A Weight Loss WHY is an important part of your journey. If your why is defined, specific, written and part of who you are it can have a profound effect on your journey. It gives you control, hope and power. This post is all about helping you define your why and give you control. Above all, I want you to have the power! (I almost feel like He-Man when I say that!)
Having a strong why can keep you on track and make the journey a little easier to stick with. Most importantly, I really want you to FEEL your why, and submerge yourself in the feeling of it. Moreover, as you go through this and start to define your why, it may bring you to tears. This means you are on the right track. :)
What are the 5 Whys for Weight Loss?
The Levels of Why
We all have a surface why. It usually sounds something like this: “I wish I looked better in my clothes.” This translates to I want to lose weight to look better in my clothes. I don’t see a lick of emotion in that “Why”, and that is where it fails.
This is a surface why. Although you may feel a little sad that you don’t look good in your clothes, it’s really not enough to make that cheese burger taste like cardboard if you take a bite of it.
Nope, that cheese burger still tastes AWESOME, it calls to you beyond all reason and your clothes just got a little tighter. ( I know mine did…LOL) So what will help make that cheeseburger taste nasty…?
Getting to the deeper purpose requires asking yourself “Why?” at least 5 times to get to the “final answer”. Keep this surface why in mind as you read through the article. We will take it all the way to a final destination at the end of this article.
Look Deeper into Your Weight Loss WHY
If your “Why” is 4 levels or deeper, it can change your response to what you want. This can include food. However, there is a caveat here… you will still occasionally crave it. But as your mindset grows, you can act on that craving based on your other goals rather than being controlled by the craving.
By the way… being controlled by food sucks! And things taste better when you control what you are eating rather than the other way around.
I want you to dig deeper. Moreover, I want you to reach into your soul and align your why with your core values. If you are unfamiliar with core values we cover this later. Meanwhile, you can keep asking yourself WHY until you have a why that touches your soul. If five levels doesn’t do it for ya’ keep going! I am attaching a worksheet for you to do the work of finding your why. So don’t forget to download it here.
How the 5 Levels of the Weight Loss Why works
The 5 levels of why require you to look at a completely different motive for your “want”. In addition to the levels of why, these are the core values I was talking about to help develop the why. Here is a definition from Dictionary.com.
CORE VALUES: ”Core values are the fundamental beliefs of a person…. These guiding principles dictate behavior and can help people understand the difference between right and wrong. Core values also help [people] to determine if they are on the right path and fulfilling their goals by creating an unwavering guide.”
Dictionary.com
The good old Huffington Post gives us a list of 5 possible core values.
“The following are five candidates for the practical values having foremost importance:
HuffingtonPost.com
Integrity.
Accountability.
Diligence.
Perseverance.
Discipline. “
I must say, I like James Clear’s list of 50 a little better. Check out his list here. But I am partial to his book as well, Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones. If you have not read this book it’s awesome! I am not an affiliate, I just love sharing awesome stuff!
Ok so how does this work? Back on topic… ADD moment there. Sorry stay with me!
Really Dig Into The “Why”
By digging into to your “WHY” until it aligns with your core values it becomes a part of you. Above all, it’s no longer something you are “trying to do”, it is now part of who you are.
For years I said “I am not a runner”! This certainly, translated in my brain to I have no desire to be healthy. I made jokes about it, being unhealthy was tightly aligned with my core values. Unfortunately, I saw it as taking time away from my family. My job as mom was to “be there” and take care of them; therefore taking care of me wasn’t a high priority.
Being unhealthy aligned with my core value of my responsibility to my family. Above all, I wasn’t seeing the big picture!
It took me seeing my mom so incredibly unhealthy. And my dad passing away from cancer for me to see if I truly wanted to be responsible for my family I needed to BE healthy. And I need to teach my children what healthy was!
This core value was a big part of my why and it kept my motivation strong. Above all, nobody messes with MOMMA BEAR! Just ask the principal at my kid’s school. :)
How do YOU define yourself as a person-building your weight loss why?
To understand what you truly value and how you define yourself will help you determine your WHY. For instance, what boundary do you not cross. And what is essential for your happiness?
- Are you a Momma Bear too?
- How do you define being a good mother?
- How do you define being a good parent?
- Why does it make you stand proud and feel that little zing of happiness?
-OR-
- Are you a Professional?
- What does this mean to you?
- What about being professional is defining to who you are as a person?
- How does being a professional make you feel?
What will make you WANT to change?
By digging deep into your original weight loss WHY you find deeper reasons that really make you want to change. Moreover, this change may have something to do with your definition of you as a parent, or as a professional, or even as a human being.
For example, maybe you feel that being overweight takes away from your professional persona. Or maybe you feel it prevents you from being taken seriously. I know 100 pounds ago, I often tried to hide in the background of the endless software development and design meetings we had. In short, this made feel like I was less of an employee and a person, in many ways.
I didn’t want to draw attention to myself. Certainly, I was not a confident professional. Fortunately, losing weight changed this. Although this was not a primary part of my weight loss why.
Why is weight loss essential to your happiness, how does it tie to the your underlying definition of YOU?
Your core Reasons.
Your core reasons, are yours alone! I have shared mine. I also shared how I determined what was truly essential to my happiness. To summarize, my core reason was being here for my family the right way, using my definition of “right”.
My WHY aligned with my core value of being responsible for my family. Moreover, it had the added effect of giving me the confidence to stand up and share my professional opinions in work meetings and not fear the spot light.
I no longer feel the terrified to make my opinion known. And I can stand up and speak, without fear of judgement. I never wanted people to look at me and see the fat. Also, I felt like I was being judged by my appearance, not by the knowledge I was trying to share.
Core Value Examples
Your core reasons can fall into many categories. I am listing a few ideas to investigate below:
- Health
- Family
- Feel Better About You
- Career
That is to say, your core reasons are your motivators and your WHY for your Journey. Above all, they are defined by your core values for your journey. To clarify, if the core reasons you choose don’t resonate deeply with you it’s easy to go off the rails. And this leads to feeling overwhelmed, anxious and out of control.
There are several non-core reasons, that I often see as a WHY. I am going to give you a list. But before I do, let me point out, these may work for you! They may get you to the finish line.
The question I want you to ask yourself, is this reason going to help me not only reach the finish line, but is it going to help me maintain my results for the long haul?
Non-Core Value Examples
Here are some non-core reasons I see:
- My doctor says I should
- My spouse/significant other is on a diet and thinks I should I should be too or they are pressuring me to.
- That Challenge “looks” interesting.
- Shopping and you don’t like the look of the clothes so an immediate calorie cutting and workout plan are on the horizon.
- I want to lose weight because someone said something about my weight.
- Doing it for anyone but YOU.
- Losing weight for a specific event. (Walking a stage?)
This may be a good core reason, any of these “may” keep you going. But in reality only you know your core values, and if these are “deep” enough to keep you going and if you will be able to maintain it based on the WHY you choose.
Wrap Up
Okay, let’s wrap up this really long post. :) Remember in the beginning I said I would revisit our opening WHY statement… Here it is in case you’ve forgotten it, in this novel of a post….
“I wish I looked better in my clothes.” In short, this translates to I want to lose weight to look better in my clothes.
This is our level One Why… Below I am going to show you how I would break this down with 5 levels of why. Likewise, how I would look at my core values and reasons to get to a big WHY
One last really key point before I sign off.
Don’t let your WHY rush your need for results! This is a marathon, not a sprint!
To make this journey permanent, it requires building on mindset and habits. Most importantly, look at the long-term, realize each moment is a learning moment and get the most out of each moment.
Keep it realistic, and know the journey takes time.
In this post we covered A LOT of information. Your why is an important part of your journey, and is key to adjusting your mindset.
If this is your challenge on your journey, please jump on the waitlist for my class on Mindset! I will have an entire section on uncovering your “WHY” and support to help you work through it! I would love to have you join my community and learn as much as you can and support you on this journey!
Also, don’t forget to download your workbook here.
Have an amazing day! Sending love & hugs!
