Lost Your Diet MOJO? How To Get Your Motivation Back

Woman Trying on Dress

One of the hardest parts of a weight loss journey is staying motivated. When you first start out, you’re all in – your intentions are great, you aim high, and you’re ready for the challenge. But then something happens.  Maybe your weight isn’t coming off as quickly as it did when you started. Maybe your regimen is just too intense and you can’t stick to it. Maybe the "newness" and excitement of the first few weeks has worn off, and you’ve simply lost interest.

What Motivates You to Lose Weight?

When your motivation takes a nosedive, it sometimes helps to revisit your reasons for wanting to lose weight in the first place. Most people focus on the positive – "I want to have the energy to keep up with my kids" or "I want to look better in (or out of) my clothes." Others take the opposite approach and focus on moving toward the negative – "I don’t want to avoid the mirror any more" or "I don’t want to feel so tired all the time." Everybody is different; there’s no right or wrong reason. So take a minute to remind yourself why you embarked on this weight loss journey in the first place.

How to Get Your Diet Motivation Back

Let’s face it. Change is hard, and it can be tough to stay motivated. You’re probably trying to give up one or more bad habits – and you may not be ready to do so. Or, if you’ve suffered some inevitable setbacks, you may have lost confidence or feel like a failure. Maybe the rewards just aren’t outweighing all the sacrifices you’ve had to make, or the results aren’t happening fast enough. Here are some ways to help you get your motivation back.

Reward small achievements: Many people make plans to reward themselves in some way once they’ve reached their goals, which is great – but you don’t have to wait until you’ve reached your ultimate goal in order to reward yourself. Think about ways to reward yourself when you’re a quarter of the way to your goal or halfway there. And find ways to reward mini-accomplishments too – drinking eight glasses of water, or exercising every day this week, or cooking three dinners at home. There’s no reason not to reward progress!