“Eating crappy food isn’t a reward — it’s a punishment.”

Drew Carey

Angela has been on over ten diets and two body contour procedures since adulthood. “I always lose weight but it gets harder as time goes along. And who has time to obsess over what to eat all the time anyway!” she complains.

Her story is a familiar one. According to the Boston Medical Center, “An estimated 45 million Americans diet each year and spend $33 billion annually on weight loss products.” A British study states the average woman goes on a diet at least twice each year and spends 31 years of her adult life dieting.

Yet, the National Institute of Health (NIH) reports 95% of people who goes on a diet fails; only 5% of people who manage to lose weight keep it off beyond three years. So what’s the reason for the dismal success rate? Why can’t people lose weight and keep it off for good?

“Accurate analysis of over 25,000 men and women who had experienced failure, disclosed the fact that lack of decision was near the head of the list of the 30 major causes of failure. This is no mere statement of a theory–it is a fact.” Napoleon Hill

Lack of decision is the number one reason most people fail to lose weight and keep it off. A common factor amongst people who lose weight and keep it off is they “decide” they are going to lose the weight. Once the decision is made, the means follow.

How do you “decide” you are going to lose weight for good? Research shows people who lost weight and maintained the weight loss had an eye-opening event happen in their lives prompting them to make the decision. They suddenly realized how their size was affecting their lives and decided to lose the weight.

To be effective, the decision must be emotional, not logical. Because most people are detached from the realities of their weight and how it’s affecting their lives, emotions are mostly taken out of the decision making process. They focus more on price instead of cost.

If you want to be successful at losing weight – or anything else in life – you must decide enough is enough; you must be sick and tired of being sick and tired. Since you can’t flip an emotional decision-making switch, here are a few questions to help you make the decision to lose weight and keep it off.

Answering these questions will help open your eyes to the realities of your situation. From limiting daily activities to destroying your self-esteem and self-image, your size affects you in ways more detrimental than you may care to admit. Reach your smart potential and begin changing your life today.