1. Weigh yourself today. If you don't own a scale, you can buy a Tanita body fat
scale from Amazon.com by clicking here. The Tanita scales will not only measure your weight but
more importantly will also measure your percentage of body fat and body water.
By weighing yourself today you will have begun a habit you should continue everyday
for the rest of your life. It is normal for your weight to fluctuate up to three pounds everyday. As long as your
weekly measurements show a trend towards a healthy body fat percentage, there is no need for concern, frustration,
or guilt. By tracking your progress daily you can significantly increase your chances of attaining and maintaining
a healthy weight level. Click here to print a daily weight loss progress chart.
2. Set reasonable weekly, monthly and yearly goals. If you
are overweight then you can realistically expect to lose two pounds per week until you start nearing a healthy
body fat percentage.
A healthy body fat percentage is around 15% for men and around 24% for women. These percentages
increase as you grow older.
This slowdown in weight loss is your body's defense mechanism against losing too much fat. If
your body does not have access to enough body fat and food, then it turns to breaking down muscle to meet its'
calorie needs. Since your heart is a muscle, this can ultimately kill you.
No matter what your body shape is, if your body fat percentage is less than 11% for women and
3% for men, talk to your doctor immediately. He or she can help you gain back the fat your body needs to stay healthy.
Print out goal charts to tape to your refrigerator and near your scale to track
your progress. Click here for the women's version and here for the men's version.
3. If you want to lose unhealthy fat and keep it off you need to take the information
you have just learned and develop habits you will use for the rest of your life. Click here to print the Healthy Weight Loss Plan worksheet. Take a couple
of minutes to fill it out. By tracking your progress each night you will significantly increase your chances of
achieving your goals.
4. Sign up to receive a free weekly tip on how to decrease
the number of calories you eat, increase the number of calories you use, strengthen your marriage and improve yourself.
Sign up by sending an email to weeklytips@healthymarriage.org Type Subscribe in the subject line and
include your zip code in the body of the email. Our policy is we will never rent, sell, or give away your email
address.
Losing weight can also sometimes be hazardous to your marital health. If you are not careful, your spouse may become
resentful and develop negative feelings towards you as you lose weight.
To decrease your chances of damaging your marital relationship, we recommend you
do the following:
1. Do not try to convince your spouse to try any of the weight loss tips.
2. Do not make changes to the food or snacks your spouse has always had access
to.
3. Do not ask your spouse to exercise with you.
4. Ask your spouse to let you know if there is ever anything you say or do that
makes him or her feel like you think he or she should also be losing weight.
5. Accept the eating habits, exercise habits, and the body shape of your spouse.
Don't try to force him or her to change anything.
6. Make sure your spouse knows you love him or her just the way he or she is.
7. The most important tip is to work extra hard at strengthening your relationship.
Even if you do the first six tips perfectly your spouse could still end up resenting your weight loss and feel
negative feelings towards you.
Even if you are 100% sure losing weight will have a positive impact on your marriage
you still should learn and implement the strengthening marriage tips.
The reality is we all should be doing more to strengthen our marriages. All the
time and effort you put into strengthening your marriage will significantly increase your chances of living a healthier
and happier life.
Click here for section 5 of session 1.
Copyright National Healthy Marriage Institute LLC All Rights Reserved