There is nothing quite like those first few days of a new diet,
when your enthusiasm runs high and you fly on the promise that the
weight will be gone for good. Your level of commitment is unprecedented
as you weigh your pretzel sticks and count calories and combine your
food. You actually look forward to getting on the scales first thing in
the morning to see the spectacular weight loss you achieved.
With so many different diets available and all the promises they make, why is that most people do not achieve their goals? Why do so many people gain back the weight they have lost? It's very simple: because diets do not work. Despite the miraculous claims made by those who created them, diets do not help people achieve long term weight loss success.
Diet programs, plans and regimes operate on the principle of restriction and deprivation. It may be effective in the short run, but most people do not do well with this structure in long term settings.
Additionally, many of these so called "healthy" diets on the market today are frighteningly nutrient deficient. This means they automatically set you up for failure the minute you start them.
If your body is lacking essential nutrition, it is going to signal this through sensations of hunger. Did you ever eat an entire bag of potato chips only to find you were starving an hour later? That is because your body didn't pull any real nutrients from those chips and it is trying to tell you it needs proper nutrition.
For so many people who struggle with weight issues, the thought of giving up on diets is scary, because they associate this with giving up hope that they can ever lose weight. However, nothing could be further from the truth.
The key to long term success is changing the way you think about how it is you will shed those unwanted pounds.
Recognizing that diets are not the solution is the first step towards shifting your mindset. Rather than worrying about what you can't or shouldn't be eating, put the focus instead on making a conscious effort to eat healthier foods.
Evaluate what health benefits you would like to get from losing weight. Allow those to be your primary motivation as you begin to establish new eating patterns. By anchoring these changes with the goal of your overall health, you will substantially increase your chances of long term success.
The second important step involved in shifting your mindset away from a diet mentality is to accept a fundamental truth about weight loss: there is no quick fix, no magic wand, no easy solution.
In order to achieve long term success (i.e. you lose the weight and then keep it off), you must adopt new habits that will support this goal. You will face challenges as you change your behaviors and learn a new way of relating to your food choices.
The last major shift involves the realization that this a marathon, not a sprint. Cliched as it may be, this is critical in being able to sustain any long term goal, especially weight loss success. You are much more likely to enact lasting changes in your lifestyle if you do it slowly and consistently, over a period of time.
Knowing and accepting that diets are doomed to fail will actually free you to begin changing the way you think about losing weight. Once you shift your mindset to making choices that will benefit your health, you will be amazed at how quickly those many small changes add up to big losses.
With so many different diets available and all the promises they make, why is that most people do not achieve their goals? Why do so many people gain back the weight they have lost? It's very simple: because diets do not work. Despite the miraculous claims made by those who created them, diets do not help people achieve long term weight loss success.
Diet programs, plans and regimes operate on the principle of restriction and deprivation. It may be effective in the short run, but most people do not do well with this structure in long term settings.
Additionally, many of these so called "healthy" diets on the market today are frighteningly nutrient deficient. This means they automatically set you up for failure the minute you start them.
If your body is lacking essential nutrition, it is going to signal this through sensations of hunger. Did you ever eat an entire bag of potato chips only to find you were starving an hour later? That is because your body didn't pull any real nutrients from those chips and it is trying to tell you it needs proper nutrition.
For so many people who struggle with weight issues, the thought of giving up on diets is scary, because they associate this with giving up hope that they can ever lose weight. However, nothing could be further from the truth.
The key to long term success is changing the way you think about how it is you will shed those unwanted pounds.
Recognizing that diets are not the solution is the first step towards shifting your mindset. Rather than worrying about what you can't or shouldn't be eating, put the focus instead on making a conscious effort to eat healthier foods.
Evaluate what health benefits you would like to get from losing weight. Allow those to be your primary motivation as you begin to establish new eating patterns. By anchoring these changes with the goal of your overall health, you will substantially increase your chances of long term success.
The second important step involved in shifting your mindset away from a diet mentality is to accept a fundamental truth about weight loss: there is no quick fix, no magic wand, no easy solution.
In order to achieve long term success (i.e. you lose the weight and then keep it off), you must adopt new habits that will support this goal. You will face challenges as you change your behaviors and learn a new way of relating to your food choices.
The last major shift involves the realization that this a marathon, not a sprint. Cliched as it may be, this is critical in being able to sustain any long term goal, especially weight loss success. You are much more likely to enact lasting changes in your lifestyle if you do it slowly and consistently, over a period of time.
Knowing and accepting that diets are doomed to fail will actually free you to begin changing the way you think about losing weight. Once you shift your mindset to making choices that will benefit your health, you will be amazed at how quickly those many small changes add up to big losses.
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