Is it really that you can't lose weight despite trying, or are you looking in the wrong place? 📝 Planning ahead is a critical component of weight loss success, but creating something like a general menu for the week requires a bit of creativity. Creativity can inspire and focus one’s mind and energy. That creativity translates to mindfulness, which translates to more success in your weight loss endeavor. But if you are stressed or short on sleep, then your creative energy can be zapped. 🤪⚡ So instead of banging your head against the wall or blaming yourself for "failing" (even though failing something you didn't even plan out makes no sense), we need to look at the reasons behind our lack of creative energy. Why are you so stressed? What can you do to reduce it? Why are you short on sleep? What can you do to improve sleep quality and perhaps just get an extra half hour of sleep? Not just saying "yeah I should sleep more", but what can you really do? Lack of sleep or excess stress can absolutely DESTROY a weight loss goal. A recent study showed that people who sleep less or have disturbed sleep have a higher BMI. The same goes for chronic stress. In my experience, I find the same is absolutely true. So when I come across this issue with my clients we try to address the root of the problem. Losing weight requires a holistic approach as well as acknowledging and accepting that our preconceived notions may be challenged by the process. This is really what is meant when they say "it has to be a lifestyle." Most people probably imagine that to mean they have to go to the gym 7 days a week for 2 hours and eat broccoli for breakfast. But this is not true at all. Several of my clients only walk for exercise. A majority of my clients exercise 3-4x a week for 30-60mins. They still eat at restaurants and drink some alcohol. But they also fight to get at least 7 hours of sleep per night. They aim to move at least 30 minutes per day whether that be walking the dog, cleaning the house, or going to the gym. They stay mindful about their food choices and habits and self-monitor that daily. They make simple plans to help keep the difficult willpower-testing decisions away from their future selves. All these things serve to reduce stress and leave space in the mind which allows for the bit of creative energy necessary to make weight loss happen. So if you're struggling to lose weight, are you looking in the right places to make it happen?