I truly cannot tell you how many times I have been tempted to sit on the couch instead of getting on my bike.
Or, the number of times that whatever it was that I was eating “tasted so good” and I “didn’t get it very often. I felt like I wanted to eat past satisfied even though I had actually had enough.
Losing weight is not something that happens overnight. It takes time, and patience.
Giving up can be so tempting, especially when you are going through a rough season, and everything just seems so hard.
One of the most amazing ways to stay on track with your weight loss goals is to leverage accountability. You can do this internally by holding yourself accountable, and you can do it externally by teaming up with other people to stay on track.
There are so many ways that you can leverage your relationship with yourself and others to make sure that you stay focused, get on the bike, and don’t give up on your weight loss efforts.
In this article I will share 5 amazing ways you can use accountability to help you lose weight biking.
#1: Make a Plan
I cannot stress enough how a plan can help you lose weight biking. If you really want to lose weight on the bike you need to plan your food and your rides.
We are overweight because we overeat, so we need to plan our meals in advance. This is how we make the best choices on how to fuel our bodies.
Planning our rides is important not to lose weight per se, but it’s important to continually remind ourselves of the amazing things our body can do when we take care of it! Riding impacts our weight loss indirectly by motivating us to make better food choices so we can have better rides.
When you are tempted to eat something that isn’t on your plan, remind yourself that the food isn’t on your plan. Tell yourself that you can always plan for it tomorrow if you still want it.
If you are tempted to skip a ride, remind yourself that you made a commitment to yourself to ride. Hold yourself to that commitment!
#2: Keep a Journal
Now, there are going to be times when you don’t do what you planned, and don’t hold yourself accountable. There will also be times when you do! It’s important to keep track of when you do and when you don’t.
This allows you to get the big picture of how often you are actually doing what you planned. You might think that you are always screwing up, but when you sit down and track when you stay on plan and when you don’t you find that it’s really not as often as you thought.
Get yourself a fancy notebook if you are a pen and paper kind of girl, or open a google doc if you aren’t, and keep track of your food and riding plans.
Check in with yourself daily or weekly to see how you are doing with your plan.
Were you able to stick to your meal plan? To your plans to ride?
If you didn’t eat the way you wanted to or ride as much as you planned, ask yourself why. Write down the obstacles that come up that keep you from getting on the bike.
Maybe you keep planning rides at the end of the day when you have no desire to get on the bike. Is there any way you can get up a little earlier or ride earlier in the day? Plan your rides then!
Maybe you are awesome at sticking with your plan during the week, but on the weekends you have a different schedule and it’s hard to stay on track. Perhaps on the weekend you get into “treat yo’ self” mode because you were “so good” during the week.
When you have a journal and keep track of when you stay on plan and when you don’t you have some hard data to go from. Then you can make an informed decision about what you need to change and what you don’t.
#3: Get an Accountability Partner
Having someone that you routinely check in with can be an absolute game changer when it comes to staying on track when you’re trying to lose weight biking.
This can be someone who has the same goal, or just someone that you have a great relationship and trust.
It can be a real life friend or family member, OR it can be someone that you meet online.
I have several accountability buddies that I check in with regularly in pretty much all aspects of my life. This helps me to stay on track with all of my goals.
I did not, however, leverage any accountability buddies when I lost my weight, and I think this made it a lot harder.
You see, I was too scared to even share my goals with anyone because I didn’t want them to judge me or think that there was no way I could lose 50 points.
Do not be like me! Find someone that you can check in with at least weekly. Let them know where you are at with your goals. Chat about what you are struggling with, and get advice. Having that one go-to person is such an awesome resource.
#4: Join a Group, Program, OR Get a Coach
Another option is to join an accountability group, a weight loss program, or find a weight loss coach. Let me explain all of these options so you understand what is available to you.
Accountability Groups
An accountability group is like having an accountability partner, but instead of there just being one other person there are several of you. You meet in the form of a Facebook group, a zoom meeting, or an in-person meeting. This can be a formal, set time, or it can be just informal chatting.
In Facebook accountability groups usually there is a leader that does check-ins, or members post what they are struggling with/what they are planning to do each day.
With more formally scheduled meetings usually there is some kind of agenda or check-in as well.
Programs
A program, alternatively, usually has instruction as well. The benefit of a program is that there are usually classes to teach you about weight loss. Additionally, the best programs also have a community component, too!
This is often in the form of a Facebook group exclusively for members of the program where you can all chat and hold one another accountable or get answers to your questions from the instructor of the program.
Weight Loss Coach
Finally, you can also hire a weight loss coach. This is someone that will work with you exclusively to meet your weight loss goals.
A coach will give you suggestions for what to do and how to do it, and a coach will check in with you, usually at least weekly, to see where you are at with moving forward towards your weight loss goals.
The upside of this option is that it is catered specifically to you. The downside is that it generally costs more than a program with an accountability group.
#5: Tell Someone Your Plan
If all of these things sound…a little TOO much for where you are at right now, I absolutely LOVE the option of just telling someone your plan.
I do this with my husband ALL of the time and he doesn’t even know that he’s actually holding me accountable. For example, I will tell him that I am going to ride today. Or that I am going to have x number of cookies for dessert.
I absolutely KNOW that he will notice if I say I am going to ride and I don’t. He will also notice if I say I am going to have 3 cookies for dessert and I end up scarfing down 10.
He won’t SAY anything about it necessarily (haha though sometimes he does!), but just the THOUGHT that he might notice is usually enough for me to follow through with what I planned.
There’s something to be said about putting something out there in the universe and saying it out loud that can help you actually follow through with what you planned.
A Final Note
Leveraging accountability can literally be one of the best ways to keep yourself on track and moving towards your weight loss goals.
This isn’t about trying to find someone that is going to berate you and beat you up if you don’t do what you say you’re going to do.
And, it certainly isn’t about YOU doing it to yourself! That just doesn’t feel good.
It’s about having a plan, sticking with the plan, noticing when you don’t, and finding some people out there who will help nudge you along on your journey.
When you add a little bit of accountability to the mix you are just that much more likely to follow through with actions that will bring you closer to your goals.
This is true with biking. With weight loss. This is true with pretty much everything.
You can absolutely do this, my friend. Find yourself a buddy, even if that buddy is YOU. Make a plan, and use accountability to help yourself stay on track.
Ride on!
xoxo
Stacy
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