Accountability.

Accountability works because it forces you to take your secret plans/desires/dreams and say them out loud, not just to yourself, but to others. THEN, if you don't follow through, you have to face the people you told. Many of us, myself included, sometimes prioritize others over ourselves; I will let myself down and break promises to myself, but I really try hard not to do that to others. Accountability turns our promises to ourselves into promises to others.

The research:

• Talking to a human being is important. Accountability from monthly contact with a person helps maintain long-term weight loss better than an online program (Svetkey et al., 2008). Therefore, it's important for me to have PEOPLE in my life with whom I talk to about this and share my success and struggles. All the reading and knowledge-gathering won't work as well as communicating with others. I plan to meet weekly with my coworkers (on Fridays), talk with my husband daily, speak with my mother weekly, and work out at least once a week with a friend.
• My Cheerleaders need to know me and my goals. General support is not as helpful as individualized support (Saperstein, Atkinson, & Gold, 2007). Programs that include general support (think message boards full of strangers saying "go you!") is not as helpful as someone who knows ME and MY GOALS. In a study looking at maintaining weight loss, people who got in-person support maintained better weight loss long-term than those who just got their support online (Harvey-Berino et al., 2002).
• A blog can help. A blog (such as this one) can create a space for easy sharing of progress/setbacks for those I have asked for accountability from. In 2011, 14% of blogs focused on Health. Lots of weight-loss blogs were created for accountability, and people have found the accountability of an audience (even if online) can help maintain goals long after the new year. (Leggatt‐Cook & Chamberlain, 2012).

So here we are. I'm not only laying out my idealized future hopes, but also the messy and true present.
*********************************************************************************
Starting weight (1/1/17): 225lbs
*********************************************************************************

Goals

Short term

1. 220lbs (-5).
2. Work out 4x week.
3. 5 fruits & vegetables/day 5/7 days/wk.

Long term

1. 185lbs (-40).
2. Run 1/2 marathon.
3. Meatless Mondays.

*********************************************************************************
We've got this. You have permission to ask me how this is going at any point in time. That's accountability. 😊

How has accountability worked for you in the past? Leave a comment to let me know. Also let me know how I can keep you accountable!

"...for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control." - 2 Tim 1:7 (ESV)

Research Cited:

Harvey-Berino, J., Pintauro, S., Buzzell, P., DiGiulio, M., Gold, B. C., Moldovan, C., & Ramirez, E. (2002). Does using the Internet facilitate the maintenance of weight loss? International Journal of Obesity & Related Metabolic Disorders, 26(9). Retrieved 12/31/16 from http://eds.a.ebscohost.com/eds/detail/detail?sid=e462841e-be5f-4cbf-b780-29223b7788dd%40sessionmgr4006&vid=0&hid=4210&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWRzLWxpdmUmc2NvcGU9c2l0ZQ%3d%3d#AN=8674903&db=a9h

Leggatt-Cook, C., & Chamberlain, K. (2012). Blogging for weight loss: personal accountability, writing selves, and the weight-loss blogosphere. Sociology of health & illness, 34(7), 963-977.

Retrieved 12/31/16 from http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1467-9566.2011.01435.x/full

Saperstein, S. L., Atkinson, N. L., & Gold, R. S. (2007). The impact of Internet use for weight loss. Obesity reviews, 8(5), 459-465. Retrieved 12/31/16 from https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Robert_Gold2/publication/6124325_The_impact_of_Internet_use_for_weight_loss/links/004635244bf5815fdc000000.pdf

Svetkey, L.P., Stevens, V.J., Brantley, P.J., Appel, L.J., Hollis, J.F., Loria, C.M., ... & Samuel-Hodge, C. (2008). Comparison of strategies for sustaining weight loss: the weight loss maintenance randomized control trial. Jama, 299(10), 1139-1148. Retrieved 12/31/16 from http://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/181605.