Dropping excess pounds is undoubtedly one of the most beneficial things you can do to improve your health and vitality. Besides reducing your risk of developing serious diseases, losing weight can have a positive impact on your energy levels, concentration, sleep quality, job performance, relationships and self-esteem.

However, one of the biggest mistakes that people make when embarking on a weight loss program is trying to change all of their negative habits right from the start. They drastically change their eating habits, give up all of their favorite foods, dive into a heavy workout routine – and then act surprised when it proves to be too hard to keep it up.

You can’t do it all at once unless you have IMMENSE willpower and control. Do you? The majority of people reading this article probably will not.

That’s not a personal flaw or anything – it simply means that your negative habits are firmly ingrained and may take a little time and patience to change. Trying to change these ingrained habits all at once will only leave you feeling like a frustrated failure.

Instead, try to incorporate one or two small changes each week. For example:

- Replace sugary beverages with water and green tea.
- Replace white flour products with whole grain.
- Swap sweet treats for fresh fruit.
- Add an extra serving of vegetables to each meal.
- Drink a small glass of water once per hour.
- March in place during television commercials.

These changes are easy enough that they won’t be overwhelming, which means you will have an easier time sticking to them and you’ll be motivated to keep making more and more positive changes over time. By incorporating just one or two small changes each week, you give yourself time to get used to them before adding others – making the process less painful.

That’s the power of momentum – a dozen small changes can get the ball rolling toward spectacular results.