Everybody needs a reason to lose weight but if that reason is to please someone else you are bound to fail. Change it round, be selfish, lose weight for yourself and the results will amaze you.

While some or most of this article might sound like pointless new-age psycho-babble, at its core are valid, solid ways of changing your life. Do not give in, it may well be a life changing experience.

Whilst these are all valid reasons for losing weight they may actually be the reasons why so many people fail to lose weight or lose weight but then put it all back on with a little extra just for desert. In order to understand long term weight loss we need to look at the nitty-gritty at how the mind works and how we become, and remain motivated, to do something.

When we want to change something about ourselves we need to look deep. Not just "Because the doc said I need to lose a few pounds" deep or "I want to look nice when I lie by the pool" deep. We need to look at where we are now, where we want to be and the difference between the two. That is where the deepness lies.

Ok, let's take any weight measurements out of the equation and look at body size and shape. We might imagine ourselves to look a long way from the way we want to look. But how does that make us feel? Pretty miserable right. But that's the start of the journey - a connection with the feelings caused but the difference between how we are and how we want to be. That discrepancy between the two images is the reality of the situation and sometimes that reality hurts! However, as long as we know where we are now and where we want to be then we have a gap that needs to be bridged.

You need to imagine what it would feel like to be the person you want to be. Stop for a second and think about it. Close your eyes. Really think about it. Think about the person you want to change for. Because this is only a short article I will give you the answer you need to come up with.

You are the only person you should be changing for. There are just so many reasons you could have come up with for changing. Kids, husbands, wives, parents, friends, pets, teams - the list is endless.

The only person you need to change for is you. If this sounds too selfish and self-centred for you then I'm sorry. However, the chance of you changing long-term for anybody other than yourself are minimal. If you think about it another way, what would make the person you are changing for happy? Would they be happier to see YOU happy or would they be happier watching you trying to make THEM happy? So if we want to change we have to look at ourselves and see ourselves as we really are. We need to look to the person we want to be. From then on the person you want to be is going to be the person you are.

If you want to lose weight you need to do it for yourself, no-one else. Not only do you get to be the person you want to be but everybody else gets the benefit of basking in the glow of your happiness and success.