You're determined to drop that weight, and this time you're doing everything right. You're cutting fat-packed foods from your diet as much as you can. You're stoking up on fresh fruits and veggies, whole-grain breads and cereals. Plus, you're exercising more consistently than you have in recent memory. So then, why aren't you shedding those pounds? It's maddening when you honestly believe you're putting forth your best effort and it's still not being rewarded as you feel it should be.
Your diet dilemma could have of a number of explanations; it's just a matter of understanding what's going on and making a few simple switches. Check the list below and see which, if any, apply to you. Make the necessary adjustments, and before you know it, your weight loss will soon be back on track.
1. Being too rigid. "Many people believe that being perfect in their diet will guarantee success, but it's actually more important to be flexible than to be rigid," says registered dietitian Judy E. Marshel, director of Health Resources of Great Neck, New York. Say that your favorite restaurant, where you could always count on having a delicious, low-fat meal, suddenly goes out of business, and now you have to explore other, unfamiliar ones, and you're afraid to adjust your menu. Your attitude may then be, "Well, if I can't have what I was planning to have, I'll have whatever I want." And that, explains Marshel, may set up a new cycle of overeating and dieting.
Because life is bound to throw you a curveball every now and then, you might as well get used to the notion that you and your diet will have to adapt. An unexpected change in plan need not mean the beginning of the end of your weight-loss program.
2. Not eating enough! Your metabolism is a tricky devil. Eat too much, and it won't be able to burn all those calories, so, natch, you gain weight. Eat too little, and your metabolism--perceiving that you're starving yourself and desperate to help your body hang on to the calories you are consuming--slows to a crawl. Result? Little or no weight loss.
Studies have repeatedly shown that drastic calorie-cutting diets don't work, not in the long run and sometimes not even in the short run. All the pros today agree that it's just as vital to eat sufficient quantities of the right foods (fruits, vegetables, grains) as it is to cut back on the wrong ones (fats, sugar, alcohol). Warns Marshel, "If you don't consume enough calories, even if you're on a weight-loss plan, you may see a slowing down or even a total cessation of your weight loss."
3. Not satisfying those cravings. "In order to lose weight succesfully," says Ronna Kabatznick, Ph.D., psychological consultant to Weight Watchers International and a specialist in weight control, "you have to have a certain level of inner satisfaction, which you get by eating things that make you feel good. If you don't eat those things, you'll walk around feeling deprived on a psychological level and deprived on a physical level, and eventually you'll binge or start eating more of the things you don't particularly want."
So if you're a chocoholic, for instance, appease your need for the sweet stuff with a fat-free frozen chocolate pop or a low-fat chocolate shake whipped up in the blender. Even half of an honest-to-goodness chocolate bar every once in a blue moon won't hurt. Giving yourself a little of what you crave now and then will actually help you choose the rest of your meals more wisely.
4. Falling off the wagon. Diets may not work as well the second, third or fourth time around. When you embark on a weight-loss diet for the very first time, your body typically sheds some water, some fat and some muscle mass. But anytime you put weight back on, your body only regains fat, which is harder to lose than muscle.
So if you're a diet veteran, don't be surprised if it's taking longer and requiring a greater effort to make those extra pounds go away. New tactics might be in order. If, say, your diet is now about 30 percent calories from fat, try cutting back to the 25 percent range. Additional time on the stationary bike or the jogging path each week may also be needed to coax off that unwanted weight. Be patient--your persistence will pay off.
5. Disregarding seasonal and activity changes. "People who go on diets think that they have to follow the same food plan in every situation--summer or winter, during vacations--but it's not true," says Kabatznick. "Some days you're more active than others, some days you may eat out more. Also, you should have extra food in winter because it's cold and you need more calories to keep your body warm." So take your activity level and the seasons into account and vary your diet accordingly for the best possible weight-loss results.
6. Taking certain medications. Unfortunately, if you have health problems that require certain prescription drugs, they may slow down your weight loss. For instance, corticosteroids, used to treat rheumatoid arthritis, tend to cause water retention and stimulate the appetite. Check with your doctor to see how you can make the appropriate adjustments in your diet while continuing your medication. In all likelihood, a stepped-up exercise program will do the trick.
7. Changing body needs. As you age, your body just naturally requires less energy (that means fewer calories) to maintain its current weight. So whatever may have worked before in helping you shed pounds may not quite do the trick with each succeeding birthday. Be prepared, therefore, to either reduce your caloric intake a little or increase your level of exercise.
8. Losing your perspective. "Many people invest so much in the idealization of having a thinner body that when that thinner body is nearly theirs and their fantasies don't come true, they get disappointed," explains Kabatznick. What happens then? Usually some unconscious overeating here and there, or a slow, subtle loss of interest in exercise. No wonder the extra pounds are still hanging around.
"If you're realistic," says Kabatznick, "you'll know that losing weight means you'll have a thinner body and a healthier lifestyle, but it won't change who you are."
9. "Invisible" eating. "They're the little things you're not even aware you're eating--that piece of candy in your purse, that extra pretzel, those foods that come with sauces that you just accept," notes Carole Livingston, author of I'll Never Be Fat Again. "You think it's okay to have them, but it's not okay unless, of course, you want to keep your weight stuck where it is."
10. Those old devil moods. "When I'm unhappy, my eating habits can be poor, and I may eat more of something that I shouldn't, like ice cream," admits Marie Simmons, author of The Light Touch. Sooner or later, your emotional state is going to do a number on your appetite, if you let it. Should you suddenly find yourself doing more and more unconscious snacking by the light of the refrigerator door, check your mood. Then figure out how to improve matters without using food as a crutch.
11. Underestimating portion sizes. "When I ask people in my classes, 'What's a half cup of spaghetti?' most people don't know. On a plate, it looks pretty paltry," notes registered dietitian Joann Heslin, co-author of The Pregnancy Nutrition Counter. "I try to help them distinguish between the classic portion--a half cup to one cup of spaghetti, for example--and the traditional portion, which is a plateful. The traditional portion is often really two portions. The same goes for meat. The classic portion is four ounces of boneless meat, fish or poultry--a piece about the size of your palm. If you think about how much meat you ate last night, you probably ate more."
The moral of the story: Without becoming fanatic about portion sizes, start developing your awareness of how much you're eating.
12. Taking baby steps instead of big ones. "It's actually easier for many people to make dramatic changes in their eating than small ones," insists Dean Ornish, M.D., who heads the Preventive Medicine Research Institute in Sausalito, California. For example, he says, "If you continue to eat red meat and merely reduce your portion sizes, you'll feel deprived and you'll never really lose your taste for it." As a result, you'll still crave it, keep eating it, and probably have a hard time dropping those pounds. "But if you give meat up completely, not only will you be eliminating a lot of fat from your diet but after a while you won't even miss the taste."
13. Getting fooled by fats. "Dietary fats are the biggest deterrent to weight loss," reminds Bernice Veckerelli, a chef at the Norwich Inn & Spa in Norwich, Connecticut. "People are so programmed to think about reducing their cholesterol, so they may have margarine instead of butter, but they forget that one tablespoon of fat is one tablespoon of fat." Consequently, she says, many people believe that as long as they're sticking to heart-healthy fats such as olive and canola oil, they can have lots of it. But if you do, those pounds just won't come off as you'd like them to. "If you need to lose weight, you automatically will, once you start to watch your fat intake," Bernice promises.
Your diet dilemma could have of a number of explanations; it's just a matter of understanding what's going on and making a few simple switches. Check the list below and see which, if any, apply to you. Make the necessary adjustments, and before you know it, your weight loss will soon be back on track.
1. Being too rigid. "Many people believe that being perfect in their diet will guarantee success, but it's actually more important to be flexible than to be rigid," says registered dietitian Judy E. Marshel, director of Health Resources of Great Neck, New York. Say that your favorite restaurant, where you could always count on having a delicious, low-fat meal, suddenly goes out of business, and now you have to explore other, unfamiliar ones, and you're afraid to adjust your menu. Your attitude may then be, "Well, if I can't have what I was planning to have, I'll have whatever I want." And that, explains Marshel, may set up a new cycle of overeating and dieting.
Because life is bound to throw you a curveball every now and then, you might as well get used to the notion that you and your diet will have to adapt. An unexpected change in plan need not mean the beginning of the end of your weight-loss program.
2. Not eating enough! Your metabolism is a tricky devil. Eat too much, and it won't be able to burn all those calories, so, natch, you gain weight. Eat too little, and your metabolism--perceiving that you're starving yourself and desperate to help your body hang on to the calories you are consuming--slows to a crawl. Result? Little or no weight loss.
Studies have repeatedly shown that drastic calorie-cutting diets don't work, not in the long run and sometimes not even in the short run. All the pros today agree that it's just as vital to eat sufficient quantities of the right foods (fruits, vegetables, grains) as it is to cut back on the wrong ones (fats, sugar, alcohol). Warns Marshel, "If you don't consume enough calories, even if you're on a weight-loss plan, you may see a slowing down or even a total cessation of your weight loss."
3. Not satisfying those cravings. "In order to lose weight succesfully," says Ronna Kabatznick, Ph.D., psychological consultant to Weight Watchers International and a specialist in weight control, "you have to have a certain level of inner satisfaction, which you get by eating things that make you feel good. If you don't eat those things, you'll walk around feeling deprived on a psychological level and deprived on a physical level, and eventually you'll binge or start eating more of the things you don't particularly want."
So if you're a chocoholic, for instance, appease your need for the sweet stuff with a fat-free frozen chocolate pop or a low-fat chocolate shake whipped up in the blender. Even half of an honest-to-goodness chocolate bar every once in a blue moon won't hurt. Giving yourself a little of what you crave now and then will actually help you choose the rest of your meals more wisely.
4. Falling off the wagon. Diets may not work as well the second, third or fourth time around. When you embark on a weight-loss diet for the very first time, your body typically sheds some water, some fat and some muscle mass. But anytime you put weight back on, your body only regains fat, which is harder to lose than muscle.
So if you're a diet veteran, don't be surprised if it's taking longer and requiring a greater effort to make those extra pounds go away. New tactics might be in order. If, say, your diet is now about 30 percent calories from fat, try cutting back to the 25 percent range. Additional time on the stationary bike or the jogging path each week may also be needed to coax off that unwanted weight. Be patient--your persistence will pay off.
5. Disregarding seasonal and activity changes. "People who go on diets think that they have to follow the same food plan in every situation--summer or winter, during vacations--but it's not true," says Kabatznick. "Some days you're more active than others, some days you may eat out more. Also, you should have extra food in winter because it's cold and you need more calories to keep your body warm." So take your activity level and the seasons into account and vary your diet accordingly for the best possible weight-loss results.
6. Taking certain medications. Unfortunately, if you have health problems that require certain prescription drugs, they may slow down your weight loss. For instance, corticosteroids, used to treat rheumatoid arthritis, tend to cause water retention and stimulate the appetite. Check with your doctor to see how you can make the appropriate adjustments in your diet while continuing your medication. In all likelihood, a stepped-up exercise program will do the trick.
7. Changing body needs. As you age, your body just naturally requires less energy (that means fewer calories) to maintain its current weight. So whatever may have worked before in helping you shed pounds may not quite do the trick with each succeeding birthday. Be prepared, therefore, to either reduce your caloric intake a little or increase your level of exercise.
8. Losing your perspective. "Many people invest so much in the idealization of having a thinner body that when that thinner body is nearly theirs and their fantasies don't come true, they get disappointed," explains Kabatznick. What happens then? Usually some unconscious overeating here and there, or a slow, subtle loss of interest in exercise. No wonder the extra pounds are still hanging around.
"If you're realistic," says Kabatznick, "you'll know that losing weight means you'll have a thinner body and a healthier lifestyle, but it won't change who you are."
9. "Invisible" eating. "They're the little things you're not even aware you're eating--that piece of candy in your purse, that extra pretzel, those foods that come with sauces that you just accept," notes Carole Livingston, author of I'll Never Be Fat Again. "You think it's okay to have them, but it's not okay unless, of course, you want to keep your weight stuck where it is."
10. Those old devil moods. "When I'm unhappy, my eating habits can be poor, and I may eat more of something that I shouldn't, like ice cream," admits Marie Simmons, author of The Light Touch. Sooner or later, your emotional state is going to do a number on your appetite, if you let it. Should you suddenly find yourself doing more and more unconscious snacking by the light of the refrigerator door, check your mood. Then figure out how to improve matters without using food as a crutch.
11. Underestimating portion sizes. "When I ask people in my classes, 'What's a half cup of spaghetti?' most people don't know. On a plate, it looks pretty paltry," notes registered dietitian Joann Heslin, co-author of The Pregnancy Nutrition Counter. "I try to help them distinguish between the classic portion--a half cup to one cup of spaghetti, for example--and the traditional portion, which is a plateful. The traditional portion is often really two portions. The same goes for meat. The classic portion is four ounces of boneless meat, fish or poultry--a piece about the size of your palm. If you think about how much meat you ate last night, you probably ate more."
The moral of the story: Without becoming fanatic about portion sizes, start developing your awareness of how much you're eating.
12. Taking baby steps instead of big ones. "It's actually easier for many people to make dramatic changes in their eating than small ones," insists Dean Ornish, M.D., who heads the Preventive Medicine Research Institute in Sausalito, California. For example, he says, "If you continue to eat red meat and merely reduce your portion sizes, you'll feel deprived and you'll never really lose your taste for it." As a result, you'll still crave it, keep eating it, and probably have a hard time dropping those pounds. "But if you give meat up completely, not only will you be eliminating a lot of fat from your diet but after a while you won't even miss the taste."
13. Getting fooled by fats. "Dietary fats are the biggest deterrent to weight loss," reminds Bernice Veckerelli, a chef at the Norwich Inn & Spa in Norwich, Connecticut. "People are so programmed to think about reducing their cholesterol, so they may have margarine instead of butter, but they forget that one tablespoon of fat is one tablespoon of fat." Consequently, she says, many people believe that as long as they're sticking to heart-healthy fats such as olive and canola oil, they can have lots of it. But if you do, those pounds just won't come off as you'd like them to. "If you need to lose weight, you automatically will, once you start to watch your fat intake," Bernice promises.
