(MayoClinic.com) Your weight-loss success depends on your readiness to take on the challenge. These questions can help you judge whether now is the best time to start your weight-loss program.

• Are you motivated to make long-term lifestyle changes that require eating healthy foods and exercising more? Be honest. Knowing you need to make changes in your life and feeling up to the challenge are two different things.
• Have you addressed distractions in your life that could affect your commitment to a weight-loss program? If you're dealing with major life events, such as marital problems, job stress, illness or financial worries, consider giving your life a chance to calm down before you start.
• Do you accept that there's no quick fix? Achieving and maintaining a healthy weight is a lifelong process. You may lose weight quickly initially, but over the long run it's best to lose weight at a moderate but steady pace. You should aim for a weight loss of 1 to 2 pounds (0.5 to 1 kilogram) a week.
• Have you resolved any eating disorders or other emotional issues that make it difficult for you to achieve a healthy weight? If you have a tendency to binge, purge, starve or overexert when you exercise, or if you're depressed or anxious, you may need professional help.
• Are you ready to change your eating habits? Sounds easy to do in theory, but in practice, it's often difficult. It's hard to cast aside established behaviors and develop new lifestyle habits, but it can be done.
• Are you motivated to get more physically active? Increasing your level of physical activity is essential to losing weight and keeping it off.
• Are you realistic about your weight-loss goal? Remember, losing as little as 5 to 10 percent of your weight can improve your health if you're overweight or obese. This means, for example, losing 10 to 20 pounds (4.5 to 9 kilograms) if you weigh 200 pounds (91 kilograms). Ask your doctor how much weight you should aim to lose.
• Do you have family and friends to support your weight-loss efforts? It helps to have someone in your corner. If you don't have someone you can rely on, consider joining a weight-loss support group.
• Do you have time to keep records of your food intake and physical activity? Keeping records increases your chance of success. You'll be pleasantly surprised by how helpful it is to track your progress.
• Are you willing to look at past successes and failures in weight loss and other areas of your life? Learn from the past about what motivates you. Keep working to resolve barriers that might prevent success.
• Do you view a healthy-weight program as a positive experience? Losing weight doesn't have to be a bad experience. Many people find they feel better when they're more active and weigh less.

If you answered yes to all of these questions, you're ready to make the lifestyle changes necessary for permanent weight loss.

If you answered no to one or more of these questions, you may not be ready. And that's OK. Explore what's holding you back and face those obstacles. In some cases it may be a simple matter of timing. For instance, you may need to resolve other problems in your life. In other cases, you may need to work on related issues — such as your feelings toward weight loss or your willingness to commit to permanent changes.

You may be able to make these changes alone, or you may feel you need help. Educating yourself about the process of successful weight loss and maintenance is a start. For example, learn more about the dietary changes necessary for losing weight. See a dietitian or enroll in a behavioral-based program — a program that can help you change the behaviors that can interfere with weight loss, such as eating when you're stressed or bored.

If you're ready for weight loss but fear you'll become discouraged quickly, think toward the future. As you become more physically active and make dietary changes, you'll feel better and have more energy. And rather than thinking of weight loss as a short-term drudgery, view it as an enjoyable, permanent lifestyle change.

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