By Marcela De Vivo
If you’re starting a new weight loss plan, reached a major milestone, are trying to maintain, or just need a little extra support, you should consider creating a weight loss blog. Now, why, you ask, would I want to start publicly discussing something that’s so personal?
Simple: because those who track what they eat and how much they exercise can lose up to twice as much as those who don’t. A 2008 Kaiser Permanente study found that those who recorded what they ate lost twice as much as those who didn’t.
What researchers found was that the more vigilant the participants were about tracking their diets, the more weight they lost. Participants who did not track their intake lost about 9 pounds, while those who kept a diet journal six or more days per week lost 18 pounds.
But a blog provides much more than a daily food journal; not only do you reap benefits of keeping tabs on how much you eat, but you also increase your motivation, the amount of support you get, and you can track progress—all of which increases your chance of weight loss success!
Accountability & Motivation
Knowing that you will have multiple eyeballs tracking your progress (even if those eyeballs are just you and your friends and family) makes you more accountable. With those people cheering you on and supporting your efforts, it becomes more difficult to backslide or throw off weight loss efforts, knowing that you won’t be the only one who sees the results. It’s not just about letting yourself down anymore; it’s about letting down the people who care about you.
Additionally, knowing that people are reading your blog can provide motivation to push yourself a little harder, to run the extra mile, to do an extra interval during your workout today.
Track Progress
It’s easy to stand at the end, or even in the middle, of a weight loss journey and not realize how far you’ve come, or how many obstacles you’ve overcome unless you have a detailed record of where you started.
When you regularly write about what you ate, you can see gradually the changes in your dietary habits and what worked and what didn’t. You can also observe what your trigger foods are, when you have the most moments of weakness in the face of temptation, and adjust future behavior accordingly for greater success.
Writing about your fitness efforts is a great record of how much you’ve improved by sticking to a regimen. So you start off not able to do a single assisted pull-up and now you can do five unassisted overhand pull-ups? Going back to the beginning and reading those early entries is an excellent way to see just how far you’ve progressed. Especially during those moments of frustration when weight loss or strength gains have stalled—going back to the beginning gives you perspective on just how much you have actually accomplished.
Also, a blog is great for drawing your attention to trends on what impedes your efforts, and on what works well for you. Writing about them and then brainstorming ways to overcome the bad and to enhance the good—with the help of your readers—is hugely beneficial to your weight loss goal.
Support
Blogging about your efforts and struggles connects with other supportive, like-minded people who may be going through the same experiences or have gone through the same thing.
BLOG AND JOURNAL TO PERSEVERE PAST INJURY
An injury from birth, training or by an accident can discourage even the most motivated person. But, God wants to use your challenges not only to strengthen you but to strengthen others also. Read Endurance Is Faith To Persevere Past Injury to learn how Carolyn Johnson has found grace and opportunity to minister to others through writing and sharing with others.
A weight loss blog also creates a space for the emotional aspects of weight loss which includes venting about frustrations and setbacks. By sharing it with others, you are likely to find someone else who have experienced something similar and can provide a friendly word, or even better, a suggestion on how to get back on track. Let your readers and commenters support you when you hit a snag on your weight loss journey; also, celebrate with them when you have success.
The journey to a healthier life is much easier with the support of other like-minded individuals. Start a weight loss blog and benefit from others’ feedback, ideas and support, and in turn help and inspire someone else to do the same.
READY TO BLOG?
If you’d like to learn more about doing a regular BLOG in Faith & Fitness Magazine then CONTACT US and enquire.
About the Author: Marcela De Vivo is a freelance writer in the Los Angeles area. Her writing has covered everything from marketing, tech, and real estate, but she has a special love for health & fitness and currently ownscleanseauthority.com.
