Losing Weight – The Diet

I may have mentioned this at some point before but the message is so strong, it need re-iterating, which is that diets are short-term, temporary and unsustainable in keeping the weight off your body. Millions of companies capitalise every day on a ‘quick-fix’ to influence a market desperate for success into buying their products.

The truth is, I didn’t need any magic pill, special diet or gastric band to look the way I wanted to look and lose those extra pounds that I’d gained over the years. The reason is, I wanted it more than anything else in the world and was determined to make the necessary adjustments to my lifestyle.

There is nothing wrong with choosing a particular diet, as long as you only use it as a boosting, kick-start mechanism to the overall lifestyle changes you’re going to have to make. Initially you will lose weight by going from one extreme to the other however you need to know that the majority of diets fail over a longer period and if you don’t have a contingency plan, you’re likely to return to your old, weight-gaining ways.

In this series so far we’ve looked at what these lifestyle changes, from avoiding temptation, to planning ahead, to not stocking anything that will negatively affect your progress. The lifestlye changes that you’ve probably heard before are the ones that are the most true: eating healthy, and regular exercise.

If you choose to do one of these things, eat healthy. For years I ate whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted and attended the gym regularly. When I hit my mid-20s, my metabolism wasn’t as quick as it once was and before I knew it, the poor diet had caught up with me. It was almost because I attended the gym that I thought I was covered. Perhaps if I had never gone, I’d have made the diet changes sooner?

I’m not saying you have to turn yourself into a religious Monk and be abstinent from anything remotely exciting! I myself love a treat now and again, but it’s being true to yourself, by being honest every day of your life. Have I done my best today in terms of eating and drinking right? What can I do tomorrow to be better? The more questions you ask yourself, the more you’re questioning the aspects of your life that you want to improve.

Adam