When you’re attempting to lose weight, every bit of motivation you can glean from other people is helpful. One of my well-liked ways to stay encouraged is by contemplating insightful quotations and applying their wisdom to my life. Below I’ve shared 5 of my preferred quotes relating to weight loss, health, and fitness, along with a few of my very own thoughts about them. I hope they encourage you as much as they do me!

“To lengthen thy life, lessen thy meals.” – Benjamin Franklin

I like this quote as it was recorded long before more current systematic studies pointed to a clear relationship between consuming less and longevity. I believe most people naturally know that they feel better and enjoy better health when they keep their eating balanced, nevertheless it can be so effortless to forget! Contemplating this quote regularly keeps reminding me that “less is more”.

“Our food should be our medicine and our medicine should be our food.” – Hippocrates

This quote stands in as a forceful remembrance that losing weight is not just about cutting calories or sweating in the gymnasium. Too frequently we focus all of our attention on the ultimate result and forget that our bodies are finely tuned machines that really must be maintained properly in order to continue functioning well. Weight loss is simply a welcome side benefit to the TRUE goal: good health and well-being. Healthy food is just the “medicine” that helps cure an overweight body.

“At the end of every diet, the path curves back to the trough.” – Mason Cooley

This quote is one of my preferred because it reminds me that most normal diets don’t permanently solve the problem of being overweight. Yes, most diets will work if you follow them for two weeks or months, but if you simply return to eating like you usually did after the diet, you’ll gain the weight back. When I contemplate the true message in this quote, I’m reminded to focus my efforts on making long-term lifestyle changes that I’m going to stick with for the rest of my life.

“You will never change your life until you change something you do daily.” – Mike Murdock

Another well-liked quote; I like the part about changing something that you do DAILY. Weight loss is not an one off event. You have got to change your daily habits, day after day after day so as to get results. This quote keeps me on track with the awareness that every tiny resolution I make during the day has a big impact on my eventual results. I cannot say, “One small bite won’t hurt” because I know that one tiny bite always leads to more little bites at some point.

“It’s not that some people have willpower and some do not. It’s that some people are ready to change and others are not.” – James Gordon

This quote functions as a wake-up call for me because it reminds me that losing pounds isn’t hard to do if I’m committed to making positive changes in my life. I used to whine about not having powerful enough self-control, but this quote helped me see that will power isn’t the issue. The true issue is my willingness to choose the life I want and follow thru with the right actions. If I keep sabotaging myself, it isn’t because I am feeble. It’s because I am not prepared to deal with the changes that better actions will produce in my life.

Do you have any well-liked quotes that help keep you motivated? If this is so I’d really like to hear them! If not, start collecting some now – they really increase your motivation and keep you focused!

HealthStatus.com has more than 30 free tools you can use to assess your health including an ideal weight calculator and a body mass index calculator.