It’s no surprise that weight loss has consistently topped the list of Americans’ goals. We often resolve to lose weight by embarking on some sort of unrealistic routine and promising ourselves that “this will be different.” But what are you going to do now to lose weight that you haven’t already tried? 

When we make a personal goal, in essence we are saying we need to change. When someone says, “I am overweight and I want to lose weight,” they need to implement changes in their behavior that allows for weight loss. 

You deserve to focus on you. Instead of following a diet written for the masses, figure out changes you can make to your current routine. 

Starting a food diary is a simple way to start. Keeping a food diary is the most effective way to see what eating habits work and don’t work for you. Commit to writing down everything that you eat for a few days. Ideally, those days would be both regular days and some atypical days, such as days when you went to a party or out to a restaurant. Write down what you ate, what you drank, and what time. Do you notice any habits? Where were your pitfalls? When were you eating what you intended to eat? Answering those questions and figuring out why those things happened is where you can begin to gain control of your eating habits and conquer your weight-loss dilemmas. 

By turning each behavior that you want to change into its own individual goal, it’s easier to adopt healthier habits that you can carry with you throughout your life. How you lose the weight is what you’ll have to keep doing to maintain your weight loss goals. 

Let’s talk about how to make goals. Make them simple and easy to achieve. For example: I am going to pack two snacks at home every night and bring them to work the next day. That way I have healthy choices available to me if I get hungry at work, so I can stick to my eating routine and make it easier for me to make healthy choices and lose one to two pounds per week. 

Why does this work? Having a goal is great, but if you don’t have a strategy how can you achieve it? Using the S.M.A.R.T. method can help you set and achieve your goals.

When setting a goal make sure it is :

Specific: The goal needs to be clear-cut and emphasize what you want.

Measurable: Healthy goals need to be measurable. The measure is a sign of your progress. If it can’t be measured, then progress can’t be tracked. Give yourself some leeway when tracking progress. Allow yourself some time to familiarize yourself with your new way of eating, but if it proves to be too difficult it may be important to adjust your strategy. 

Attainable: Is your goal realistic?  It may not be possible for you to lose two pounds a week every week, especially during certain times like the holidays. That’s okay. Unrealistic goals will lead you to feel like a failure when in reality your strategy failed you. Maybe it isn’t possible for you to make snacks every night because you travel a lot for work. Maybe it is more realistic to bring a bunch of snacks for the entire week. 

Don’t confuse attainable with easy. Push yourself outside your comfort zone. It is always going to be uncomfortable when you are changing habits. If the goal is truly attainable, the more you engage in your new behavior the easier it will become; and that'll make it more comfortable and maybe even second nature. 

Relevant: Why are you embarking on your weight-loss journey? Are you doing it for yourself? Is your spouse nagging you to lose weight?  Changing habits takes commitment that has to come from oneself in order to be achieved and maintained. Maybe you aren’t ready to start working on your goal. Start when you are ready and when the goal is most meaningful to you.   

Timely: Remember this is your story, so you set your own time frame. Whether it is a week, a month, or by next summer; setting a time frame gives you an endpoint where you are to achieve your goal. Setting a time limit is also important because it can help prevent procrastination.   

Lauren Cohen, MS, RD, CDN is a registered dietitian and nutritionist with a private practice in Englewood, NJ, specializing in weight loss, weight management and eating disorders.