Best weight loss system things that are working for me now“The mystery of human existence lies not in just staying alive, but in finding something to live for.”
― Fyodor Dostoyevsky, The Brothers Karamazov

Life is hard. It comes with a lot of obstacles, distractions, and is full of temptations. The hardest part is trying to navigate life and come up with ways to beat these challenges, and not let life beat you down.

My wife Miranda and I have been on a long journey to determine the best way for us to leap over the obstacles, avoid the distractions, and resist temptations. We have come quite a long way in this journey to figure this out and have learned that the best weight loss system is one in which frequent small changes are made to your lifestyle.

We have quite a few systems in place in order to keep us accountable. Some of the following ideas are still in the early phases, and others have been in place for years.

The most important thing to remember here is that you need to have some sort of plan or goal in your life. I guarantee you that if you are not moving forward in a positive direction then you are inevitable creeping backwards.

Start making a change for yourself today and don’t delay! Choose one of the systems described below or make up your own, but start taking ownership of your life. Start striding in the right direction and make some of the necessary Small Changes to get back on track!

The Jordan and Miranda Point System

“The more I accomplish, the more I know I’m capable of accomplishing.” ― Tawny Lara

As of yet there is not a good name for this system that Miranda and I use. I guess we could call it JAMPS (Jordan and Miranda Point System) or we could just refer to it as the points system….

In all seriousness, it has made a monumental difference in our lives. We believe that fitness is a key part of a successful marriage, and that our point system has truly been a great way for us to keep ourselves and each other accountable.

We enjoy working out and being active, so why not make sure we are doing this each and every week?

How Does the Workout System Work?

It is actually pretty simple really:

  1. Any workout that is more than 30 minutes, and includes either cardio or weight lifting counts as a point.
  2. Long walks (1.5 miles plus) count as half a point.
  3. I get an extra half-point per week because I built a Standing Desk at work! If you are active and moving around all day you would definitely get the extra half point as well!
  4. All you need to do is achieve 5 points in one week and you are good to go. If not you have to pay the penalty. The penalty is chosen by a partner (or could set one up yourself) and can be either a day without chocolate for Miranda, or a day over the weekend that I cannot have soda, or any other frightening alternative…

The main idea is to encourage each other to stay active. We are always happier and in better moods when we are active and keeping this point system is a great way to motivate us to keep pushing forward.

Currently, we are crushing this healthy weight loss system! Miranda recently got 7 points last week, and I got to 6.5. We hardly need to think about the system as it has become automatic for us to make sure we are doing something active daily. It also helps for us to do a lot of the activities together, and it is not uncommon for us to spend out nights going on 4+ mile walks!

While we definitely do a good job staying active, we recently developed a new system to keep us on track eating wise as well. We recognized that we needed a new way to keep each other from eating like crap every other day, and we think we finally figured out a great system for us to use!

Day by Day Eating Grades

“To keep the body in good health is a duty, for otherwise we shall not be able to trim the lamp of wisdom, and keep our mind strong and clear. Water surrounds the lotus flower, but does not wet its petals.”  ~Buddha

This effective weight loss system is about as arbitrary as you can get, while still able to keep us accountable. All of the kinks haven’t been worked out yet, but so far it is has been working really well for us.

It works like this:

  1. The grades you have to Choose from are F- all the way to A+. So far we have avoided any F’s but we also have been hard pressed to get any A’s.
  2. At the end of every day you assign yourself a grade for how you ate that day. Personally, if I am able to avoid soda and donuts (my biggest tempters) then my grade ends up pretty good at around a B. If you are not sure where you should fall for a given day, check in with your partner (whomever that might be) and see what they think.

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    Not our best week!

  3. Keep track for the whole week in order to see how well you really ate for a given week.
  4. Use the information you gleaned from the ratings to make changes and set yourself up for success for the next week. For example, removing the soda or chocolate from the house is a great way to keep it out of sight and out of mind!

This system is working awesomely for Miranda and I. We are able to try to shoot for that “A” day and try to make better decisions during the work week and the weekends!

Final Thoughts on What is Currently Working

Weight loss and health improvement is not an easy task. It is one that requires a lot of hard work. However, it doesn’t have to be boring and a pain.

Eating healthy and staying active have tons of Health Benefits but you won’t be able to stick to anything that you hate. Start with walking and eating healthy one meal of the day, and work you way up from there!

This is what has been working for my wife and I and it can definitely work for you too. The idea is to take a step in the right direction and make a change!

What are your thoughts? Do you agree with the methods I talk about here? Do you think that these ideas could work for you? I would LOVE to hear from you if you end up trying any of the suggestions I have listed out in this article. We certainly stand by them, and following them has made a huge difference for us.

Please comment below and let us know what you think!

Be sure to have a great day!

-Jordan