What do I want to work on?
Being specific about areas that you want to focus on is important in creating a good plan that will help you with your goals.
Which of these are true for you?
Physical activity
- I set myself goals for how active I’ll be each day or week
- I follow an exercise plan/routine
- When I’m being active, I push myself to my limits
- I keep track of the physical activity that I do
Controlling cravings and mindfulness
- If I feel like eating but am trying not to, I make myself wait a certain amount of time to see if the craving passes
- If I feel like eating but am trying not to, I pause and ask myself if I’m hungry
- I use smaller plates, bowls and glasses when eating to help with my portion control
- I slow down how quickly I eat in an effort to eat less
Support and wellbeing
- I acknowledge negative emotions and can speak to somebody, use technology or specific techniques (e.g. meditation) to help with these
- I’ve tried to get my friends and family to support me in managing my weight
- I belong to a group of people who are trying to lose weight together (e.g. an online discussion forum)
- I use a weight loss service to help manage my weight (e.g. Weight Watchers, Slimming World, Lighter Life)
Meal and grocery planning
- When I’m grocery shopping and items of food look similar, I make my choice based on the nutritional information on the food labels
- I plan my food shopping in advance to help me stick to me stick to my plan (e.g. use a shopping list)
- To avoid eating and drinking things that don’t fit with my plan, I don’t keep them at home
- When I am food shopping, there are certain foods I stay away from to help me stick to my plan
Weight loss planning and monitoring
- I use a chart, diary or app to track my progress in losing weight
- I use a book, website, or app to look up the nutritional information and/or calorie content of the foods I eat
- I check the portion sizes of the things I eat
- I have a weight management plan, but I allow myself to be flexible about what I do depending on circumstances
Adapted from OxFAB Taxonomy and questionnaire: Hartmann-Boyce et al., (2016). Development of tools to study personal weight control strategies: OxFAB taxonomy. Obesity, 24(2), pp. 314–320
Select 1 or 2 sections from above that you want to focus on for the next few weeks. Click on these sections below for useful and practical information to support you.