Why do diets fail?
1. Deprivation – the moment you say you are going on a diet your brain starts imagining all the things you are no longer allowed, you are deprived and so it starts to make you want them more! We are all programmed to want what we can’t have!
2. Social events – you feel like you can’t socialise because you are on a ‘diet’ and then a social event comes along that is too good or important to miss and you then fall off the diet wagon in an epic way! This makes you feel like giving up and most do, the self destructive part of your brain takes over and you then feel like you’ve already failed so you may as well eat everything you want because the diet isn’t working anyway!
3. Results – you aren’t getting the results as quickly as you would like, you start comparing yourself to others and don’t understand why you haven’t lost weight when all you’ve eaten all week is a bloody lettuce leaf! Weight loss should be slow and gradual and by trying all the tricks in the books to beat the weigh in will in the longer term be undermining all your efforts!
4. Fat free – most diets are low or void of fat and this is not actually good for you or your health. Fats are essential for your brain and mental health so it isn’t any wonder that people start to lose the plot and feel down after following these diets. Feeling depressed is not exactly going to give you the motivation to stick to your diet plus you need the good fats to expel the bad ones!
5. Zero points – a diet that encourages you to drink as much diet coke as you like but frowns upon avocado is not a good diet. Your body knows this and will start to let you know by not losing the weight you want!
6. Lifestyle – you can’t just follow a diet and expect everything else to improve, you need to address all aspects of your lifestyle including stress, exercise, happiness etc.
7. Muscle is heavier – fat takes up more space but is lighter than muscle so if you are tied to what the scales say you may be disappointed with your results and feel it’s not worth it.
8. Nutrients – it is very easy to follow a low calorie, nutrient deficient diet, but in order for your body to adjust and start shedding the pounds it needs the right nutrients.
9. Starving – you should not be hungry on a nutritionally balanced plan but most diets will leave you with too few calories and this will make your body conserve fat as it thinks there is a famine coming.
10. Addiction – sugar is addictive and actually activates the same part of your brain as alcohol and recreational drugs! By following a diet low in calories and fat your blood sugars will drop and you will crave sugar. Any will power will be lost at this point as your body takes over and demands its fix.
The best and most successful diet is to follow a nutritionally balanced healthy eating plan for life. Nothing is disallowed, you are not deprived or hungry and you will feel great on the inside as well as look great on the outside. It is far easier to achieve than you probably think and with a little bit of help you can really dump the ‘diets’ and ‘fat’ clubs for life!
Click here to find out how easy it is!