"I'll just get my birthday over with, and then I will do something about my weight."
"I'll cut down next week."
"I'm going out for a meal with friends I'll just enjoy that then I'll go on my diet."
"When I come back from holiday I'm going to do my best."
"I can't do anything about my eating at the moment because I have too much going on."
Can you hear yourself saying those words?
According to the dictionary, the word procrastinate means "to put off or delay".
Maybe it is time to ponder over what benefits there would be in waiting until the ideal time, because often the ideal time never comes. Or when it does present itself we fail to recognize it.
While you are putting off doing the right thing, your weight continues to increase. You may think that it doesn't matter because you are going on a diet anyway-, and you will soon lose it. But it just doesn't work this way because the more weight you put on while procrastinating, the more your body is going to get used to the extra weight, and will become comfortable with it.
When the decision is made to start a slimming diet, during the time between the decision and completing preparations, many people start to eat as if living up to the famous quote from the bible "Let us eat and drink for tomorrow we die."
Except that, we substitute the "diet" for "die"!
So the attitude adopted then leads on to stuffing in as much food as possible because what we are believing deep down is that, "I am going on a diet which means starvation and famine, I'm never going to be able to eat normally again, so I'd better make the most of it now."
What can happen then of course is that before you start the diet something else comes up. Mother is ill or the kids are home from school perhaps an unexpected weekend away crops up... so the diet never happens and you are left with the extra weight that you had put on while procrastinating!
Decide and act!
Ask yourself how much you really want to lose weight, to keep it off for good and feel good.
Make your decision, weigh yourself and act. Give yourself very limited time and fill it with your shopping and preparation, and make part of the decision that this will be your last diet- because this is going to be a complete change of lifestyle.
You need to decide to adopt a lifestyle that will include eating the right foods for life, not just for the next few weeks or months in order to lose weight. You are going to find a way of eating that will fit in with the rest of your lifestyle so that you are not going to be affected by various occasions that may threaten your resolve.
For example, many people find that they cannot cope with eating out or at other people houses. Or they might like their drop of wine at the weekend or even every evening. It is a good idea to incorporate strategies into your lifestyle that will become permanent.
Tell your friends and family that you have changed your way of life for the sake of your health, rather than say that you are going on a diet. The word diet can conjure up negative connotations for some people, whereas "looking after your health" is seen as a positive move.
This strategy will benefit your way of thinking too, because you will not be into the "diet" mentality. You can then decide how much alcohol can safely be a part of your life, and live with the knowledge that you don't have to deny yourself the pleasure for evermore.
One client of mine said that he was finding his diet too difficult, because he loved his Saturday night pint. Who was it that said he couldn't have it I wonder? When I asked him that question, he realized that he could make this decision himself. If he really wanted to lose weight, he had a choice. Have a pint and live with any arrested weight loss, or not have a pint and maybe feel better for it. Or another way of looking at it would be that if he was going to be living this way for the rest of his life, then the Saturday night drink would be part of his life too.
Another aspect is that the stress of going without that pint and denying himself the pleasure, would in turn produce cortisol in the body and arrest any weight loss anyway.
The same goes for types of food. If there is a birthday cake around, have a little piece. Giving yourself permission to have it takes the pressure off, and you won't end up gorging on it.
"It's not what you eat, but what you think"
This is so true folks. If you are in the frame of mind that says "Eat and drink for tomorrow we die" then procrastination will always be there stopping you from doing the right thing. But if you can start to think that you could just look at ways to change what you eat, and find a way that will suit you for the rest of your life, then you will fit any thing that comes along in with that.
When you eat out, you will make wise food choices with the occasional treat. If there is a crisis in the family you will eat what comes along; then just get back to your normal way of eating as soon as possible. You will not let a crisis be an excuse to stop your diet, because you will then not be on a diet! You will see this way of eating as your "norm".
There is a saying that procrastination is the thief of time. You can change this to "procrastination is the thief to me being slim and healthy".
"I'll cut down next week."
"I'm going out for a meal with friends I'll just enjoy that then I'll go on my diet."
"When I come back from holiday I'm going to do my best."
"I can't do anything about my eating at the moment because I have too much going on."
According to the dictionary, the word procrastinate means "to put off or delay".
Maybe it is time to ponder over what benefits there would be in waiting until the ideal time, because often the ideal time never comes. Or when it does present itself we fail to recognize it.
While you are putting off doing the right thing, your weight continues to increase. You may think that it doesn't matter because you are going on a diet anyway-, and you will soon lose it. But it just doesn't work this way because the more weight you put on while procrastinating, the more your body is going to get used to the extra weight, and will become comfortable with it.
When the decision is made to start a slimming diet, during the time between the decision and completing preparations, many people start to eat as if living up to the famous quote from the bible "Let us eat and drink for tomorrow we die."
Except that, we substitute the "diet" for "die"!
So the attitude adopted then leads on to stuffing in as much food as possible because what we are believing deep down is that, "I am going on a diet which means starvation and famine, I'm never going to be able to eat normally again, so I'd better make the most of it now."
What can happen then of course is that before you start the diet something else comes up. Mother is ill or the kids are home from school perhaps an unexpected weekend away crops up... so the diet never happens and you are left with the extra weight that you had put on while procrastinating!
Decide and act!
Ask yourself how much you really want to lose weight, to keep it off for good and feel good.
Make your decision, weigh yourself and act. Give yourself very limited time and fill it with your shopping and preparation, and make part of the decision that this will be your last diet- because this is going to be a complete change of lifestyle.
You need to decide to adopt a lifestyle that will include eating the right foods for life, not just for the next few weeks or months in order to lose weight. You are going to find a way of eating that will fit in with the rest of your lifestyle so that you are not going to be affected by various occasions that may threaten your resolve.
For example, many people find that they cannot cope with eating out or at other people houses. Or they might like their drop of wine at the weekend or even every evening. It is a good idea to incorporate strategies into your lifestyle that will become permanent.
Tell your friends and family that you have changed your way of life for the sake of your health, rather than say that you are going on a diet. The word diet can conjure up negative connotations for some people, whereas "looking after your health" is seen as a positive move.
This strategy will benefit your way of thinking too, because you will not be into the "diet" mentality. You can then decide how much alcohol can safely be a part of your life, and live with the knowledge that you don't have to deny yourself the pleasure for evermore.
One client of mine said that he was finding his diet too difficult, because he loved his Saturday night pint. Who was it that said he couldn't have it I wonder? When I asked him that question, he realized that he could make this decision himself. If he really wanted to lose weight, he had a choice. Have a pint and live with any arrested weight loss, or not have a pint and maybe feel better for it. Or another way of looking at it would be that if he was going to be living this way for the rest of his life, then the Saturday night drink would be part of his life too.
Another aspect is that the stress of going without that pint and denying himself the pleasure, would in turn produce cortisol in the body and arrest any weight loss anyway.
The same goes for types of food. If there is a birthday cake around, have a little piece. Giving yourself permission to have it takes the pressure off, and you won't end up gorging on it.
"It's not what you eat, but what you think"
This is so true folks. If you are in the frame of mind that says "Eat and drink for tomorrow we die" then procrastination will always be there stopping you from doing the right thing. But if you can start to think that you could just look at ways to change what you eat, and find a way that will suit you for the rest of your life, then you will fit any thing that comes along in with that.
When you eat out, you will make wise food choices with the occasional treat. If there is a crisis in the family you will eat what comes along; then just get back to your normal way of eating as soon as possible. You will not let a crisis be an excuse to stop your diet, because you will then not be on a diet! You will see this way of eating as your "norm".
There is a saying that procrastination is the thief of time. You can change this to "procrastination is the thief to me being slim and healthy".
If you are really struggling and would like some help from
someone who has been there, I am a Life Coach, specialising in Weight
and Food issues. I have been a Weight watcher all of my life and
understand the struggles that people go through to lose weight and keep
it under control. During the course of my recent training as a Life
Coach, as well as over a period of thirty years I have read, studied and
experienced for myself just how your thinking can help to overcome
these issues. Going on a diet is not enough, we have to think it
through. You can read more about me on my website http://www.patriciacherrylifecoach.com Where you can also download a PDF of my book "Reflections of a Chronic Dieter". You can also buy the book on Amazon kindle.
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♦ 7 Homemade Detox Drinks for... ♦ 16 Simple Tweaks To Help You Lose Weight