GFE Podcast #59: How to start a diet

• Tweet
• Pin It

If you’re tired of starting a new diet over and over again then this podcast is for you because there are a few great tips to help you start a diet and stick to it.

Here’s what you’ll learn:

• A simple recipe for success
• How to start thinking to guarantee success
• Why it’s important to focus on where you are now
• Why most diets fail
• 3 simple steps to take first

TRANSCRIPT

How many diets have you tried?

I’d like to ask you this question because what I’ve found with many people I talk to is that they have tried many different diets in their lifetime, from weight watchers, to the soup diet, to the shake diet, or whatever other shiny name the next diet might come under.

If you’re sitting there nodding your head and trying to count how many, then you’re not alone. For some people this goes back to early teenage years, which is quite a scary thing don’t you think?

How much success have you had with these diets?

Over that time you’ve probably experienced some successes and also failed a few times too. But for the times you did experience success how long has it lasted?

Stories from the many people I talk to tell me it doesn’t last that long. Have you lost weight only to gain it all back again, plus some?

It’s a common thing and there are even research studies to back this up and show that most people who follow a ‘diet’ program usually gain it all back.

So today I thought we’d talk about how to start a diet and stick to it. Look I get emails from people every day, I also work with clients on this stuff and I know losing weight is something that most of us want and yet for some reason we just keep gaining, or we can’t get started, or it just doesn’t stick long enough for us to make any progress.

This dieting cycle can be very self defeating and lead to self beating, disappointment, frustration, self criticism, and constantly feeling like a total failure because you’ve given up on yourself again and you’re back where you started!

In the end this cycle leads you nowhere and you’re left going around in circles and still wishing you could change it. You’re left searching for another ‘diet’ solution because you really want to lose weight and feel great about your life.

Well let me ask you a question? Are you tired of starting your diet over & over & over again?

If the answer is YES then YOU CAN CHANGE IT!

I’ll be sharing a few tips in just a moment but before we delve into that I just wanted to briefly mention that we will be opening the Good Food Eating virtual Nutrition School on 26^th October. As the name suggests it is virtual, meaning it’s an online nutrition school and community that will help to make it easier for you to reach your goals whether they be weight loss, reducing inflammation, regulating your blood sugars, cooking and preparing meals, or just eating healthier.

We are going to have online classes and workshops to help you with loads of stuff. So I just wanted to make a brief mention of it and I will tell you more about it when we get a bit closer to the date. I’ll also be holding some free webinars to give you a tour and tell you all about what’s inside the Good Food Eating virtual Nutrition School.

For now let’s get back to the very important question.

Are you tired of starting your diet over & over & over again?

If the answer is YES then YOU CAN CHANGE IT! You absolutely can!

Here’s the simple recipe for success:

When you can stop ‘dieting’ and find one plan that is going to suit you as a long term lifestyle plan, then you can take small steps every day to adjust the diet to your eating style and keep working toward overall improvements. This is the key to successful weight loss, improved health and a life that’s free from the ‘diet’ stress.

So the first step in starting a diet is to stop thinking it’s a diet!

Our diet is simply what we eat on a daily basis. It is not something we ‘go on’ for a while like many of us have been led to believe. I know you’re an intelligent, rational human being so just think about how ridiculous this sounds.

I am going to go on a crash diet for 12 weeks then go back to eating as much junk as I want.

Sure you may lose some weight if you followed a crash diet for 12 weeks but what would happen once you go back to eating as much junk as you want? You’d put it ALL back on again and you’d be back to square one. You’ve probably even done this before yourself at least once, if not more.

So being intelligent rational human beings we can agree that this method is ridiculous and dieting does not work.

So the first step in starting a diet is to stop thinking it’s a diet!

Just think of your diet as the way you want to be eating every day to feel your best. It’s not something you do for just 12 weeks, it’s something you do for life, to have energy, to feel healthy and happy every day for the rest of your life.

Your diet is not something you follow to inflict pain and discomfort on you. It should be something that you enjoy. Sure it takes a while to switch your thinking if your present diet is full of processed food and junk. But start thinking habits for life, rather than just the next 12 weeks.

When you can kick this ‘dieting’ thinking you’re on the fast track to success because this is when true changes can start to occur.

The second tip is to start from where YOU are.

If your diet has been filled with pizzas, burger buns, twinkies, cookies and candy, then changing to a ‘real food’ diet and lifestyle can take a bit of getting used to. It’s not going to happen overnight and may take you a little time to make the transition.

Usually you will pick a certain type of eating plan to follow because you’re looking for some guidelines to lead the way. I understand that because often we don’t know what to do.

But as you are going through this process don’t worry about anyone else, things you read on facebook, or why this ‘diet’ is not working for you when it seems to be working for everyone else.

We are all individuals so just start from where YOU are and ease yourself into it in your own time. Stop obsessing over how much weight you can lose, getting it all right, time management, meals, cooking, organizing, food, eating out…ahhhh…so much to think about it’s overwhelming, right?!

Yes it can be overwhelming so just realize where you’re at and work on it one step at a time. Remember this is not just for 12 weeks; this is for life so you do have time to make adjustments and improvements as you go.

This is often why ‘diets’ often fail is that you haven’t adjusted the diet to YOU.

Trying to fit into a ‘diets’ rules and regulations exactly as they are rarely works. Sure you have to change some of your habits to make them healthier but you need to adjust them to YOUR life and YOUR eating style.

So let go of expectations and take your diet on as a long-term journey and a process of discovery. Getting back to ‘real food’ and the fundamentals of cooking and nutrition is the best way to claiming back your weight and your health and happiness. But for most people it doesn’t happen overnight. You are not alone in this, so have patience and enjoy the journey.

Okay, so you’ve stopped thinking of this diet as your next quick fix and you’ve decided that you want to be healthy and happy for life. Next you’ve realised that you have quite a few habits to change so you are just going to start where you are and work from there.

What’s next?

Next you start with cutting out or cutting down the processed and packaged foods and snacks one by one. You don’t have to do it all at once, just ease yourself into it and go at your own pace.

If it comes in a packet, ask yourself if you really need it. Replace your common processed foods with something healthier. For example: If you eat McDonalds burgers 3 days a week then that’s habit you can work on.

What can you do to overcome that habit?

You could make a healthier burger option at home and even include some homemade fries so at least you get past actually going to McDonalds because even the act of going there is addictive in itself. Once you make that transition to cooking something at home, then you could start adding in something different.

If it’s all overwhelming, think about the processed and packaged food you eat, ask yourself what could get the cut, choose one or two things and then give yourself a week or two to make this first adjustment before moving onto the next thing.

You might think this sounds like it will take forever but if you’re sitting there right now still treaing water and going around in circles then will it really matter if it takes time as long as you are moving forward. We all want a fast fix and so we run like a bull at a gate supercharged and ready for massive action, only to find ourselves unable to keep it together. So small steps are the key to long-term change so just start from where you are and work from there.

The next thing to focus on is cutting out or cutting down on the sugar. A lot of the processed food you eat will contain most of the sugar you eat as well. So as you are taking those initial steps to cut out the processed and packaged foods, lots of sugar will get the cut in the process and that’s a good thing.

There are ways you can manage sugar cravings and you can listen to the tips I shared about this back in podcast #20. When you can cut down on processed and packaged foods, and the sugar you will start to find you can manage things a lot better in terms of food and cravings.

This is because your hormones start to balance up, your blood sugar starts to regulate, your appetite control is working as it should and so things start becoming easier and then you can start drilling down into further improvements. But at first you have to get past those initial stages and that is the toughest thing to do.

Another way to get started on a new diet is to change one meal at a time
Like I said, don’t try to overload yourself with changing everything at once, for many people this doesn’t work. Just start with breakfast. Work on feeding yourself the healthiest, most nutritious breakfast that you can. Then once you have a good routine and a few meal options and you’re in a regular habit, move onto lunch. Once you get your lunches under control then work on dinners, then snacks. It’s better to do it slowly and develop long-term habit that you can maintain. Remember this is not just a 12 week diet, this is your life.

Another tip is to start planning ahead
Eating a ‘real food’ diet means you have to plan, otherwise you plan to fail!

Unfortunately there’s no way around this, so you need to learn to think ahead and plan so that you don’t grab foods in a hurry and if you’re busy or stressed you don’t want to reach for the naughties. I shared a podcast on meal planning recently, episode #57. Take a few tips from that podcast and get into making a plan every week.

You might not stick to it exactly at first but unless you start doing it you won’t get better at it. Plan ahead so you can keep snack foods handy, make bulk meals and batch cook so you have leftovers, and freeze meals so you will stick to your plan.

• So the first step in starting a diet is to stop thinking it’s a diet!
• The second tip is to start from where YOU are.
• Next you start with cutting out or cutting down the processed and packaged foods and snacks one by one. You don’t have to do it all at once, just ease yourself into it and go at your own pace
• The next thing to focus on is cutting out or cutting down on the sugar
• And the last tip is to start planning ahead

So what about sticking to it?

Well trust me, if you can get all these ducks in a row you will be much further down the track and chances are you won’t want to go back down the road you’ve just travelled. By the time you go through this process you will be in the right mindset to stick to your new life diet, because you know now that it’s not just for 12 weeks it’s for life.

So if you’re stuck right now all I want you to do is stop thinking about the changes you want to make as going on a diet. Do you want to feel happier and healthier in your own skin so you can fully enjoy life?

If the answer is Yes then tart from where you are right now. What one thing could you start working on today?

Think about it and go and do it!

I’ll leave you to go and take some action.

And just remember we’ll have the Good Food Eating virtual Nutrition School open at the end of the month where you can get some more help and support to make this process easier. I hope you’ll be joining us there because I’d love to get to know you and support you in your journey.

For now go and take some action on just one thing and I look forward to hearing about it.

Take care.

• Tweet
• Pin It