{"id":2196,"date":"2025-09-03T11:41:37","date_gmt":"2025-09-03T09:41:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celeste.hr\/motivation-for-weight-loss-when-results-are-missing-a-psychological-approach-to-changing-habits\/"},"modified":"2025-09-03T11:41:37","modified_gmt":"2025-09-03T09:41:37","slug":"motivation-for-weight-loss-when-results-are-missing-a-psychological-approach-to-changing-habits","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celeste.hr\/en\/motivation-for-weight-loss-when-results-are-missing-a-psychological-approach-to-changing-habits\/","title":{"rendered":"Motivation for Weight Loss When Results Are Missing: A Psychological Approach to Changing Habits"},"content":{"rendered":"

Author: Gordan Malekovi\u0107, MD, coach, psychotherapist<\/em><\/p>\n

Motivation for weight loss <\/strong>often starts strong, but the moment the scale \u201cstalls,\u201d a feeling arises that the effort is pointless. I often hear: \u201cI\u2019ve been following the plan for weeks, and after the first few kilograms, the scale just stopped. Why should I continue?\u201d This is the moment when people most often give up, even though real changes are actually happening in the body that the scale doesn\u2019t register.<\/strong> Scientific research confirms that after just a few weeks, hormonal profiles begin to change, cortisol levels decrease, and insulin sensitivity increases \u2014 all of which are prerequisites for later weight loss. In other words, the body is preparing for results, even if the numbers don\u2019t show it yet.<\/strong> This is precisely when it\u2019s important to build psychological resilience and understand that the scale is not the only indicator of progress. <\/p>\n

Where does weight loss motivation disappear?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The brain craves quick rewards<\/strong>, and when it doesn\u2019t receive them, a sense of meaninglessness can arise.
One client told me she felt \u201clike she was walking uphill with no end in sight.\u201d When we started tracking other indicators \u2014 better sleep, easier breathing, more energy \u2014 she realized that change was, in fact, happening. Research shows that these \u201cimmeasurable\u201d shifts are actually stronger predictors of long-term success than the number on the scale alone. Weight loss motivation isn\u2019t just about the scale \u2014 it\u2019s about the feeling that life is getting a little easier each week. When we accept that, the scale stops being the sole judge, and it becomes easier to stay on the path of change. <\/p>\n

How to build new habits?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Studies on habit formation show that it takes an average of about 66 days for a new routine to become automatic.<\/strong>
This means that frustration during the first months is completely normal \u2014 the habit is still in its \u201ctrial phase.\u201d One client who tracked his daily energy levels and mood noticed that his mood improved even when the scale didn\u2019t move. That realization motivated him to keep going, and after ten weeks, the weight loss followed as well. Change is a process that both the body and the brain need time to ‘settle into.’<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Stay on track with support<\/strong><\/h2>\n

People give up most often when they\u2019re alone.<\/strong> When someone has support \u2014 whether professional or personal \u2014 motivation tends to last longer.
That\u2019s why at Celeste Balance<\/a> we combine a nutritional plan with psychological support, because one without the other quickly falls short. Research by the American Psychological Association shows that programs including emotional support have twice the chance of long-term success (APA \u2013 Weight Control).<\/a> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Author: Gordan Malekovi\u0107, MD, coach, psychotherapist Motivation for weight loss often starts strong, but the moment the scale \u201cstalls,\u201d a feeling arises that the effort is pointless. I often hear: \u201cI\u2019ve been following the plan for weeks, and after the first few kilograms, the scale just stopped. Why should I continue?\u201d This is the moment […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2195,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2196","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-coaching"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celeste.hr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2196","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celeste.hr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celeste.hr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celeste.hr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celeste.hr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2196"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/celeste.hr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2196\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celeste.hr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2195"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celeste.hr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2196"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celeste.hr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2196"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celeste.hr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2196"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}