take a cooking class

Learning a healthier method of cooking can jumpstart any stale diet routine. A cooking class will be insightful and a chock full of cooking tips.

Set specific daily goals

Aim to accomplish one main dietary objective each day. It could even be something as small as having a healthy breakfast or opting for fruit yogurt over ice cream. 

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Maintaining your motivation doesn’t need to feel challenging as long as you’re prepared for it.

The biggest thing to make sure you’re doing is taking proactive measures. That way you will never experience low motivation – or at least you will bounce back in no time. 

If you catch low motivation when it first starts, it will be faster for you to return to following your diet plan. This will help you change your eating habits for the better over time and promote lasting long-term results. 

Motivation is a challenge you must expect and prepare for. If you fall off the bandwagon for a day or two, just get right back on. It only becomes a set-back if motivation fizzles out completely and you return to former bad habits for a week or longer. 

Stay focused and on course…You got this!