8 Ways to Stay on Track During Times of Change
Because even when life is turned upside down, it’s possible to maintain your healthy habits.
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Chances are good that your life looks pretty different now than it did a month ago. Chances are also good that some of the healthy habits you’ve developed have slipped. All together now: That’s OK. We’re all only human (and we’re going through *a lot*). By beginning to monitor our progress again, we can get back on track and put our health first. It’s especially important right now.
3 fast facts
When we lose momentum with our healthy habits, it can be easy to stop measuring our progress (like tracking our food, activity, and weight). It’s called the ostrich effect—the tendency to bury our heads in the sand to avoid “bad news,” negative feelings, or self-judgments.
Tracking what we eat, how we move, and our weight has been found to be one of the strongest predictors of losing and maintaining loss over time. It’s also a helpful way to check-in with yourself to see how things are going.
To avoid the urge to bury our heads in the sand, we can try looking at the big picture, showing ourselves kindness, and refusing to judge or criticize ourselves. It allows room for us to continue (or restart!) paying attention to our patterns and their impact.
This week’s technique
What does success look like for you this week? Once you’ve answered the question, begin to track your progress getting there using the strategies below.
If you have a scale at home, weigh yourself on your WeightWatchers Workshop day at the same time and place each week. First thing in the morning before breakfast (in the nude!) is best.
Even if you don’t have a scale, estimate your weight and enter it in the WW app weekly. You’ll be able to reflect on your week.
Build time into your schedule to track your meals either throughout the day or all at once at night. It’ll make tracking second nature.
Decide when you’ll work activity into your week and try pre-tracking it. Not only is it great for your physical and mental health, there’s no need to decide if you’ll be active or not—you’ve already tracked it and built it into your schedule! (And earned the Wins for it!)
Keep a healthy habit journal on your nightstand and write down what went well—or didn’t—every night. It’ll help you pinpoint where to make adjustments to better stay on track with your goals.
Are you meal prepping as part of your routine? Try pre-tracking at the same time.
Think of your WW app as a virtual record for your journey. Use the food and activity trackers and blue dots to reflect on your progress with your healthy habits. Making changes to your behaviours is what leads to weight loss.
Be sure to share milestones (or roadblocks) during your Workshop. Or swap stories with other members, Coaches, and Guides in your Studio Group on Connect!
