Dear Kayla,

I want to get started again and need some guidance. What can you help me with? I need structure and accountability.

Signed,

Peg

Dear Peg,

First of all, congratulations on getting started again! The weight loss journey is never a straight line. There are lots of curves and U-turns and detours along the way. The main thing is to keep on getting back to it when you realize you got off track for whatever reason.

Structure and accountability are important on the weight loss journey. First, let’s talk about structure. The best thing I can recommend is that you sit down and figure out a plan that you can see yourself really sticking with, and write it down on a post-it. A plan that will fit on the post-it will be simple to remember, and easier to stick with. Your plan gives your day structure.

If you have a clear, simple plan, at the end of every day, you can ask yourself this question: did I stick with my plan today? You can answer yourself with a simple yes or a no. This, in turn helps with accountability.

The root of accountability is “to count.” You need to be able to count up how often you’re sticking to your plan, and how often you’re not. If you write down your plan, and ask yourself if you stuck to it at the end of every day, you’ll be able to put an actual number on your consistency. This is a good first step in holding yourself accountable.

Here’s another accountability partner: the scale. Daily weighing will give you clear data that you can count. You can keep track of your 7-day average, then watch how your average moves over 6 weeks of time. That will show you if that plan you wrote down for yourself (that you’re being consistent with!) is working, or if it’s not.

The weight loss will come when you’re consistent with a plan that works for you. If you’re being consistent and the scale isn’t moving down, go back to the post-it and add a little more structure to your plan. Keep going in this way until your plan starts working, and then the key is to keep up that consistency. (It’s all too tempting to let it slip!)

Hopefully, that gets you started.

Sincerely,

Kayla