If you think you have to follow strict rules or suffer to lose weight, think again. The easy way to lose weight is to indulge your weaknesses.
Sounds crazy, doesn't it? But when I finally understood this concept, I understood why most diets fail us. That's right. The diets fail us.
Because they force us to follow rules that go against human nature.
It's really quite simple. The more you can't have something, the more you want it. Until you become absolutely obsessed.
Think about it.
Suppose you like to snack at night. If you follow a diet that eliminates snacks or eating after a certain time of day, you constantly have to fight the urge to snack at night.
And that's like asking to fail.
In fact, that's probably when you will fail. And if you decide you can't live with that restriction, you'll abandon the diet altogether.
But if you schedule a satisfying snack for that time every night, it'll be easier to stick with your weight loss program. So by indulging your weakness, you overcome it.
Another common problem is having a sweet tooth.
What if your diet doesn't let you indulge often enough? Or you're only allowed to take one or two small bites of a tasty snack and it doesn't satisfy you?
That's almost like torture.
This time, suppose chocolate is your weakness. If you can't have it, how are you most likely to fail on your diet?
That's right. By eventually giving up and splurging on chocolate. Because you'll feel deprived and become absolutely obsessed with eating it.
But if you put chocolate and other sweets in your weight loss program in amounts that are satisfying, you'll reduce or even eliminate the problem. And you're much more likely to stay on your eating plan. And lose the weight.
So again, by indulging your weakness, you overcome it.
Now understand that when I say you overcome your weakness, I don't mean you won't crave chocolate. I just mean you're more likely to keep your cravings under control and stay on your diet.
And you may find that the more chocolate you eat, the less chocolate you want.
It's like working in a candy store. If your boss never allows you to eat candy, you'll want it more.
Sure, you may try to follow the rules at first. But eventually, you'll start sneaking candy.
You'll promise yourself you'll only do it once. But we both know you'll do it again. And again. And again.
Until you're stuffing yourself with as much candy as you can get.
Now suppose your boss tells you that you can eat all the candy you want whenever you want. Your face will light up as you imagine yourself gorging on candy every day.
But the reality is you'll probably indulge in your favorites at first, then level off. You may eat candy from time to time, but your obsession will evaporate.
After all, if the candy's always available to you, what's the urgency in eating it?
You'll still like candy as much as you always did. But you'll probably eat much less when you know you can have it anytime.
It's just human nature. The more you can't have something, the more you want it.
And the reverse is also true: the more you can have something, the less you want it. So you're less likely to binge and ruin your weight loss.
Again, by indulging your weakness, you overcome it.
Have you ever tried a low-carb diet? When you cheated, did you reach for another steak or did you grab some carbs?
Exactly. We always cheat on a diet by breaking the rules.
So stop torturing yourself with strict diet rules. Instead, indulge your weaknesses and lose weight the easy way.
Disclaimer: This information is presented for educational purposes only. This isn't medical advice and it's not a substitute for any advice or treatment from your physician. You should always see your doctor before starting any new diet.
Copyright (c) 2007 Debbie Fontana
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