Diets always start tomorrow. Are you one of those people who start a diet only to give up a few days later or you stick at it, lose weight but then pile it back on as soon as you stop dieting? Dieting is very often not just a case of eating low fat or low-cal foods; it’s about a change of food lifestyle and maybe stopping a few habits you perhaps didn’t realise actually contribute to poor weight management. Here are a few reasons why your diet might not produce the results you want.
1. Meal Skipping
Contrary to what you might think, missing meals doesn’t mean that your body uses up fat stores. In fact it actually starts to conserve them and the normal bodily processes have to slow down to compensate resulting in reduced functionality. Breakfast is important because it kick starts your metabolism so your body can start consuming calories.
2. Planning
Well you’ve all heard – fail to plan, plan to fail – and not having a goal for your diet can contribute to lack of success. Plans need to include how much weight you want to lose, in what time frame, what sort of regime you want to follow even down to what foods you need to buy.
3. Fad Diets
They do exactly what it says on the tin. They are fads. If they were medically sound they wouldn’t be the latest trend. A diet is not a designer accessory. They may work for a week or so but most diets that claim huge weight loss in a short period of time do so by generating a large fluid loss, not fat, which will be regained as soon as you resume normal eating. Choose a diet that reflects your taste, budget and lifestyle.
4. Weigh away
Being constantly on the scales is not a good idea. Weight loss isn’t instantaneous and it isn’t always a good indication of how you are doing and can lead to you becoming disheartened by lack of results. For example if you have stepped up your exercise, muscle weighs more than fat and you won’t initially see the difference. Body measurements will give you a better idea – waist, hip and upper arm.
5. Sleep
You need to get sufficient sleep to ensure that your body is rested and your muscles have recovered sufficiently before starting the next exercise session.
6. Attitude
Attitude covers many things. – You can’t be bothered, you’re too busy, I’ll start tomorrow, you give up too easily, negative thinking and even overconfidence are all factors and reasons why your diet is dead in the water before you’ve even stuck your toe in.
7. Impulse buying
If you can’t resist throwing that pack of sticky buns or candy bar in your shopping basket, your food cupboard is probably full of all the wrong types of food. Get rid of it and replace it with healthy nutritional food you enjoy. Treat yourself to low calorie/low fat snacks instead.
8. Emotional Eating
Do you reach for the cheesecake or packet of chips when you’re feeling stressed? You need to find other ways to manage the times that you normally treat by consuming something unhealthy. Be creative in your thinking – maybe vent your frustration by writing thoughts in a journal or put the fork down and pick up the phone to a friend instead.
9. Boredom
If you don’t have a full active life there will be sustained periods of nothingness. Periods of inactivity and lack of stimulus often end up with you in front of the TV with buttered popcorn. By taking up a hobby and reducing the sedentary nature of your life you reduce the opportunity to snack.
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