When it comes to dieting and healthy eating there is no one size fits all approach that is perfect for everyone. What works really well for some people may not work for you at all and thats okay. I find that a lot of people get discouraged quickly if they see someone they know getting great results from something when they themselves have seen little to no results. There are some who even decide to give up because they think its impossible to maintain a diet a lose any weight. If you’re one of those people who are constantly frustrated by lack of progress or failure, this post is for you.
Make up your own diet.
Healthy eating should have more of a think outside the box approach rather than being rigid. For example, when people I know start dieting, they always tell me about what specific diet their going to start whether its keto, paleo, etc. I think that this is one of the most common misconceptions about dieting in general. When it comes to dieting, you don’t have to pick a specific diet to follow in order to diet. Instead of picking a specific diet, ask yourself what healthy foods do you enjoy? Start working whatever healthy foods you enjoy into your current meal plan. You will have more success with your meal plan if you are the one calling the shots rather than attempting to follow something rigid.
What’s realistic for you?
Another factor to consider when starting a diet is, what is realistic for you and your current lifestyle? Whether you work in a high stress corporate job or are staying at home with the kids finding a meal plan that fits in nicely with your lifestyle will make sticking to it much easier. For example, I love counting my macros, tracking all of my food, and weighing everything but that may not be realistic for you. Ask yourself what is realistic for you and your schedule? Come up with a plan that you can stick too.
Is this sustainable longterm?
I really hate the word diet because when people say I’m dieting it usually means trying to eat healthy in a short-term sense to lose X amount of weight. The word dieting should be replaced with lifestyle change. Whatever healthy foods you decide to eat or meal plan you decide to create should be sustainable longterm. Most people look at dieting as a quick-fix. If you want longterm permanent results, you need to make longterm permanent changes.
Bonus: Avoid the trendy B.S.
This is going to be the most important point I’m going to make. Juice fasts, fit-teas (or whatever it is called), body wraps, magic pills, etc. are not the way to go. I can understand the allure behind all of these because they all promise instant overnight results. If you’ve ever tried one of these, ask yourself did you get the results you wanted overnight? Were you able to maintain any results? Or are you just out a few bucks because you decided to use this approach to lose weight quickly instead of eating healthy? This aspect of the health and fitness industry really gets to me because people are constantly trying this approach and are getting frustrated because they still have not seen any results. If you stumble across an article that has a title of “Drink This to Lose Weight Fast” or “How to Lose 10 Pounds This Week” ask yourself, “is this too good to be true” because yes it probably is.
After reading this, do you feel like you might change your approach to your current meal plan structure? Did this inspire you to think outside the box in terms of healthy eating? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
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