I read these on http://www.diet-i.com/index.htm . I have made all 9 of them at one time or another.
-They don't have a good incentive
Dieting means changing your eating habits. This won't be possible unless you have a
good incentive. To find out if you have a good incentive, ask yourself this question:
How will you benefit from losing weight?
If you can't answer this question or if you're not sure, then you don't have a good
enough incentive.
If so, don't bother dieting until you find one. Trying to lose weight without having a clear
idea how it will benefit you, is a complete waste of time.
-They don't make a personal plan
We all perform better when we have a target to aim for. Why? Because it helps us to
measure our progress and feel a sense of achievement when we succeed. Losing weight
is no different. In order to do it successfully, we must have a specific target to aim for.
(1) Set yourself a realistic weight target. (2) Set yourself a realistic amount of time to
achieve it.
For example, if you weigh 200 pounds, aim to get down to 190 pounds.
Allow yourself at least 5 weeks to achieve it.
When you reach 190 pounds, aim for 180 pounds, and so on.
-They don't have the patience to be slim
Most dieters want to solve their weight problem IMMEDIATELY.
They start on Monday and if they haven't lost at least 5 pounds by Sunday night, they
give up. An exaggeration? Perhaps. But you know what I mean.
That's why many dieters spend half their lives dieting. They don't have the patience to
lose weight.
If you want to lose weight, then get real! No one solves a weight problem overnight. As
a general rule aim to lose about 2 pounds a week. So if you want to lose 40 pounds,
allow 20 weeks.
Too slow? That's too bad. You won't lose it any faster.
-They don't choose a sensible diet
Americans are estimated to spend $6 billion each year on weight loss products that
are fraudulent or completely useless.
In 1993 alone, the US government banned 110 ingredients in diet products
because the manufacturers couldn't prove they worked.
No wonder so many slimmers fail to lose weight.
Don't make the same mistake! Find a SENSIBLE diet and ignore the rest.
Ideally, choose a low fat/ high carbohydrate diet - see Low Fat Diets.
Or, join a sensible weight loss program like Weight Watchers.
-They don't follow their diet properly
Even if they choose a sensible diet, most dieters don't follow it properly. Why not? They
get bored! Unfortunately, being seriously overweight is a lot more boring than dieting.
The Moral?
If you start a sensible diet, follow it properly.
Don't spend half your life dieting.
Do it once and do it properly.
This doesn't mean you have to be perfect all the time - no one is perfect.
But you won't succeed unless you take it seriously and make it a priority.
-They let themselves go hungry
No matter what diet they choose, most dieters fall into the trap of allowing themselves
to go hungry. What happens? They get tired, irritable and unhappy. What happens then?
They reach for a nice fatty instant snack. See what I mean? Hunger is a disaster -
avoid it at all costs.
If you get hungry when you're dieting, then EAT.
It may slow down your weight loss a fraction, but at least it'll help you to stay on track.
-They're not prepared for bad days
All dieters have 'bad days', or even 'bad weeks.' But some dieters give up as soon as
they have them. They go out for an unplanned meal or have a binge, and then throw up
their hands in despair and say to themselves: 'I'm a failure. I'll never be slim.'
A better approach
When you have a 'bad day', go with the flow, enjoy the binge and when it's over go back
on your diet. The worst that will happen is that your weight loss will be slightly delayed.
But so what?
-They don't take exercise
When we start dieting, our body notices immediately and starts to slow down in order to
conserve energy. This causes our weight loss to slow down, too. The best answer to
this problem is to boost our energy requirement by taking exercise.
You don't have to pretend to be an Olympic athlete or pump iron 24 hours a day. A
regular 30 minutes of any light exercise (like walking) will do, but it must be regular: i.e.
every day.
For more tips, see Exercise for idiots
-They're not prepared to take control
Stress makes us eat. For example: We get bored, angry or frustrated and WHOOPS! -
there goes another cookie or candy bar. When we diet, the stress is worse because we
CAN'T get rid of it by eating this stuff. So the stress gets even bigger!
Solution? We need to take control. We need to sit down and work out a mini
stress-management program which answers the following questions:
What are the situations (or people) that cause us to eat junk?
Anger, frustration, boredom etc.
How can we deal with these situations (or people) without eating junk?
Example: If you always eat while driving, have some less fattening nibbles to hand.
Example: If your mother forces you to eat platefuls of fattening food each time
you visit, fill up before you visit and decline her cooking.
How can we avoid these situations altogether?
Example: If we always eat junk in front of the TV, we must watch less TV.
Example: If seeing Mr. X makes you eat junk and put on weight, consider avoiding
him.
In a nutshell - TAKE CONTROL!! Don't allow people or situations to make you fat.
Work out what to do BEFORE you start dieting. Don't wait until stress happens.
-They don't have a good incentive
Dieting means changing your eating habits. This won't be possible unless you have a
good incentive. To find out if you have a good incentive, ask yourself this question:
How will you benefit from losing weight?
If you can't answer this question or if you're not sure, then you don't have a good
enough incentive.
If so, don't bother dieting until you find one. Trying to lose weight without having a clear
idea how it will benefit you, is a complete waste of time.
-They don't make a personal plan
We all perform better when we have a target to aim for. Why? Because it helps us to
measure our progress and feel a sense of achievement when we succeed. Losing weight
is no different. In order to do it successfully, we must have a specific target to aim for.
(1) Set yourself a realistic weight target. (2) Set yourself a realistic amount of time to
achieve it.
For example, if you weigh 200 pounds, aim to get down to 190 pounds.
Allow yourself at least 5 weeks to achieve it.
When you reach 190 pounds, aim for 180 pounds, and so on.
-They don't have the patience to be slim
Most dieters want to solve their weight problem IMMEDIATELY.
They start on Monday and if they haven't lost at least 5 pounds by Sunday night, they
give up. An exaggeration? Perhaps. But you know what I mean.
That's why many dieters spend half their lives dieting. They don't have the patience to
lose weight.
If you want to lose weight, then get real! No one solves a weight problem overnight. As
a general rule aim to lose about 2 pounds a week. So if you want to lose 40 pounds,
allow 20 weeks.
Too slow? That's too bad. You won't lose it any faster.
-They don't choose a sensible diet
Americans are estimated to spend $6 billion each year on weight loss products that
are fraudulent or completely useless.
In 1993 alone, the US government banned 110 ingredients in diet products
because the manufacturers couldn't prove they worked.
No wonder so many slimmers fail to lose weight.
Don't make the same mistake! Find a SENSIBLE diet and ignore the rest.
Ideally, choose a low fat/ high carbohydrate diet - see Low Fat Diets.
Or, join a sensible weight loss program like Weight Watchers.
-They don't follow their diet properly
Even if they choose a sensible diet, most dieters don't follow it properly. Why not? They
get bored! Unfortunately, being seriously overweight is a lot more boring than dieting.
The Moral?
If you start a sensible diet, follow it properly.
Don't spend half your life dieting.
Do it once and do it properly.
This doesn't mean you have to be perfect all the time - no one is perfect.
But you won't succeed unless you take it seriously and make it a priority.
-They let themselves go hungry
No matter what diet they choose, most dieters fall into the trap of allowing themselves
to go hungry. What happens? They get tired, irritable and unhappy. What happens then?
They reach for a nice fatty instant snack. See what I mean? Hunger is a disaster -
avoid it at all costs.
If you get hungry when you're dieting, then EAT.
It may slow down your weight loss a fraction, but at least it'll help you to stay on track.
-They're not prepared for bad days
All dieters have 'bad days', or even 'bad weeks.' But some dieters give up as soon as
they have them. They go out for an unplanned meal or have a binge, and then throw up
their hands in despair and say to themselves: 'I'm a failure. I'll never be slim.'
A better approach
When you have a 'bad day', go with the flow, enjoy the binge and when it's over go back
on your diet. The worst that will happen is that your weight loss will be slightly delayed.
But so what?
-They don't take exercise
When we start dieting, our body notices immediately and starts to slow down in order to
conserve energy. This causes our weight loss to slow down, too. The best answer to
this problem is to boost our energy requirement by taking exercise.
You don't have to pretend to be an Olympic athlete or pump iron 24 hours a day. A
regular 30 minutes of any light exercise (like walking) will do, but it must be regular: i.e.
every day.
For more tips, see Exercise for idiots
-They're not prepared to take control
Stress makes us eat. For example: We get bored, angry or frustrated and WHOOPS! -
there goes another cookie or candy bar. When we diet, the stress is worse because we
CAN'T get rid of it by eating this stuff. So the stress gets even bigger!
Solution? We need to take control. We need to sit down and work out a mini
stress-management program which answers the following questions:
What are the situations (or people) that cause us to eat junk?
Anger, frustration, boredom etc.
How can we deal with these situations (or people) without eating junk?
Example: If you always eat while driving, have some less fattening nibbles to hand.
Example: If your mother forces you to eat platefuls of fattening food each time
you visit, fill up before you visit and decline her cooking.
How can we avoid these situations altogether?
Example: If we always eat junk in front of the TV, we must watch less TV.
Example: If seeing Mr. X makes you eat junk and put on weight, consider avoiding
him.
In a nutshell - TAKE CONTROL!! Don't allow people or situations to make you fat.
Work out what to do BEFORE you start dieting. Don't wait until stress happens.
