No Man is a Mountain

On Monday, I wrote about the importance of social interaction as it relates to your weight loss success.

People who "go it alone" never enjoy the success of those who lean on their peers.  That applies to more than weight loss.  Few things we do in our lives are improved by solitude.  The support of our circle of family and friends makes us better equipped to pursue our goals.

There are some very important ways you can incorporate family and friends to improve your odds of having success.

First, make sure you tell your friends what you're hoping to accomplish.  They want you to succeed.

Second, ask for their help changing your lifestyle.  If you go out to restaurants with your friends, suggest that you center your conversations around a walk instead of around food.  Ask a friend to workout with you or get involved in their own similar effort to lose weight.

Third, make sure they know when you're struggling.  Strangers seldom offer us much encouragement.  But when someone close to you tells you they believe in you, it somehow makes things much easier.

Now, don't expect any one friend to be everything - they won't appreciate being the constant pillar for you to lean on.  Make sure to use everyone in your network that you're comfortable talking to.

If you insist on keeping your goals in the dark, weight loss can become a lonely endeavor - not something anyone wants.

Have Some Compassion

The least talked about part of having success, in weight loss and in life, is the social element.

All of us, no matter how self-sufficient, benefit from the occasional ego stroking.

If you're trying to lose weight, how good would it feel to have someone tell you that all your hard work is paying off?  Compassion and understanding are SO helpful when you're doing something that's tough.  Sometimes something as simple as a smile can make all the difference.

If you know someone who's having a tough time accomplishing what they've set out to do (or heck, even if they're doing just fine), do something to laud their efforts.  It doesn't matter how little the gesture, it just matters that you give it.

Never underestimate the importance of how you interact with your family and friends.  They will likely determine the outcome of your efforts.

More on this later...

Your Support System... and Go Dawgs?

Aside from watching the Huskies reach yet another new low Saturday evening, I had a great weekend. I didn't do anything spectacular - just spent a lot of good time with my friends.

There's just something about spending time around the right people that makes a person happier and more productive. It seems counterintuitive that I would get more done when I'm around friends - one would think that would cause me to get distracted - but I do. I feel like virtually everything we do, we do better when our friends are involved.

Our friends and family are our support system, but too many people neglect their importance when it comes to their fitness goals. Most people have the "go it alone" approach to fitness - it's their body and it's their problem. This contributes, in large part, to the large number of people who have spent their lives being frustrated by not reaching their goals.

Last Wednesday, I talked about the importance of having a successful mindset if you are going to attain your goals. Most people simply overlook the role their confidence plays in how things turn out for them. Many of those same people also overlook the social element of their fitness goals - it has an effect greater than many people understand. We are social creatures. Leave us alone and we'll go nuts. And if we have an aspiration that we keep to ourselves, oftentimes that aspiration dies a lonely death.

The social component of fitness is important for several reasons, not the least of which is the fact that most people tend to physically look similar to their friends. Most of the people close to us lead lives similar to our own, so if you struggle with weight, odds are at least some of your friends do, as well.

But even more important than how your circle of family and friends have influenced how you got to where you are is how they can help you get where you're going.

Swallow your pride and tell your friends and family about what you want to accomplish - they want to hear it and they want to help. No one person can wear every hat, but between the people closest to you, I guarantee you that you have every tool at your disposal - someone to motivate you, someone to keep you on the right track, someone to console you, and someone to just talk to.

Don't neglect the importance of leaning on your friends when it comes to your goals. While you can't lean too hard on any one person, utilize the support system that you already have - it will keep you on track even when things get tough. You are stronger with a group than you are alone.

Although for the Huskies (especially their D), I'm not so sure the same is true...