Everybody these days is on a diet. You hear it all the time. “I need to go on a diet.” “My diet is hard to stay on.” “How is your diet going?” “Don’t you think you should start a diet?” Well, I hope they are on a diet. If not, I guess they are not eating at all. A diet is the foods that you eat, nothing more, nothing less. I mean we all have an addiction to food, don’t we? There are healthy diets, fat-free diets, low-sodium diets, diets that count calories, diets that count carbohydrates, good diets, bad diets, diets that work and diets that don’t. I get so tired of hearing about diets and dieting especially from people that obviously look like they need to change their diet. I feel like saying some choice words to those people. I will not say it here, because this is not the place nor do I have any room to talk.
I mean, I know I’m overweight. I know I have not paid attention and have completely lost control of the foods that I have eaten in the past. I’m huge! I know it. I know that I’m prone to addiction. I have violated the cardinal rule, ‘Thou shalt not weigh more than thy refrigerator.’ I know my health is in dire need of an overhaul. As I said yesterday, I had to make lifestyle changes if I was going to survive. Well, I’m doing something about it. I’ve lost 130 pounds! How is that for weight loss? I have started Weight Watchers® and it is working for me. I think people that have a problem just need to find a diet that can work for them and STOP CALLING IT DIETING! People should realize that a diet is just the foods that you eat. It is NOT something that you do until you lose the weight. It is a lifestyle change! I cannot emphasize that enough. IT IS A LIFESTYLE CHANGE! If you do not see it that way, you will probably fall back into those same bad habits that you had before. Before you know it, you have gained the thirty pounds you lost and another twenty pounds on top of that. I know all about the yo-yo effect. I have started so many “diets” and then gained the weight back. I will not list them here because I do not think it was the so-called “diets” fault and I do not want to spread any blame. It was my fault for not making the changes in my life to live a healthy lifestyle.
What is a good diet? You need to choose healthy foods for your diet. People have different needs. Everyone is different. What is right for me, may not work for you. I’m on a low-sodium, low-fat diet. Because of my medical condition, this is the proper diet for me. I am not going to pretend to be a physician or a nutritionist. I advise you, if you are obese like me, see a doctor and seek their advice on what diet you need before starting a program. Decide what diet will work for you. Maybe you just need to cut out the fried foods and that will be enough for you. Maybe you need to do something about that addiction you have for chocolate. Maybe you need to stop drinking regular soft drinks. Maybe you are like me and need to do lots of things. I am not going to try to design a diet and list all the foods that you need. You can do that yourself by looking up information on the Internet. A good start would be to look at the food pyramid and go from there if you really do not have a clue what foods you should be eating. I think that you, with the help of your physician if needed, can decide what foods your body needs.
There are several key factors that I have found work for me.
1. It is a lifestyle change. You must decide that this is a choice that you can live with for the rest of your life. Not just until you lose the weight. Not just until you can fit into those jeans or bathing suit. Not just until you can see your toes. It is a change that you must decide to make for the rest of your life! You must have this kind of determination.
2. It must include your favorite foods. If you like chocolate, french fries, chips, or ice cream, you must include them in your diet somewhere. There is no way that you are not going to eat your favorite foods forever. Remember, this is a lifestyle change. Otherwise, you will fail because you will eat the foods you love. Then you will be feeling guilty. However, if you plan for them, then you can eat anything.
3. Track what you eat. Keep a journal with all the foods that you eat each day. By knowing what you are eating, you can find out where you are making your mistakes and correct them. If counting calories is your thing, then keep track of them here. Write down everything. You will be surprised how many times you have a taste here and there.
4. Set goals and track your results. You cannot get there if you do not know where there is. You have to set realistic goals. Do not make a goal that is unachievable. You are not going to lose weight overnight. It took a long time to gain the weight and it will take time to lose it. If you lose just one pound a week for a year, you will have lost 52 pounds. Track your results and reward yourself when you reach your goals.
5. Now I’m going to say the word that every one of you hates. Here it comes, EXERCISE. Yes, I said it. You have to exercise. Your body needs movement to burn off calories. It does not mean you have to go out and join a gym that you are not going to attend anyway. Any movement will do. It can be cleaning the house, walking, walking the dog, parking farther away from the store, stretching, weight lifting, tennis or anything else that will move your muscles and get your blood and sweat flowing. Hopefully, not from the same place. haha
6. Find support. You can find support from family and friends. You could join Weight Watchers® like I have. But find someone you can talk with about the feelings that you are having. This helps keep you going and motivates you as well as give you ideas of things you can do and ways to prepare meals that both taste good and are good for you.
7. Plan before you go out to eat. If you can, look up the menu of the restaurant on the internet before you go out. Most restaurants list the nutritional information on the internet and have it available at their establishment as well. Look up information on the fast food places you eat at most and make healthier choices. You will be surprised some of the things that you think would be healthy actually are not. Some salads out there are extremely high in calories.
8. Drink plenty of water. I know many people do not like water. I used to be one of them. I find if I use ice, I like it better. Try bottled water, if you don’t like tap. Try flavored bottled water. Try using the flavored powders. Try making Kool-Aid with a sugar substitute. I do not know why water helps, but it does. I’m sure it must clean the system somehow.
9. Do simple common sense things. Bake instead of fry. Plan your meals. Use a sugar substitute instead of sugar. Use low sodium salt. Buy low-fat items. Keep the junk food for the kids out of sight. Take extra steps when you can.
I hope this helps motivate you, inspire you and gives you some guidance. If you are like me, you have probably heard a lot of this before. The reason it sounds so familiar is because it works. The main thing is to make up your mind that you can do it and you are going to make the lifestyle changes needed to accomplish your goals. I wish you the best of luck. God Bless You.
I mean, I know I’m overweight. I know I have not paid attention and have completely lost control of the foods that I have eaten in the past. I’m huge! I know it. I know that I’m prone to addiction. I have violated the cardinal rule, ‘Thou shalt not weigh more than thy refrigerator.’ I know my health is in dire need of an overhaul. As I said yesterday, I had to make lifestyle changes if I was going to survive. Well, I’m doing something about it. I’ve lost 130 pounds! How is that for weight loss? I have started Weight Watchers® and it is working for me. I think people that have a problem just need to find a diet that can work for them and STOP CALLING IT DIETING! People should realize that a diet is just the foods that you eat. It is NOT something that you do until you lose the weight. It is a lifestyle change! I cannot emphasize that enough. IT IS A LIFESTYLE CHANGE! If you do not see it that way, you will probably fall back into those same bad habits that you had before. Before you know it, you have gained the thirty pounds you lost and another twenty pounds on top of that. I know all about the yo-yo effect. I have started so many “diets” and then gained the weight back. I will not list them here because I do not think it was the so-called “diets” fault and I do not want to spread any blame. It was my fault for not making the changes in my life to live a healthy lifestyle.
What is a good diet? You need to choose healthy foods for your diet. People have different needs. Everyone is different. What is right for me, may not work for you. I’m on a low-sodium, low-fat diet. Because of my medical condition, this is the proper diet for me. I am not going to pretend to be a physician or a nutritionist. I advise you, if you are obese like me, see a doctor and seek their advice on what diet you need before starting a program. Decide what diet will work for you. Maybe you just need to cut out the fried foods and that will be enough for you. Maybe you need to do something about that addiction you have for chocolate. Maybe you need to stop drinking regular soft drinks. Maybe you are like me and need to do lots of things. I am not going to try to design a diet and list all the foods that you need. You can do that yourself by looking up information on the Internet. A good start would be to look at the food pyramid and go from there if you really do not have a clue what foods you should be eating. I think that you, with the help of your physician if needed, can decide what foods your body needs.
There are several key factors that I have found work for me.
1. It is a lifestyle change. You must decide that this is a choice that you can live with for the rest of your life. Not just until you lose the weight. Not just until you can fit into those jeans or bathing suit. Not just until you can see your toes. It is a change that you must decide to make for the rest of your life! You must have this kind of determination.
2. It must include your favorite foods. If you like chocolate, french fries, chips, or ice cream, you must include them in your diet somewhere. There is no way that you are not going to eat your favorite foods forever. Remember, this is a lifestyle change. Otherwise, you will fail because you will eat the foods you love. Then you will be feeling guilty. However, if you plan for them, then you can eat anything.
3. Track what you eat. Keep a journal with all the foods that you eat each day. By knowing what you are eating, you can find out where you are making your mistakes and correct them. If counting calories is your thing, then keep track of them here. Write down everything. You will be surprised how many times you have a taste here and there.
4. Set goals and track your results. You cannot get there if you do not know where there is. You have to set realistic goals. Do not make a goal that is unachievable. You are not going to lose weight overnight. It took a long time to gain the weight and it will take time to lose it. If you lose just one pound a week for a year, you will have lost 52 pounds. Track your results and reward yourself when you reach your goals.
5. Now I’m going to say the word that every one of you hates. Here it comes, EXERCISE. Yes, I said it. You have to exercise. Your body needs movement to burn off calories. It does not mean you have to go out and join a gym that you are not going to attend anyway. Any movement will do. It can be cleaning the house, walking, walking the dog, parking farther away from the store, stretching, weight lifting, tennis or anything else that will move your muscles and get your blood and sweat flowing. Hopefully, not from the same place. haha
6. Find support. You can find support from family and friends. You could join Weight Watchers® like I have. But find someone you can talk with about the feelings that you are having. This helps keep you going and motivates you as well as give you ideas of things you can do and ways to prepare meals that both taste good and are good for you.
7. Plan before you go out to eat. If you can, look up the menu of the restaurant on the internet before you go out. Most restaurants list the nutritional information on the internet and have it available at their establishment as well. Look up information on the fast food places you eat at most and make healthier choices. You will be surprised some of the things that you think would be healthy actually are not. Some salads out there are extremely high in calories.
8. Drink plenty of water. I know many people do not like water. I used to be one of them. I find if I use ice, I like it better. Try bottled water, if you don’t like tap. Try flavored bottled water. Try using the flavored powders. Try making Kool-Aid with a sugar substitute. I do not know why water helps, but it does. I’m sure it must clean the system somehow.
9. Do simple common sense things. Bake instead of fry. Plan your meals. Use a sugar substitute instead of sugar. Use low sodium salt. Buy low-fat items. Keep the junk food for the kids out of sight. Take extra steps when you can.
I hope this helps motivate you, inspire you and gives you some guidance. If you are like me, you have probably heard a lot of this before. The reason it sounds so familiar is because it works. The main thing is to make up your mind that you can do it and you are going to make the lifestyle changes needed to accomplish your goals. I wish you the best of luck. God Bless You.
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Sing to the LORD, all the earth;
Proclaim good tidings of His salvation from day to day.
1 Chronicles 16:23