In essence it means balance. Balance as in integration, holistic, wellness, health, core and walking the center path. These have become buzzwords for a philosophy meant to guide our daily thoughts and actions away from high stress and its effects on our lives.

The usual solution for dealing with mental stress is to counter it with physical activity to burn up all the stress-related chemicals. While factors that contribute to stress might still be there after exercise, working out can leave you more clearheaded to address them in a way that could lead to resolution.

The reasons you have for wanting to lose weight are personal, but these reasons can add more stress to our lives. These reasons could even prevent us from accomplishing the weight loss if viewed from a negative or self-defeating perspective. Whether the weight-loss goal is driven by health or aesthetic purposes, the proof of results is often based on external cues. This kind of proof is subjective and beholden to our perceptions. Since perceptions can fool us, let’s reduce their role. Let’s rethink our goal markers and find proof in other sources. Here are a few thought shifters:

If you want to lose 10 pounds: Don’t look at the scale exclusively. Weight is an ever-fluctuating number, and it’s too hard to get an accurate reading. After all, it’s possible to lose five pounds of water in a day of normal activity by simply breathing. Instead, keep track of your workout performance. Is that walk you are doing every day getting easier? Are you running farther in the same amount of time? Do you not feel as sore from your workouts? If you can answer yes to these questions, then you can safely believe that you are on the right track to significant and real weight loss.

If you want more definition: This is a tricky one. I have many clients who have a hard time believing their bodies are getting more toned and that those lines forming on the sides of the stomach are actually their abs defining themselves. If you can feel yourself "knitting" tighter, or if that weight you have been lifting is feeling lighter, these are signs that you are indeed toning up and getting more definition.

Try revisiting your goals and see whether you can think of other ways to prove to yourself that your hard work is paying off. Keep this mind: If you are putting in the work and are dedicated to your improvement, you’ve already succeeded.

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Reggie Palma is an exercise physiologist and personal trainer. His website is fitnessatyourdoorhawaii.com. Email questions to Fitnessatyourdoor@Mac.com.