Congratulations!! You have reached your goal weight?! But what's next once the weight is off???*

What happens once the weight is off???

Jeans fit comfortably -  TICK!
I can now wear my bikini or swimmers with complete confidence -  TICK!
Belt buckle is now fitted around my waist -  TICK!

So, you finally fit into that piece of clothing, outfit or swimwear you hoped to get into..
The weight has finally come off after all those months of hard earned sweat and good eating so now what?!

What happens once the weight is off and you are now happy with where you are and how your body looks and feels? Do you just stop & hope the weight stays off? Unfortunately the answer is no! 

One of the most common things we see in the health and fitness industry is once people lose the weight they so desperately wanted to shed, they then think it is a 'free pass' to stop training and slip back into old habits & a sedentary lifestyle OR they start to eat the way they used to!

This to a Personal Trainer is baffling! It would be like an alcoholic going completely sober and staying sober for 2 years and then deciding to reward themselves for being sober again by drinking! 
It's self-sabotage!

We tend to focus so much on the journey of losing the weight that no one actually talks about what happens after… What's next??

First things first, CELEBRATE!
There is every reason to celebrate re-gaining your health & fitness! You worked super hard for it!
Buy the clothes you never thought you could fit into & enjoy being proud of the health changes you have made not only for yourself but for your family as well because chances are, if you are enjoying better health, I dare say your family is too! 
Your influence and role modelling would be inspiring them to make better health & fitness decisions. Like attracts like (most of the time).

But you need to know that if you can't grasp that the journey doesn't end once the weekly weigh-ins stop, unfortunately more than likely you will end up right back to where you have started unless you have made a conscious decision to continually look after yourself & your well-being.
 
The secret lies here… You have to keep practicing the discipline with everything you have learned & now reset your goals.  You need to remain accountable to yourself, your food & your training.

Reaching weight maintenance or that ideal weight!
Have you even felt content? 
Happy with the person who looks back at you in the mirror? 
Where your jeans fit perfectly without having to stretch them out before you do them up? 
I have! It's great!
And I need to make sure that you understand that there is absolutely nothing wrong with weight-maintenance (or as I call it weight prevention!).

Speaking from personal experience after having lost 35+kgs myself over the last 5 years and having successfully kept it off, I never want to go back to being overweight, unfit, unconfident or unhappy.
And now that I have become a Mum, I can't stress the importance of needing to be a healthy & fit role model for our young daughter.

So here's the trick to staying motivated once the weight is off... WEIGHTS TRAINING!

Now that the weight is gone it's time to reset your goal with your Personal Trainer (whether it be an event goal, a toning/sculpting goal or even just to stay active & maintain your ideal weight).
We now need to turn your body into a fat burning machine so that the weight does not creep back in & the only way to do that is weights training!
In conjunction to this the way to achieve a toned/sculpted body is through consistent resistance training.

Our bodies are designed to eat whole foods to replenish our muscle fibres to keep us strong & by doing regular weight training & building strength, functionality & muscle memory, this proves to be the most effective long-term strategy for maintaining & sometimes even losing body fat.
What weight training will enable you to do is build lean muscle mass, which then serves your body as a calorie burning powerhouse.

Studies have proven that after a weight session our metabolism can be boosted for up to 36 hours which in turn means we are burning more fat. Weight training increases your calorie burning which means you can actually eat more! 

Ever wondered why a male can eat more than a female without gaining weight? The primary reason for this is because they have lean muscle mass. 
For any gender over time with consistent resistance training this will dramatically make you much more resistant to weight gain as you grow older, making it extremely beneficial,  not to mention the health benefits of increasing bone density as well.

Many women worry that when lifting weights, this will make them look bulky & masculine. 
This is a big misconception & is actually impossible as we have do not have enough testosterone in our bodies to even develop this degree of muscle naturally.
What lifting heavy weights will do though is raise our metabolic rate, promote greater fat burning & help to give our bodies more definition.

A few additional little strategies to help keep the weight off are:
- Weigh yourself every 2 weeks. This just helps to keep you in check!
- Continue to track or write down your food
- Have a "red flag" number or dress size
- Cook together with your partner & kids so you all enjoy healthy eating
- Limit dining out to once per week

How much cardio you actually need once you are at your goal weight versus why weights training is critically important for continued fat loss is not commonly known.
I felt compelled to write about this as I chat to so many people who are just like me who think being "happy" with their weight/size or health is a bad thing.. When it's actually fantastic! It means you have made those lifestyle choices to ensure you enjoy better health. They key to all this is to continue it for longevity.

You just have to make sure you push towards other goals to keep you excited about your training.
You can now start working on a leaner, healthier, more muscular body & that is exciting!

How much food you need to maintain your target weight will depend, to a large extent on how physically active you will be, but irrespective of your calorie intake, the one thing remains the same.. If you don't practice discipline with your health & fitness you won't have long-lasting success.

One thing is for sure, take the time every day to invest in & do something for yourself!

Alicia Jovcevski
Studio Owner