Current levels of overweight and obesity, along with weight-related diseases, have made weight control a top health priority across America. Yet, statistics indicate that the average weight loss with conventional diets is only 5-8 pounds per year. So why do we find dieting so difficult? According to a new survey(1), the answer seems to be: because we're making 3 fundamental mistakes. We don't have a good enough incentive; we allow ourselves to starve; and we cannot cope with the "bad days". A weight loss survey arranges by annecollins.com asked dieters to pick the three biggest problems they faced when dieting. The most common problems reported were: “Inadequate motivation to lose weight” (76%); "Hunger" (72%); and "Bad Days" (70%). These results will come as no surprise to most dieters, they highlight the importance of motivation in the dieting process. We examine how these problems occur and what steps can be taken to overcome them.
Why Do We Need an Incentive?
We gain weight because we take in more energy than we use. Either because we eat too many calories or burn too few, or both. Therefore, if we want to reduce weight, we must improve our eating and exercise habits. And it's not easy, because let's face it - old habits don't just go away, especially if they involve cutting out our favorite treats. We need a strong stimulus to help us change. Specifically, we need an answer to the question, "How exactly will I benefit from losing weight?" When faced with this question, many dieters do not know the answer. Those who do usually answer, "I will feel better" or "My health will improve." Others explain that they are trying to lose weight to please their doctor or partner, or simply because they are "overweight". None of these reasons are strong enough to help us succeed. So when temptation, we are unable to resist.
What type of incentive is best?
Our motivation to lose weight must be based on a selfish, concrete benefit. A good example might be an upcoming beach vacation, a family event, or achieving a specific mobility or fitness goal. It must be as specific as possible (general benefits are useless) and ideally relate to a fixed date. Moreover, it must be selfish. Loss weight to please others rarely works. This advice I give to my clients is very simple. Don't bother dieting unless you have good motivation. Because no matter how good the diet is, no matter how valuable the exercise plan, if you don't have a compelling reason to change your habits, you won't succeed.
Hunger Kills Diets,
Most dieters still believe that calories are their enemy. Less eat, the faster they are likely to lose weight. It is not true. In fact, the less we eat, the hungrier we are and the more easily we fall into temptation. The human body is trained to eat when it is hungry, and no amount of willpower can neutralize this basic urge. This is why binge-eating is such a common response to low-calorie diets.
How to Avoid Hunger
No rocket science here. Avoiding hunger simply means eating regularly throughout the day and keeping your calorie intake above 1000-1200 per day. It thus prevents hunger, reduces the urge to overeat, and also helps maintain a regularly high level of calorie burning.
Eat too much rather than too little
We all have days when we feel extra hungry, even when we're on a diet. That's no problem - just eat more! It is always better to eat a little too much than too little. Can it delay your weight loss? Yes. But so what? Taking a few extra days to reach your goal is not a problem. The real danger is lack of food and eventually starvation and depression. This is a recipe.
Bad days and the problem of perfection
No dieter is perfect. The truth is that all dieters experience "bad days" or are tempted from time to time. Sadly, most dieters insist on "perfection". They cannot tolerate these outages. So if (say) they visit a friend and end up eating 2 tubs of ice cream and a box of cookies, they go to pieces. "I'm useless!" they are crying. "I'm a failure!" Overwhelmed by the guilt of not being perfect, they then quit the diet in disgust.
It's the guilt that hurts In this situation
The actual overeating is usually quite harmless. I mean, we need to eat a huge amount of food (3500+ calories) to gain even one pound of weight. Actual damage is caused by consequential fault. And that's what we have to deal with.
Guilt comes from trying to be perfect
All dieters make mistakes, and that's perfectly normal. Occasional overeating is no cause for alarm, much less guilt. Even my most successful clients—those who lost over 100 pounds—had periodic breakouts. The difference is that they didn't see themselves as "perfect" individuals. So they felt "entitled" to make the occasional mistake, and so should you. Once you accept this, dieting will become much easier for you.
We need support to make these changes
To overcome the 3 problems described above, finding the right support is an essential first step. This is just as important as choosing the right diet plan because no matter how good a diet is, it cannot motivate you to stay on track – only humans can. Dieting is ten times easier when you get encouragement from others.
Notes:
1. Weight Loss Survey (October 2005) by annecollins.com A total of 17,403 subjects answered the survey. They were asked to choose 3 from a list of 10 dietary problems. The results were as follows: (1) Inadequate incentive (76%). (2) Hunger (72%), (3) Bad days (70%), (4) Boredom (69%), (5) Stress (60%), (6) Interference from others (51%), (7) Eating out too much (32%), (8) Eating on the run (28%), (9) Poor health (5%), (10) Lack of sleep (1%).
You must be logged in to post a comment.