YOU ON DAY 1 OF YOUR DIET:
‘This is it. My time is now. I’m going to stick to the diet this time.
I’m going to eat super healthily, go to the gym six times a week, drop four dress sizes, and finally be able to stick two fingers up at Brad who broke up with me in High School because I was too large and broke the bed that one time we had sex.’
YOU ON DAY 30 OF YOUR DIET:
‘Sod this. It’s too hard.
I haven’t lost any weight, I feel depressed the whole time, I miss crisps, and Brad didn’t even know who I was at the High School reunion.
Just give me all the cake.’
Sound familiar? How many times have you started a diet only to watch it slowly falter as the weeks pass and for you to wind up back at square one? How many times have you said to yourself ‘this is it’, only for it to end up like it always does?
A lot, I’m sure.
So why does every diet you embark on end up as one big failure? Why can’t you succeed just this one time?
Well you’re making these seven mistakes for starters…
1. You Have No End Game
You know you have to start losing weight and you know how to do it. But what happens when you get there?
I’ll tell you:
You get comfortable. Those bad habits start to creep back in. The gym starts to become an afterthought, your body starts to fight back, and the weight starts to slowly sneak back on. Your diet fails. Again.
With most diets, maintenance is an afterthought. It should, however, be one of the first things you look at. You should begin at the end.
Instead of going all in from the off and trying to shed as much body fat as quickly as possible, it’s imperative you start with a plan precisely calculated to maintain your target weight or size.
Progress will be slower, improvements won’t be linear, and it will take a lot more effort to get to your end goal, but there’s a better chance you’ll get there and stay there.
2. You Change Too Much Or Nothing At All
When you embark on your new diet, you find yourself at either end of the ‘nothing or everything’ scale.
Nothing:
You’re on a diet. Go you. The only problem is, you haven’t really changed anything.
You’re still hitting the gym and completing the same exercises in an identical way, you’re still eating the same foods, you’re still doing exactly the same ‘weight loss things’ as you’ve always done, and you’re still living the same lifestyle.
You haven’t made any changes.
No wonder you’re not losing any weight.
And you better believe it. In order for you to succeed with your diet, you’re going to have to make some changes to your nutrition and training programme.
On the other hand…
Everything:
You change everything. Out go all the sauces, fizzy drinks, salt, bread and ‘naughty’ foods; in arrive loads of green shit and foods you can’t pronounce like kohlrabi. You’re determined to head to the gym six times a week, aim for 10,000 steps a day, meditate in the nude to birdsong every morning, and transform every bad habit in your life in the first few days of your new diet.
You’ve made too many changes.
All those overwhelming changes manage to do is engulf you in a cloud of panic. You try to transform too many things at once and you just can’t keep up with your lofty ambitions. Failure is inevitable.
In The Middle:
You need to place yourself slap bang in the middle of the ‘nothing or everything ‘spectrum. Make some changes, but not too many.
The solution is to choose just two or three behaviours that you can slowly start to improve on; tracking your food, prepping your meals, getting to the gym, or aiming for a better night’s sleep, for example.
Instead of going all in, select tasks you can break down into small enough challenges that you know you can still get done on your worst days.
Small behaviour changes win every time.
3. You’re Either Too Rigid Or Too Flexible
When you embark on your new diet, you find yourself at either end of the ‘rigid or flexible’ scale.
Too Rigid:
You’re going crisp-free, chocolate-free, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, normal-person-free. You’re not eating past 6pm, you’re going to explicitly follow a meal plan you downloaded off Women’s Health, and when Barbara asks you to go for lunch, you’re going to decline because you’ve got to eat your kale, spinach, and chia seed salad.
You place too many restrictions on yourself.
Too much rigidity and restriction will always lead to failure.
Your ever-whirring mind just can’t keep up and it won’t be long before the floodgates open and all those constraints you placed on yourself at the beginning of your diet are gone in a puff of Jaffa Cake and Chocolate Digestive biscuit induced smoke.
Too Flexible:
You’ve been set your calorie and protein, carbohydrate, and fat targets. You then fervently go about trying to fit as much crap into your daily target as you can – in come the biscuits, protein pancakes, bite-sized chocolate bars, and meals out, and out go the protein-rich foods, vegetables, and items you should be having.
You allow yourself too much flexibility.
Too much flexibility can be damaging. Eating ‘whatever you want’ seldom works. No-one got six-pack ready from consuming solely foods that seemed to ‘fit their macros’.
In The Middle:
You need to place yourself slap bang in the middle of the ‘rigid or flexible ‘spectrum. Allow yourself some flexibility but adhere to certain rules as well.
Plan and pre-prepare your meals for the week in advance, with 80% of your foods coming from nutrient rich foods and 20% coming from foods you really want to eat.
Prioritise high protein, high fibre, high volume and lower calorie dense foods, but allow yourself the freedom of fitting in the occasional food item you really really like.
Having something to adhere to, as well as minimising the amount of ‘flexibility’ you’re allowed, will ensure you’ll stick to your diet more often than not.
4. You Choose The Wrong Diet
You’ve gone Paleo. The only problem is you’re vegetarian.
You’re trying Intermittent Fasting. The only problem is you can’t function without a morning meal.
You’re attempting the Ketogenic Diet. The only problem is you keep finding yourself in the depths of a carb-infested binge every evening.
While all these diets work, you have to choose the right method for you.
If you wake up dreading what’s ahead of you each day, wondering when this particular diet is going to end, you’re doing it wrong.
You need to find something you enjoy, fits in with your lifestyle, and can see yourself continuing with for years to come.
That diet that worked for Sharon from the office that one time won’t necessarily work for you, because we all have different pasts, different personalities, different perceptions, and different preferences.
Hopping onto the latest diet bandwagon only for it to go tits-up at the first hurdle is one of the major reasons why people always give up. They haven’t thought about whether this particular diet they’re about to embark on works for them.
5. Your Expectations Suck
‘OMG this diet is totes going to help me lose 20lbs in two weeks’.
Loses 4lbs in two weeks.
’SOD THIS. I’ve made no progress, I hate diets, I hate my life.’
Is this you?
Sorry, but your expectations suck.
You’ve been programmed by the media and #blessed Instagram models that weight loss happens at the click of a finger.
That a few days of no chocolate or sweets will see the fat melt off and those abs start to ooze through your ever-expanding stomach. That a couple of quick stints on the treadmill will see you proudly parade that magazine-cover model body.
You want fat loss to be twice what it is.
You lost a pound last week? You want two. You lost two inches from your waist last month? You want four. You dropped a dress size since you last went shopping? You want another.
When these unrealistic accomplishments don’t happen, you resort to extreme dieting and exercise measures to try even harder. You quickly find yourself in a perpetual cycle of trying harder and ultimately failing because you’re so clouded by your ludicrous expectations.
You simply forget a) where you’ve come from and b) what exciting progress you’re actually making.
Two inches from your waist in a month? Holy crap-balls, that’s unbelievable. A smaller dress size? Wow, you should be jumping to the high heavens.
But no, you’re so impatient and expectant, that the fantastic progress you have been making seems irrelevant.
So be happy and be proud at the progress you are making. Once you appreciate what you are achieving, you won’t be so quick to lose hope and give up. Again.
6. You Think Your Life Will Be Completely Different
When people set out on their fat loss diet they expect their mission to permanently fall into one of two categories:
– Being constantly fed-up
– Being constantly excited
This is one of the biggest fat loss fallacies out there. Yes, there will be times of complete despondency, and there will also be times of complete jubilation, but the majority of the time a successful fat loss journey will fall right slap bang in the middle.
It will be a long, arduous, repetitive endeavour. There won’t be many highs and there won’t be many lows. The problems start to arise when people don’t experience these highs or lows; they think something is wrong.
What do they then do? Give up.
So this is me warning you: if you decide to embark on your very own fat loss diet, don’t expect your journey to be anything but repetitive and laborious.
You won’t spend protracted periods of time being depressed and you won’t spend protracted periods of time feeling on top of the world. You’ll be expected to plug along in the gym, persist with keeping your nutrition in check, and make small, sustainable changes week by week.
Playing the long game isn’t sexy, but it’s a sure-fire way to win.
7. You Think Your Diet Is Going To Be Perfect
Everyone you’ve seen succeed in trying to shed a few pounds did everything so perfectly right? They never once fell off plan, never once indulged in ‘bad foods’, and never once broke the rules.
Bullshit.
Everyone fails.
The successful ones, however, are the ones that manage to embrace their mistakes and get back on track immediately.
Don’t chase perfection.
There will be failures along the way. You will miss training sessions, you will have meals out, and you will find yourself in a slump. Expecting perfection will lead to failure.
You have to understand it’s about doing the right things most of the time over a long period of time. Don’t berate yourself if you do slip-up and don’t think all your efforts have gone down the drain.
Pick yourself up and go again. It really isn’t the end of the world.
THIS ARTICLE WAS TOO LONG AND I DIDN’T READ IT – CAN YOU SUMMARISE IT PLEASE
Your diet always fails because:
You Have No End Game – With most diets, maintenance is an afterthought. It should, however, be one of the first things you look at.
Instead of going all in from the off and trying to shed as much body fat as quickly as possible, it’s imperative you start with a plan precisely calculated to maintain your target weight or size.
You Change Too Much Or Nothing At All – You need to place yourself slap bang in the middle of the ‘nothing or everything ‘spectrum. Make some changes, but not too many. Small behaviour changes win every time.
You’re Either Too Rigid Or Too Flexible – You need to place yourself slap bang in the middle of the ‘rigid or flexible ‘spectrum. Allow yourself some flexibility but adhere to certain rules as well.
You Choose The Wrong Diet – While all diets work, you have to choose the right method for you. You need to find something you enjoy, fits in with your lifestyle, and can see yourself continuing with for years to come.
Your Expectations Suck – You’re so impatient and expectant, that the fantastic progress you have been making seems irrelevant.
Be happy and be proud at the progress you are making. Once you appreciate what you are achieving, you won’t be so quick to lose hope and give up. Again.
You Think Your Life Will Be Completely Different – If you decide to embark on your very own fat loss diet, don’t expect your journey to be anything but repetitive and laborious. Playing the long game isn’t sexy, but it’s a sure-fire way to win.
You Think Your Diet Is Going To Be Perfect – There will be failures along the way. You will miss training sessions, you will have meals out, and you will find yourself in a slump. Expecting perfection will lead to failure.
You have to understand it’s about doing the right things most of the time over a long period of time.
How To Win At Fat Loss
Download my FREE eBook on How To Win At Fat Loss and you’ll learn…
- Why everyone usually fails when it comes to trying to shed body fat
- Why you should be lifting weights
- Why calories are so important
- Why weighing yourself is a no-no
- Why mastering nutritional habits are the key to success
All so you can…
- Finally stop failing and start winning at fat loss
- Finally shed inches, drop dress sizes, and actually see a change for once
- Finally transform your body and mind so you’re not constantly battling those dieting demons
- Finally figure out how to lose the fat, keep it off, and flaunt the figure you’ve always dreamt of displaying