Today is the first day of my new diet, and I feel both excited to get started and sad because I’m having to start a new diet. Five years ago, I thought I was finally in control of my weight, and was making healthy dietary choices on a consistent basis. I had lost 26 kg (57 lbs.) and was exercising every day. Making health, exercise, and eating well priorities in my life was the norm, and I felt amazing.
Gradually, though, I started slacking, and I went back to all of my previous bad habits, and I gained all the weight that I had lost back.
So, here I am again, starting a new diet, and I hope that this one is going to stick. If you are also starting a new diet, or currently on one, I hope that you will find something to relate to in this post.
Good luck to all of us who are trying to make healthy lifestyle changes! Here are the seven rules I’ve set for myself, and I hope can be helpful for others:
Here’s how I’m approaching my new diet:
- In order to keep myself fully engaged and focused, I’m going to weigh myself every day. I will also record my progress. In the past, I’ve only allowed myself to step on the scale once a week, but that’s not working for me. Sure, I know that everyone’s weight fluctuates depending on fluid levels and so forth, but I need that every day weigh-in to properly monitor my progress.
- To avoid binge eating, I’m going to have my daily menu planed out in advance so that I will know exactly what I can eat. To begin with, changing my eating habits will be my main focus. I do know that exercise is important, but for now I will mainly be focusing on making healthier food choices, eating far less processed food, and portion control.
- Accept that hunger is a part of it all. Instead of panicking when I feel hungry, I’m going to deal with my hunger in other ways (more on that in another post). Mindfulness, meditation, and filling up on water and tea are some of the things I’m trying.
- Exercise moderately to begin with, but add more as I make progress. In the beginning, I’ll be walking and lifting light hand weights in order to burn calories, possibly tone up some, and for overall health benefits. Exercise always makes me incredibly hungry, so I have to keep things moderate for now. In the past, I’ve tried to exercise too hard, and have ended up binging on food.
- Know my why. This is not at all my own idea, but something I learned from Weight Watchers. It’s not just enough to say I’m going on a diet, but you need to have a reason why it is important to lose weight and be healthy. Plus, it’s not just enough to keep your intention in mind, but you also need to feel and believe in the reasons why you are dieting. So, I’ve decided that my why for losing weight is to be the best I can be for myself and my loved ones. I also want to be stronger and have the energy to do the things that I want to do. That is my intention, and I hope that by having this focus it will be easier to stick to my diet.
- No gimmicks! In the past, I have fallen for just about every fad and crazy lose weight fast scheme there is. Admittedly, I have had short-term success with a few of them in the past, but the results were nothing spectacular. Not only do gimmicks and fads only deliver minimal at best success, they are costly. You can end up wasting a small fortune thinking that some miracle cure diet is going to finally help you reach a healthy weight. When you don’t see miracle results, you can end up frustrated and feel like a failure. So, for this new diet, I’m not eliminating any foods from what I am allowed to eat, and I’m not buying any powders, supplements, special gear. Just real food, but moderate portion sizes.
- No giving up! So many times in the past, if I haven’t seen immediate results, I’ve just given up. I would announce to everyone around me, “It’s just not meant for me to be thin,” and then just go back to eating whatever I wanted. For me now with this diet, it’s now or never. I’ve got the motivation going, and I just can’t allow myself to give up. I will get to a healthy weight and it will stay.
Once again, good luck to all, and here’s to a healthier life!!
