How many times have you decided to that it’s time to make a change and you start following a crazy diet in order to achieve quick results and weight loss? The good news is that you are not alone – millions of Americans go on diets every year and spend an incredible amount of money on weight loss supplements, books, training and exercise gear, gym memberships and other items promising quick results. The bad news is that diets are not a good long-term solution to health and weight loss. You may lose a couple of pounds and feel motivated, but the best way to achieve long lasting results and to completely overhaul your health is to make healthy eating and exercise part of your lifestyle. Most diets will consist of reduced calorie intake, an increase in exercise and the use of prescription appetite suppressants – this combination will help you initially drop the weight, but this initial loss is usually only muscle and water weight and not fat.
Another issue with dieting is that it will leave most people feeling hungry, tired, frustrated and even discouraged. This is because diets are usually short term and not very healthy for our bodies or our overall well-being. Now that we know that dieting is not the answer for weight loss, we know that the key is a lifestyle change that you will follow for the rest of your life. This doesn’t mean that you will be restricted for the rest of your life or that you’ll never get to enjoy a slice of pizza – a lifestyle change means that no matter where you are in life, you will always be mindful of what you put in your body and how you take care of yourself to manage your weight and mental health.
Do you know what the main differences are between dieting and lifestyle changes – the key is to develop behavior that you can stick to for the long haul. This includes:
- Eating healthy, nutritious and whole foods to nourish your body
- Practice consuming food in moderation versus restricting yourself
- Exercise on a regular and consistent basis, and make an effort to change up your routine so you can feel challenged and strong
- Rely on your body to tell you what you need
- Lose weight at a safe and healthy pace – no more than one to two pounds per week
- Measure your progress by more than just watching the numbers on the scale – notice how your clothes fit and how you feel
- Enjoy the journey versus feeling an obligation to force yourself to eat right and exercise
When you focus on making long term lifestyle changes instead of trying out different crash diets you will notice that you are less likely to experience extreme hunger, food deprivation, weakness, exhaustion and mental stress. You will also be kinder to your body and learn how to listen to what you need – this means that you won’t feel fatigue, muscle exhaustion or burn out. Even though weight loss might feel like it’s happening slower you should know that it will be more permanent. Research shows that people who diet short term are more likely to regain most, if not all, of the weight that they originally lost, which can be extremely discouraging.
If you are ready to embark on your weight loss journey, we encourage you to focus on the long road ahead. As tempting as it may be to try out different diets in an effort to lose weight quickly, just remember that this is not healthy for your body and will likely result in you regaining all of the weight you lost. Instead, focus on creating lifestyle changes and adopting behaviors that will help you focus on your overall health and well-being. Making the effort to change your way of thinking and trying to make lifestyle changes so you can look and feel better is doable, sensible and essential for your health. Diets are trendy and offer empty promises – you will feel better physically and psychologically if you learn what feels good for your body.
If you are ready to take control of your health and make the lifestyle changes necessary to look good and feel good, contact our team at A New Me. We will guide you and help you make the unique changes you need to commit to so you can be the best version of yourself. We look forward to working with you soon.
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