Follow these key elements, which I outline here, and lose weight once and for all. View the world as your playground and take on life and it’s challenges head on.
Let me clear something up real quick.
Diet\ˈdī-ət\(noun): food or drink regularly consumed
Everybody is on a diet. If you eat food, your on a diet. It doesn’t strictly refer to foods you consume in order to lose weight.
Alright… The three keys…
1. Patience
Be prepared. It’s going to take some time, if done the correct way. Depending on your starting point, it will take some longer than others. It is a process and any attempts to speed up the process could prove to be costly in the long run. There are no quick fixes to long-term solutions.
Be patient and keep the faith. Trust that you are on the right track and doing the right things. We want things now but when it comes to the body, nothing happens overnight and nothing will change unless you make a change. Constantly pursue betterment each and every day. Keep in mind the long term goals, but don’t ever let it take you off the task that are needed to be done today.
2. Know your numbers
Without a game plan, you will fail. You must have something to keep you accountable. Hitting your calorie and macronutrients consistently will allow you to know how your body is responding. When you hit plateaus you’ll be able to adjust accordingly and not be stuck there long. If you hit a platuea and have no idea where your calories are, you have nothing to adjust because you don’t know. You’re running around without a vision, shadow-boxing if you will.
Failing to prepare is preparing to fail. Bottom line. All successful people, no matter the chosen endeavor, have a plan of action.
It’s not incredibly time consuming and even if it was, it’s a small price to pay to get your results. Plan your meals 3-4 days in advance, equip yourself with the tools you need to track your numbers, and then get it done. Seriously, if you’re unwilling to do a few things in order to better yourself, ask yourself if you really want it?
Everyone has to be responsible for their own lives. Sacrifice a little bit of time and/or money and consider it a down payment on your future self, with whom you will be much more satisfied with.
It won’t be necessary to track your exact numbers for ever, but take the time and do it for the next several months. Eventually, you’ll get the hang of it and be able to guess your numbers. This will make you a much more mindful eater and very successful in the long term. Check my article out here about how to track your macros.
3. Adherence
No diet plan will work if you can’t stick to it. This is the number 1 reason why diets fail, people are unable to stick to them. That is why I implement many different strategies with my clients.
It’s always based around lifestyle and certain preferences. I say this cautiously but I am very flexible with things when it comes to my clients diet. It depends strictly on their goals. However, not everything is up for debate.
Adherence is the most critical element to long-term success. If you can’t see yourself doing it long-term, you will not be successful long-term. The diet strategy must take into account lifestyle preferences, work environment, among others.
Critical Notes
This study finds a few things of interest to those who diet. Interestingly, this study found that the more attempts one has at losing weight, the more difficult weight loss efforts become. My speculation is that the metabolic adaptations the body undergoes can shoulder some of the blame. Take home: weight loss shouldn’t be a life-long journey. Follow the keys I’ve listed above, loss weight once and for all, and live like the world is your playground.
Life is meant to be enjoyed. There are great foods out there that can and should be enjoyed. Mindfully and within the right context, nothing is out of the question.
Get a plan. Start with one change. Implement it effectively for 2 weeks before adding another.
This is not the end all be all list when it comes to dieting. Obviously, training is a large part of it but that’s beyond the scope of this post. I just wanted to take a minute and break down the simplicity of dieting. Often times we make things more difficult than is necessary. Sometimes simplicity is an underrated tool.
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