One of the more interesting analogies I like making is that Weight Loss and Debt Reduction have a great deal in common, not the least of which is that both are very hard for a lot of folks to succeed. If you have put on a lot of weight over time, it is hard to figure out how to lose it again, and it is the same thing with debt (i.e. it is rare that someone suddenly finds themselves in debt, it takes a while to build up a lot of debt to the point where you get upset about it).

A more interesting way to look at this is that losing weight and reducing debt both take a long time, but your progress with both are actually (usually) quite different.

If you try to lose weight and find a successful way to do it (via exercise, diet or a combination of those), typically you lose weight quicker at the start of the process than you do as you approach your ideal (or goal) weight. If you are trying to lose a lot of weight this is actually even more obvious, but this is what I have seen when I have lost weight as well.

Simplified Graph to show how weight and debt reduction take different paths to the same end point

With Debt Reduction, getting instant gratification is a lot harder to do, assuming that you are attempting to pay down debt because you are close to living “pay cheque to pay cheque”, so finding that extra cash to pay it down is a lot harder to find. At the start of your debt reduction plan, your debt will not be dropping quickly, however, if you persevere and remain constant with the money you are paying your debts down with (if not increasing it a little), you will actually start paying down debt at a much faster rate. This portion of most reduction schemes must be one of the reasons abandon their debt pay down plans (i.e. no real quick fix or quick gratification either).

Don’t get me wrong, I still think losing weight and Debt reduction are both really hard to do, I am simply saying that should you be trying to reduce your debt, keep in mind that at the start of your process you may get frustrated but if you stay with it things should get better quickly.