So you know you want to lose weight. But you’re not sure if you want to go down that road called “diet” one more time. And the excuse you make leave you frustrated and stuck. The first step is to recognize the way in which you’re stopping yourself from succeeding. The second is to really examine if your excuse is leading you to happiness. The third is to learn how to move past it so you can live the healthy and vibrant life that you have always desired. Here is a list of the top 5 weight loss excuses, and how to get over them to reach your goals
Excuse 1: You put weight loss off for a big event.
So you really, really want to make changes in your health. There’s just a teeny tiny obstacle. There’s that wedding you are supposed to go to next month. And nothing is going to get in the way of you celebrating, especially a restrictive diet. Here’s why this thinking is wrong. First, there is always going to be something on the horizon that could be a possible conflict. Next month you’ll have a birthday celebration. The month after that is a graduation.
The world won’t stop turning just so you can lose weight. Second, one day or weekend of indulgences will not invalidate 2 or 3 weeks of healthy living. It is much better to start your diet now and do your best to balance healthy choices with treats at the big event. Even if you binge all weekend, you’ll do better in the long run by eating healthy beforehand than by eating like crap. Which choice do you think would be most health promoting for the long run?
Excuse 2: You tell yourself that diet is deprivation
Yes, you really, really want to lose weight. But you don’t want to spend every meal gorging on celery sticks. And you tell yourself that the deprivation isn’t worth the reward. However, if you only feel deprived on your diet, then your are not on the right diet for you.
Try this short little exercise. Think of your favorite food. Picture it in your head. Now think about how you came to know that this food was your favorite. Most likely it was after trying LOTS of different foods. You probably haven’t tried the same variety of healthy foods. Dieting is a process, and one of its goals should be to help you uncover the healthy foods that you enjoy. It is a time to try new recipes and make discoveries. If your diet only involves deprivation from cardboard-like meals, you’re dieting in the wrong way.
Excuse 3: You tell yourself you’ve ruined everything by cheating
You’re entered this new healthier lifestyle and you’re feeling great. But then it happens; you slip up and eat something you shouldn’t. And then, since you’ve already cheated, you eat a little bit more. And if this goes on too long, you’ll tell yourself that you’ve ruined everything and give up.
Here is the really tragic part of this thought pattern. It is impossible to ruin all your efforts from a couple bad days. Think of an artist working on a painting. What if that artist threw out her work every time she made a bad stroke? That artist probably wouldn’t have a selection of finished work. A good artist will work over her bad strokes and transform them back into something that fits her vision. Most art galleries are filled with work that had moments of imperfection. If you plan to give up after a bad day or a bad week, you probably will never reach any of your life goals. And that’s not what you want for your life, is it?
Excuse 4: You think everyone and everything else is more important than you
You have a ton of responsibilities in life. This includes your kids, your parents, your home, your spouse, your job, your friends and the list goes on and on. And you feel that there aren’t enough hours in the day for you to fulfill your responsibilities. In fact, the very universe is threatened with collapse if you stop for just one minute. So you tell yourself that your own needs will have to wait.
But here’s why this type of thinking is wrong. Imagine if you were to stay on the path you’re on with your health. Do you think you’ll necessarily be here 5, 10, or 15 years from now. Not taking care of yourself can potentially deprive those that care about you and need you. Remember, in a plane you have to put on your own oxygen mask before you take care of the person sitting besides you. This is true in many areas of life. If you’re not healthy, you can’t be there to your fullest for others. Worse, you let down one of the people who depends on you the most: yourself.
Excuse 5: You think your extra weight is too overwhelming
Maybe your doctor recommended you lose some weight. Or you’ve noticed some new health concerns. It is totally understandable that you might feel a little lost and afraid. You might also still be discouraged from past failed diet attempts. Perhaps you feel on some level that if you ignore a problem, then it really isn’t there.
But you know deep inside that you can’t run away from your own health. The bright side is that by just moving past the overwhelm to actually trying, you are making a positive step in your health. Just don’t put pressure on yourself to get everything “right” on the first try. Look at it as a new journey. You’re choosing one path, that might lead to a different path tomorrow, and that’s perfectly OK.
So those are the top 5 weight loss excuses debunked. If you identified an excuse that you use, take one positive step today to move past it. An excuse can hold tremendous power over you, but only if you let it.
Am so glad I don’t have to worry about putting on weight. Have my mother’s genes unlike my sister and brother who take after daddy. My brother recently told me that I am bordering on anorexic which is my normal weight. He added that it’s not fair that I don’t need to worry about how much I eat. Daddy used to say he couldn’t believe he had such a slim daughter. With genetics sometimes you win sometimes you loose.
It is true that some people are luckier geneticaaly when it comes to weight gain. I still think that it is good for skinny people to be mindful and build healthy practices to support an ideal weight. That way, if there is weight gain, especially with women after menopause, the right habits will already be in place.
It’s almost embarrassing to say I don’t have a weight problem and never have. Yes…people hate you! Nonetheless, I have great empathy for people who do. Honestly I do. It has to be one of the hardest things on the planet because so many have such issue with it. Though I do wish the emphasis were on feeling good rather than looking good. It just seems that’s a mentally healthier way to view it.
I think it would be fantastic if more of the emphasis were on feeling good. My clients are often shocked when health improvements are followed bybetter health and a better quality of life. I wish more people were aware of the connection between diet and how they feel.
I do have to watch not to eat too much fat or salt but I allow myself a cheat day once a week to eat whatever I want and it helps me stay on track. I am visual so I make it a habit to eat colorful less processed foods so it is not too difficult to stay eating healthy. Thanks for sharing your solutions.
I think it is wise to schedule cheating into your diet. I eliminated artificial sugar from my diet multiple times before I actually succeeded. The thing that made the difference was when I allowed myself 1 treat a week. That was so much more effective than trying to go cold-turkey.
Hi thanks so much for sharing a very informative and helpful post. Great Read!
I was a skinny child and teen. I did not appreciate it at the time. In my early twenties, I went up a dress size (shock horror!) I enjoyed being being bigger for a while but slimmed down for my wedding in my late twenties.
Two children later, I know I have to curb my eating in order to stay lean which I much prefer. Thankfully I have a fast metabolism and carry my weight well (thanks dad!)
I have cut white carbohydrates out of my diet and feel much better for it. I may try eating carbs once a day or at weekends – we will see.
Fad diets do not work long time. They help you lose weight, you return back to normal eating and put it all back on. The key is finding something that works long term and including a ‘treat’ per day.
Whole grain carbohydrates like quinoa, brown rice, and couscous aren’t that bad for you. The ones that should be kept to a minimum or refined grains like bread and pasta. So if you work rice into your diet a couple of times a week, that should be just fine. Personally, I allow myself something like pasta about once a week. That way I don’t feel totally deprived.
Losing weight is not one of my problems. As a matter of fact, right now I am working on a weight-gain diet for one of my sons. Being underweight also has a number of undesirable side effects and he’s so thin now that I consider him in the ‘danger’ zone, hence my involvement. I’m at the low end of the scale but not underweight. Funny thing though, if I’m sick for a few days I can lose as much at 10lbs which then takes forever to put back on. This lets me understand just how difficult it is for people who want to lose weight. It’s a lot of work.
Lenie, when people tell me they really can’t gain way, the first thing I investigate is whether they have a food sensitivity. Sometimes, when people are reacting to a food in their digestive system, the food just moves through so quickly that it doesn’t get absorbed and then there can be a problem absorbing calories. Just something to consider, especially with your son.
Back in the day when I was an eating machine the problem was emotional so there really was no thinking involved – food provided the only comfort I had at the time and I didn’t find a replacement until I was able to escape the circumstances.
I have however known more than a few people who invoked excuse #3 – “Since I slipped up on the diet today, I’ll just forget it and start all over next Monday.” I imagine the statistics on how many diets are started over on Monday would be pretty staggering. 🙂
Marquita, I would say at least 75% of people who have problems with their weight have a very strong emotional connection to food. That has to be addressed with any diet or it will be difficult to find long-term success. So, you are definitely not alone with that.
My problem is clearly excuse #1. Maybe it’s a vacation, or maybe a holiday, or a trip. But I’m always pretty sure I’m going to get my diet sorted out next week. In fact it’s been a tough week for using that excuse because our anniversary, my wife’s birthday and my son’t birthday were all within the last seven days.
Ken, congrats on the milestones this week! I would probably agree that a week with 3 celebrations would be a very difficult week to start a diet change. But, if you had already begun a diet change before this week, one week of celebrations would be something manageable to work around.
Actually, I have the issue in the other direction. I need to be careful not to lose too much weight. I’ve been doing well recently. Eating as a family helps; I eat more then.
That is good, Leora. As long as skinny people still fill up on healthy foods.
Every ten years or so I find I’ve put on too much weight. What I learned from changing my eating behavior last year around this time is to get it off as soon as I notice just 3 or 4 pounds. I can gain it easily. I was always skinny as a child, however, that didn’t stay with me. Fortunately, I LOVE love love to exercise and I love to look good, not in a vain way. If I look good, I feel good. One little thing I did at the end of losing 17 pounds last year is to find a trigger: I have a black tie event outfit that I stopped wearing about 2 years ago. It’s right in my face now in my closet. About once a month I try it on. As long as it fits, I know I’m doing the right things for me. No excuses for losing weight, if needed.
Erica I find it interesting how what each of us eats can affect us so differently in gaining/losing weight.
Patricia, the reason a person gains weight is so unique. When we are gaining weight, there is usually more of an imbalance than too many calories. So that is a big part of the reason that different people have such different reactions to food. However, it sounds like you’ve got a really good system in place for keeping yourself on-track.
I’ve been guilty of every one of these! But my issue right now is really the first excuse. My problem is that every weekend is a big event! 😉
Meredith, this is what I would recommend. Eat well during the week. Then eat a healthy meal right before going to the event. Then allow yourself one treat during the event and really enjoy it. That way you don’t get too far off track, but you also don’t feel deprived at the event.
From the sounds of it, Excuse #2 – not wanting to deprive yourself – rings very true. I think this can apply to many aspects of life, ie staying inside on a sunny day, spending a little more money than necessary, putting off bedtime, etc. If we gave in to every indulgence, what a mess we’d be! So a little dose of self-discipline can go a long, long way.
I agree that fear of deprivation can affect many aspects of life. I do think it is possible to find healthier ways to indulge and still find joy.
Oh this is a good one,for me is #5 :{ I needed to read something like this. I bought a stepper and sometimes I still find myself making excuses LOL… but I tell you this, when I say I’m tired, I look at my wall decor reminder that says {exercising gives you energy or it can help you rest better Just do IT!)
That sounds like you have given yourself a good source of inspiration. And I also think when you keep talking yourself out of doing a certain exercise, it might be time to find a new way to workout. I learned for myself that I’m most consistent with exercise when it interests me in other ways. For instance, I took group ice skating lessons some years ago and I really stuck with it because I just had fun doing it. If I keep backing out of exercise, I tell myself I need to find a new plan.
For me I have to stay focused. I have a trick which is to say to myself, “What am I doing this moment to get into shape” This keeps me focused on my goals.
Thanks for sharing.
It’s great that you found something that really works for you, William. Motivation is so individual so it really pays to dedicate time to searching for the best option for yourself.