i think my real problem is that i dont think i can stay on a diet for a very long time, because there are so many good tasting foods that i eat all of the time that are hard to give up, and after about a day or two of dieting ill start craving them again and wont be able to keep my mind off of them. ive never been able to stay on a diet for more than a couple of days, anyone out there who has been on a long term diet have any advice for stayin on a diet even though your giving up all of your favorite foods?
cant stay on diet long term
- Thread starter CravingBound
- Start date
Stay with it
I have had that same problem. What I have done to stay on my diet is to tell myself that I can have anything I want. Dont think to yourself that you cant have it. Think you can have it, but you rather have something else. What people have to realize is dieting is not something you do here and there. You have to commit to it for the rest of your life or you will put the weight back on. And if you want something to eat like candy or ice cream have some! Dont deny yourself the things you enjoy in life. But dont over eat. You lose weight by useing more energy than you eat. That means you can eat nothing but ice cream and lose weight if you eat a very low amount. So try not to just go cold turkey. Eat what you want but just very little of it. Most of the time i find myself eating because i am bored. So I try to take my mind off of eating. Find something you like to do and dont let yourself think about it or you will lose to the cravings everytime granteed.
I have had that same problem. What I have done to stay on my diet is to tell myself that I can have anything I want. Dont think to yourself that you cant have it. Think you can have it, but you rather have something else. What people have to realize is dieting is not something you do here and there. You have to commit to it for the rest of your life or you will put the weight back on. And if you want something to eat like candy or ice cream have some! Dont deny yourself the things you enjoy in life. But dont over eat. You lose weight by useing more energy than you eat. That means you can eat nothing but ice cream and lose weight if you eat a very low amount. So try not to just go cold turkey. Eat what you want but just very little of it. Most of the time i find myself eating because i am bored. So I try to take my mind off of eating. Find something you like to do and dont let yourself think about it or you will lose to the cravings everytime granteed.
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If you think of it as a diet, your dooming yourself to failure right there.
Its all about a lifestyle change, otherwise its pointless. My family always asks me, "jeez, you still on your diet". Drives me off the wall. You cant expect to go on a diet to lose some weight then go back to what put you there in the first place.
You will have to find foods you like that replace the foods you liked before. If you search around, you will find healthy alternatives that are just as tasty as a not so healthy counterpart. You just have to put yourself in the mindset that its not a diet, its a lifestyle change.
And you know what, treat yourself every now and then. Lets say you have a thing for cheeseburgers. Stay on the healthy path for a few weeks and then treat yourself to a cheeseburger. Trust me, when you do it like this, it tastes so much better anyways. In the long run, you really want to keep the treats to a minimum, but dont completely deprive yourself of the foods you love. Just make them a special occasion.
Its all about a lifestyle change, otherwise its pointless. My family always asks me, "jeez, you still on your diet". Drives me off the wall. You cant expect to go on a diet to lose some weight then go back to what put you there in the first place.
You will have to find foods you like that replace the foods you liked before. If you search around, you will find healthy alternatives that are just as tasty as a not so healthy counterpart. You just have to put yourself in the mindset that its not a diet, its a lifestyle change.
And you know what, treat yourself every now and then. Lets say you have a thing for cheeseburgers. Stay on the healthy path for a few weeks and then treat yourself to a cheeseburger. Trust me, when you do it like this, it tastes so much better anyways. In the long run, you really want to keep the treats to a minimum, but dont completely deprive yourself of the foods you love. Just make them a special occasion.
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i agree with the comments above.
another thing you might want to try is making gradual changes. i mean if all you eat is junk food and greasy fried food its unrealistic to think you can just go on a diet of vegetables and lean non-red meats with no problems. it really is a lifestyle change. so, you could maybe during the first two weeks decide to eat more vegetables, and the second two weeks to stop drinking soda. If you keep adding in changes and let your body ease into it, the whole process can be a lot smoother and easier.
also, if you have trouble allowing yourself to eat unhealthy foods you love but not overdoing it, you could have one 'cheat' day where you can eat your special food (once a week, or once every couple of weeks). Still you wouldn't want to go too all out with that. Or some people have success eating a cheat food everyday- if its portion controlled. Like maybe in the afternoon you treat yourself to some chocolate or cheese bread, but never more than 100 calories worth.
well goodluck, whatever you decide!
another thing you might want to try is making gradual changes. i mean if all you eat is junk food and greasy fried food its unrealistic to think you can just go on a diet of vegetables and lean non-red meats with no problems. it really is a lifestyle change. so, you could maybe during the first two weeks decide to eat more vegetables, and the second two weeks to stop drinking soda. If you keep adding in changes and let your body ease into it, the whole process can be a lot smoother and easier.
also, if you have trouble allowing yourself to eat unhealthy foods you love but not overdoing it, you could have one 'cheat' day where you can eat your special food (once a week, or once every couple of weeks). Still you wouldn't want to go too all out with that. Or some people have success eating a cheat food everyday- if its portion controlled. Like maybe in the afternoon you treat yourself to some chocolate or cheese bread, but never more than 100 calories worth.
well goodluck, whatever you decide!
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Hi there,
you don't have to stop eating things that you enjoy. Treats now and then are fine. And if you get creative you can make healthy foods taste great.
I specialize in lifestyle management plans, which are great for people who have had trouble sticking to diets. Maybe I can give you some tips:
Try a food subtitution list. On one side of a piece of paper write a list of foods that you tend to indulge in that aren't healthy. On the other side of the paper write alist of foods that you like that are healthy that could replace them. For example, for a sweet food that you enjoy you could replace it with your favorite fruit. For a fatty food that you love you could replace it with some natural peanut butter.
Hope that helps!
Sarah
you don't have to stop eating things that you enjoy. Treats now and then are fine. And if you get creative you can make healthy foods taste great.
I specialize in lifestyle management plans, which are great for people who have had trouble sticking to diets. Maybe I can give you some tips:
Try a food subtitution list. On one side of a piece of paper write a list of foods that you tend to indulge in that aren't healthy. On the other side of the paper write alist of foods that you like that are healthy that could replace them. For example, for a sweet food that you enjoy you could replace it with your favorite fruit. For a fatty food that you love you could replace it with some natural peanut butter.
Hope that helps!
Sarah