Diets are notoriously difficult to stick to as shown by the number of different ones around.
Celebrity endorsement must make money for those who put their name to these strange and faddy regimes, but even if they work in the short term the followers usually re-gain the weight eventually.
What we need is not a diet, but a lifestyle change. Of course, there is always a guru who will “help you change your life”.
The only person who can change your way of thinking about food is you.
Stop making excuses. The most common reasons you give yourself are:
- Healthy food is boring
- I don’t have time to prepare healthy food
- Healthy food is more expensive
- My illness prevents me from exercising
- I am on medication that stops me from losing weight
- Food is the only pleasure I get from life.
This is all negative and not correct. Next time you offer up one or more of these excuses for being overweight and unfit just listen to yourself. None of it is true. You do not need a lifestyle coach to tell you this. Work out your own methods of dealing with your excuses.
Stop thinking about food and what you are going to eat next – even if it is healthy. Think about what you are going to do after your meal (and I don’t mean washing up!).
Have set meal times and don’t snack it is not necessary, or eat in front of the television as you will eat much more without even realising.
Research has shown that distracted eaters do not pay close attention to food and are therefore not as aware of how much they have eaten – particularly when it comes to snack foods.
People who ate while distracted also tend to consume more than 25 per cent more calories later in the day as a result.
If you want to give yourself a treat, earn it. Do some extra cleaning or gardening, this is exercise in itself.
Think about the new clothes you can buy when you have dropped a size. You lose weight from all parts of your body when you follow a healthy regime – so you can even buy new shoes! And then you can go out dancing, as your joints will be better from less strain on carry the extra pounds.
Look on the positives of a new healthier slimmer fitter you. It is your body – the only one you will have – so treat it well. You look after your car or your pets – now look after yourself!
by Tina Foster
