So you've been skipping the gym and eating the first thing that comes into your sight. You begin to notice your body becoming soft and you start to worry. The first thought that pops into most people's heads is "I'll go on a diet." Well I understand the motivation behind this thought, but the only problem is going on a diet will eventually mean you will have to come off.
A diet is not a a quick fix or a temporary solution. Your diet consists of what you eat every day of your life. If you are not eating nutritious, healthful foods the majority of the time, you're are not going to see any long lasting significant changes. While there are tons of crash and fad diets out on the market that guarantee promising results, many of the diets leave you, starving, calorie counting, or with too many restrictions. This is not only a shock to your body, it is a shock to your mind.
Have you ever been on a crash diet or been around someone who has been? They are usually miserable or very irritable. They usually sit around and complain about what they can't eat or how horrible they feel. This is usually because most crash diets involve changing too many things at once. You can't go from ingesting donuts, candy bars, pizza, hamburgers, sodas, and coffee, to ingesting, vegetables, fruits, lean meats, nuts, seeds and water, all in a day. It is just simply too difficult. Food works as a drug in our bodies. Whenever we ingest foods, with refined sugars, or delicious fats, we become accustomed to eating these types of foods, leaving natural sugars and fats tasting bland. In order for a diet to have lasting effects, it has to be a lifestyle change. The change has to happen gradually and over time, so that your body can adjust slowly. A crash diet is what I call "borrowed time." While you might see immediate results, the results usually go away as fast as they come. There are no shortcuts, and no secrets to becoming healthy and fit. It takes a great deal of discipline and persistence, to achieve optimum results. If you want optimum results, you got to be willing to put in optimum efforts. This means staying focused and eating good foods all year round.
It's a hard pill to swallow because we live in a culture that demands immediate results. We all want immediate returns on our fitness investments. Unfortunately our bodies do not work this way. Change happens gradually but the effects are long lasting. Would you rather lose 20lbs in 2 months and keep it off for two months? Or would you rather lose 20lbs in 6 months and keep it off forever? Seems like a no brainer, but those crash diets that promise immediate results are awfully enticing. Stick to what works and what is long lasting. Shortcuts will only set you back and discourage you from future attempts at changing your diet. Change slowly. Here's an example of how.
Let's say you eat 4 meals a day. Now lets say all four of those meals are meals you know you shouldn't be eating. For the first two weeks, only pick one meal a day that you are going to eat good healthy nutritious foods. The rest of the three meals you can keep normal. Now after you've accomplished this in two weeks, for the next two weeks pick another meal where you are going to eat good healthy nutritious foods. Now after just four weeks you've cleaned up 50% of you diet. Now 2 out of every 4 meals are healthy. Now keep going every two weeks until all your meals are healthy and nutritious. Once you've accomplished this, feel free to throw in an occasional treat every now and then. As long as you're eating healthfully the majority of the time, an occasional, treat isn't going to hurt. It doesn't even have to be every two weeks. You can change the span of time so you only change one meal per month. That way in 4 months your diet will be completely healthy and nutritious. It's better to do it slowly than not at all. The first initial 2 weeks are the hardest part, but I promise you it gets easier. Just stick to it, your body and mind will thank you! Good Luck!
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