It's silly to think that you'll never go out to dinner, never have an extra glass of wine, never miss a workout day. So, again, it comes down to you. If you really want to see these results, are you willing to do what it takes? It's okay if you aren't, but if that's what you decide, then you also must decide to adjust your goals. If you want a splurge day or a rest day, realize that even if you kept to your exercise/eating program every other day, that splurge or rest is going to slow your progress. You're either willing to stick with a strict regimen or stick with a less strict weight loss goal.
Don't forget, the scale doesn't always tell you everything you need to know. You might want to try different ways to track your progress.
I'm Losing Weight In the Wrong Places.
Yet another result that some would see as failure is losing weight from areas we'd like to keep the way they are. Most of us would love to be able to lose weight in one place without affecting any other part of the body. Unfortunately, our bodies don't work that way. The body works as a whole and, therefore, it loses weight as a whole too. It just isn't possible to decide you want to lose weight in your thighs, but not your arms.
If this is the situation you're experiencing, you have some options. One is to continue with your exercise and healthy diet and let your body respond to that while enjoying all the other good things you might be feeling. Another option is to quit exercising. I think you know which option I recommend.
I'm Not Losing Weight in the Right Places.
Just like you can't preserve areas of your body from losing fat, you also can't choose where the fat comes off. Again, this fat loss thing really is up to your body and your genetics (among other things). That's one reason spot training just doesn't work: Adding more leg lifts to get rid of saddlebags or doing more crunches to get rid of belly fat won't work.
Here again, you have some options. One, you could keep exercising and see what happens. Maybe you're not seeing that fat melt away from your belly or thighs but it's possible that, over time, you'll see those stubborn areas change for the better. Another option is to just give up. If all you're really after is a perfect, flawless body, you probably won't get it from any exercise or diet program--none of us will! Of course, there is a final option and that is some kind of plastic surgery. Again...I think you know which option I would suggest.
The Time Factor
One more thing to look at when it comes to results is the timeframe you're working in. Many people expect to see major changes after only a few weeks of exercise and healthy eating. The truth is, it really does take time for the body to respond to what you're doing and a few weeks just isn't enough. For most people, it may take months or years to see significant changes, so take that into account and ask yourself - have I given my body time to make these changes? Am I expecting too much, too soon?
Are You Really Not Getting Results?
Whether you're successful is determined by the goals you set for yourself and the plan you come up with to reach those goals. If your exercise goal is to feel more energetic, you'll probably feel that immediately after a workout. If your goal is to simply complete your workouts for the week, there again you have tangible results. If you did it, you succeeded. If you didn't, you failed. If you expected to lose a couple of pounds in one week but didn't complete your workouts or ate out more times than you planned, you now know why that goal didn't happen.
The truth is, if we don't see the results we want it's almost always because our expectations are too high or because we're not doing everything we should be doing to see the results we want to see. Even if the scale isn't moving, does that mean you're not getting results? Are you feeling better about yourself? Do you have more energy? Are you stronger and fitter than you were before? Are you lowering your blood pressure or cholesterol? If so, aren't those results too?
