Sticking to a diet is one of the hardest things about healthy eating. Or is it? Is everything we know about “diets” true or not? In my experience, there is a lot of misinformation out there about dieting, weight loss, and healthy eating. There are so many that you can get completely confused and end up getting carried away before even starting a new diet.
Should you avoid fat? Should you avoid sugar? Can you still have treats here and there or do you have to cut out super-tasty foods?
I have always been completely confused about losing weight and found it almost impossible to stick to a diet.
But I was a victim of conflicting information. The truth is, one study will say potatoes are healthy and the next day, another study will say they’re bad for you. So it’s no wonder that healthy eating is a confusing mess.
But it wasn’t until I cut through the noise and went back to the old, time-tested truths about weight loss that I started to see results. I have found that most of the information out there is complete rubbish, making it impossible for most people to stick to a diet.
I am not a nutritionist or dietician. I’m just a regular guy who has tried different diets and I’ve seen the people in my life try different diets before I did my own research and listened to my body.
Because that’s the key – we’re all different, we all have our own bodies. And on some levels, we all know what’s best for us. It’s our environment that makes it difficult to stick to a diet, the conflicting information thrown at us.
So how do you realistically stick to a diet? Here are the 4 long-term steps I learned from my own experience that helped me lose 24 pounds gradually.
1. Don’t think of the diet as a diet
When I first started my own transformation, I had a light bulb moment. I realized that I was thinking about “dieting” all wrong. If you asked me to define diet I would say something like;
A diet is a period of time where you consume fewer calories than normal.
But now I think this is a very useless way of thinking about things.
In fact, I think this definition is why there are so many fad diets out there that are a complete waste of time and money.
Instead, I now believe that instead of “dieting,” you need to change your diet.
It’s a complete lifestyle change. You recognize where you fell short in the past and commit to a healthier future, almost becoming a new person in the process. And the reason you have to become a new person in the process is that it’s not enough to just eat a salad every day (even though I don’t think that’s healthy either, but more on that later).
You also have to be nutrition conscious, you have to become someone who will cook their own meals from scratch, learn cooking techniques, try new recipes and become someone who is not combative but aware of what they put in their mouth.
And all of this sounds like a lot of effort, and it sure can be at first if you’re not used to it. And that’s okay.
But I would argue that there is not much in life that is more important to invest time in than what you eat. Among other things, what you eat determines how you feel and how you interact with the world. It’s how your body gets the nutrients it needs.
So instead of thinking that you need to go on a diet (like a 2 week soup cleanse) think about the person you want to be in the long run.
After completing this inner work, you can move on to the next…
2. Recognize the obesity environment
The reality is that the odds are stacked against you when it comes to sticking to a healthy diet long-term (which is why you shouldn’t beat yourself up if you often blame yourself). Everywhere you turn in the western world there are ads for pizza, burgers, takeaways, etc, etc. So it’s no wonder it’s hard to follow a healthy diet.
Junk food has become normalized. It has become the status quo, even though your body requires quality nutrients to be healthy. In the span of 70 years, we’ve gone from nutrient-dense real foods to packaged foods with 30, 40, or 50 ingredients that the human body has no idea what to do with (if you ask me).
We live in an obese environment.
While it’s a luxury to have cheap, available calories, I think it’s reasonable to believe that this can, at some point, become a problem. Cheap junk food tastes good after all, and the fact that it’s cheap means that if you’re struggling for money, there’s always an option available.
But I believe you can eat healthy food cheaply too.
Overall, I think it’s important to recognize the obesity environment we’re in. Once you notice how much junk food is being pushed towards you, it’s easier to put yourself in positions where you can avoid it by dieting a lot. much easier.
3. Create realistic boundaries
Sticking to a healthy diet is easier when you put yourself in the right environment. One of the things that can completely throw you off your new healthy lifestyle is the everyday celebrations and events we have like birthdays and holidays. From my own experiences, I know that it can be very easy to spend a weekend eating rubbish at a wedding, for example, and then let that eating pattern carry over into the following week.
This is especially true when it comes to drinking alcohol. Alcohol is something many of us consume throughout the week as we attend various events, but it’s a great way to throw off your diet when you drink it too regularly.
Sticking to a diet (or a new way of eating) is easier when you set limits for yourself. This might mean saying no to nights out with friends who often go out on the town, or saying no to your partner when they want to order out instead of a home-cooked meal.
You have to know where you are willing to draw the line because you know what is best for you. When you draw these lines, it’s easier to stick to your goals.
But it doesn’t mean you have to completely stop going out and enjoying yourself, it just means you have to learn when you say, “I’ve lost enough,” the way the person you’re trying to become would.
4. You must be flexible
Because we live in an obesogenic environment, it’s nearly impossible to stick to a new healthy diet 100% of the time. And that’s why I think allowing yourself to be flexible is crucial when it comes to sticking to a diet or new way of eating. As mentioned above, you will go out and get a pizza every now and then. And that’s okay. If you are not very disciplined, you will indulge in the odd situations.
And I think that’s important.
After all, we are all human. If you take things to the extreme, you’ll also deprive yourself of events with friends and family. The truth is that if you go on vacation, for example, you won’t be able to eat like you eat at home. You may be able to find healthy options, but it won’t be the same as preparing your own healthy meals. And that’s okay.
I think this is why people abandon traditional diets, time and time again.
They think they have to be rigid, almost punishing themselves for eating burgers and fries every day on vacation and there because they “gave.” But a week at 52 isn’t against everything you’re trying to incorporate.
Flexibility is key.
In my experience, you can go from eating 90% junk and 10% real food to eating 90% real food and 10% junk. There is still room to be flexible in a healthy diet and enjoy the occasions we all love from time to time.
When you eat junk food once in a while, it has little to no effect on your overall weight loss efforts because 90% of the time you’re eating real food.
Don’t let the pursuit of perfection ruin your healthy lifestyle efforts.
5. Eat real foods most of the time
I have mentioned in this post about eating “real foods”. This is the way of eating that has helped me lose the extra pounds over the past two years. Essentially, it’s a whole grain diet. For me it is the best way of eating. It’s the most convenient and covers all my nutritional bases while keeping me full.
And full is key. Some people think diet = salads. I can’t stand salads. They don’t fill me up and are a great way to make me overeat later. Whole foods are incredibly filling, to the point where you don’t even feel like you’re on a “diet.” You simply eat the foods that your body has evolved to recognize as food.
I’m not vegan. But if you are, I still think it’s a good idea to eat mostly whole foods and limit the processed ones. For me, that looks like lean meats, nuts, vegetables and fruits.
While many foods claim to be healthy, eating minimally processed foods allows you to avoid added ingredients like seed oils and chemicals with strange names. I also like to eat a whole grain diet because it makes it almost impossible to overeat such foods.
I stay full longer and therefore no longer crave junk food.
Preparing whole foods for cooking becomes easier the more you do it and you just need to make sure you have a few ingredients in your fridge that form the backbone of most meals like carrots, garlic, ginger and onions. These foods all last a long time, but can be added to many dishes. Add a ton of herbs and spices to your dishes to keep them exciting and full of flavor.
Whatever your healthy diet is, stick to “real foods” and I don’t think you can go wrong.
Briefly
There are many things working against you when it comes to sticking to a diet long term. All of the above points have helped me stay on track. The biggest piece of advice I would give is that it takes time and patience to change anything worthwhile. When I was first trying to get my diet in order, it was painful at times. I got really bad at bad habits, but it gets easier with time.
You start to develop better habits as you experiment and learn. “Diet” or as I prefer to think of it, “long-term healthy eating habits” is a process but one of the most worthwhile things you can take the time to change for the better.
So don’t worry if you don’t get it right away, just be patient and a little flexible.
Get excited about cooking, trying new recipes and learning how to prepare food! Make it a conscious experience, something almost sacred every time you cook something for you and your family. Follow the above tips and I am sure you can succeed.
