As you’ll start to see, a lot of our blogs are about the experiences that we’ve had with our clients. Some of them are potentially negative but the vast majority of these will be positive, because that’s just how we like to view life! Now having worked with quite a few weight loss clients there seems to be a pattern developing in the majority of both successful and unsuccessful clients. We try not to say unsuccessful because just like drinking and smoking, it can take many attempts to find the right answer and simply be ready to make the change.
Clients who have a great group of family members and friends who are willing to support them in their health and fitness goals are going to be much more likely to have a good shot at a successful attempt compared to those that don’t. Of course, most friends and family members will tell you that they are fully supportive and that’s great but it’s how they show it that’s the key. For instance, if you fully supported your mate who’s decided to quit smoking, you probably wouldn’t light up a cigarette in his/ her vicinity as this is going to create the urge for them to start smoking again. This is the same when it comes to weight loss. If your mate is restricted to salads and meat with water and freshly squeezed juices, it’s probably not being fair to them if you kept dragging them out to the pub and pizza nights in the early days, could be considered torture for them to maintain the lifestyle choice they’re trying to make and lead to setbacks. This is also the same as positive reinforcement over negative feedback ie. “I’m not sure your program is working” instead of “wow! you look great, your hard work has been paying off!”
Two examples that spring to mind when we think about this topic are of when a clients own negativity had her gain the 9kg that she’d worked so hard to lose because even with the full support of her kids, her husband wasn’t totally onboard and this created doubt in her own mind.
Client number 2 started off doubting herself, slowly gained confidence through the support of our fellow clients and staff, started trying new things and the confidence grew even more! This client went from having zero belief in being able to walk 5km at the beginning of the year to running 21.1km with us in September and completing her first half marathon!
It takes a strong person to ignore the doubts of others when they’re having doubts of their own, so do the right thing by your mate or your loved one and play that pivotal role in their new lifestyle journey!
Get involved and become a part of an active community who encourage one another to do better every day.
Stay strong with positive thoughts guys!
Justin Beard Pn1
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