Why it could be time stop dieting & consider what you consume…

We’ve tried them all haven’t we? Atkins, Paleo, Keto and if you’re a certain age then maybe the Cabbage Soup Diet. But do any of them keep weight off in the long term? In most cases, the answer is sadly, no. They may provide a short-term fix, but in the longer term the scales will slowly creep back up again.

In fact, evidence shows that dieting is linked with a higher risk of gaining weight. Many of you will know from bitter experience that you go on a diet, you lose some weight, you don’t feel great as you’re denying yourself certain food groups, or foods you love and then when you return to your normal way of eating, the pounds creep back on again.

Why it could be time stop dieting & consider what you consume…

This is why we need to reframe how we see a ‘diet’. When you look the word ‘diet’ up in the dictionary, the first meaning is ‘The food and drink we consume on a daily basis’ and the second meaning is ‘a limited amount of food we eat for medical reasons or to lose weight’. If we were to focus on the first meaning and embark on a diet that is for life and which provides us with all the nutrients we need to thrive then we’d have much less need to focus on the second meaning.

A great way to assess if your current way of eating is the best one for you, is to ask yourself if you’d be content eating the way you do now in two years’ time? if the answer is no, then it’s time to make some changes and discover your diet for life.

We also mustn’t forget that one size won’t fit all when it comes to a diet for life. We don’t all respond in the same way to the calories we consume and we don’t all undertake the same amount of daily movement or have the same metabolism. What works for one person may not work for another and this is why taking an individualised approach works much better.

It’s also important to not look at one factor in isolation, for example, stress, sleep and movement all impact upon our weight and our energy and if we only look at what we are eating then we may not achieve our goals as quickly.

If you’d like start your journey towards a diet for life, then why not book one of my 30-minute Vitality Review Consultations? We can talk about your health goals and discuss some tips for changing your diet and lifestyle so that you can find an energetic, healthy version of you who can thrive in life.