Losing weight always involves self-regulation. Self-regulation is a private process in which you set goals and then attempt to regulate your thinking, your behavior, and your motivation in accordance with these goals.
Interestingly, self-regulation works best with a certain kind of goal. The goal is called a mastery goal, which means the purpose of the goal is to increase your competence.
When it comes to losing weight, everyone needs to increase their competence in one or more weight-loss tasks (e.g., starting, overcoming procrastination, managing feelings, adhering to a weight-loss plan, accepting setbacks, planning for tomorrow, and many other weight-loss tasks).
Self-regulation, then, is the result of you becoming more competent at being able to do what you need to do to lose weight. As such, it should be within your reach.
