Go Slowly

Short-term behavior change is pretty easy. Let's say you want to start the Flat Belly Diet. You are motivated. You bought the book. You bought the journal. You bought everything on the shopping list for the first week. You're off and running. The first week -- no problem because you have a plan.

Second week -- things get a little more challenging. Food choices are kind of limited. Not as much structure to the plan -- you are having to make more decisions -- what's with that? You bought the book -- you bought the journal -- but the motivation is starting to wane.

Third week -- eek gad! Let's not even go there -- since most of you know this goes already.

Diets work in the short term. As I told the group at Flowserve yesterday -- diets work because somehow they get you to cut down the amount you are eating.
Portion size, points, cutting out a food group or macro nutrient -- all of this restricts your calorie intake in one way or another. If you are following their plan, you will lose weight.

But back to the title of the post. Where is the inherent flaw in diets?

They ask you to make a ton of changes to your lifestyle all at once.

Have you seen a diet commercial that doesn't have fine print that talks about the results being tied to following a "sensible eating plan" combined with exercise? That, for most people, is asking them to rework their whole lifestyle. Can you find an extra 8 hours a week to be at the gym AND grocery shop every week with a list provided by the diet? That kind of change is unsustainable in the long haul. It is too much.

We can put our lives on hold for a diet in the short term but eventually life barges back in and needs attention.

After my talk yesterday, one of the woman commented that I didn't talk about exercise at all. True. I know how hard they sell exercise in the US. And there are good reasons to exercise. You CAN eat more if you are exercising. BUT...

If you are currently trying to lose weight and are not exercising -- don't try to make it happen all at once. Rome wasn't built in a day and you didn't get to where you are since yesterday.

Go slowly. Go sensibly. Weight loss (or just weight, for that matter) should NOT encompass your whole life's energies. How are you going to have time to do all of the things that make your heart sing, if your weight loss is taking up all your brain space.

Pick a starting point that seems sensible to you. If you need help finding a place to start get help -- ask a friend, email me, figure it out. Work on that starting point -- get good at it.

Once you have successfully integrated the starting point into your life, you can find another small change and work on it's successful integration. You shouldn't have to drop the first behavior to add the second.

Slowly, you will see your weight heading in the direction you have been waiting for. This won't get you on the commercials promising "DRAMATIC WEIGHT LOSS IN SIX WEEK!" but you will lose weight without having to sacrifice every spare minute of your life.

And more importantly -- you will be able to maintain your weight loss for more than 3weeks!