Weight Loss Strategy Trumps Effort

Key points:

• You can lose weight with both effort and strategy
• Although effort is important, strategy trumps effort

Frustrated and unhappy about their weight, Mr and Mrs Struggler are quick to try the latest fad diet or weight-loss product, irrespective of how gimmicky it may be. They get off to a good start but soon discover that their miracle solution simply isn’t really effective or it is just too difficult to sustain. What counts in their favour is that they are proactive and eager to improve their health as well as physical appearance. Unfortunately, they also waste precious time and money by repeating the same mistakes. Mr and Mrs Struggler score poor marks in strategy but do well in effort.

Mr and Mrs. Extreme on the other hand, are highly disciplined and have lots of time and energy for regular sessions of rigorous exercise. They are health-conscious and tend to obsess about their food, appearance and shape and will gladly sacrifice any culinary delight if it may contain something deemed unhealthy. Sticking to a Spartan-type regime is no problem, as long as they are able to follow their dream. Mr and Mrs Extreme score top marks in strategy and effort but set an almost unattainable target for the average person to reach.

Mr and Mrs Procrastinate are on the other end of the scale. They are languid and undisciplined for many reasons and tend to procrastinate and postpone their weight-loss obligations by using a myriad of excuses. They are also often quick to blame situations or other people for preventing them from getting started. Whilst Mr and Mrs Procrastinate regularly claim to be content with life and are happy to accept themselves as they are, the truth is that they are in fact neglecting their health. Because of this, they are more prone to develop various diseases like diabetes, heart-disease and cancer, which have the significant potential to undermine their health, cost them a fortune and ruin the quality of their life. Mr and Mrs Procrastinate score poor marks overall.

Mr and Mrs Sensible operate in a league of their own. They have learned many valuable lessons from their previous experiences and accept that there are no quick-fix or magic-wand solutions. They also understand the reality and boundaries of their many daily obligations, time restraints and personal lifestyle preferences. They prefer to apply their time and effort wisely by following a strategy that will ensure that they achieve weight-loss success. Although they accept that this approach may not deliver results at the same speed as what Mr and Mrs Extreme would expect, they prefer their approach because it allows them to still enjoy life without feeling deprived which helps them maintain their motivation over the long term. Mr and Mrs Sensible score top marks for strategy, and because of their more strategic approach to effort, offers effective maintainable weight-loss results.