Why do diets fail?

- Why do the biggest percentage of people who are on diets fail to reach their target weight?

- Why do people who reach their target weight, put it all back on again?

- Why do overweight people visit so many dietitians and read so many diet books, but are still overweight?

People intending to embark on a diet should get answers to all the above questions before they enter any dietary programs.

After many diet attempts, and with the assistance of several dietitians, and many hours of reading, I have concluded that our efforts for losing weight is only 15% of the whole process. The other 85% is to educate ones self in the art of cooking, observing and handling food. Losing weight is EXTREMELY DIFFICULT and very time consuming, not to mention dedication, will power and total commitment. Imagine how difficult the rest must be…

Perhaps dietitians should spend more time explaining the importance of how to handle food and less on weight loss. Losing weight heals the cause but not the problem.

In the long run, diets that include only simple foods, with dull flavors, drive people to binge eating and in cases that the patient/client has a lot of weight to lose, this tactic will result in only half the weight loss target.

When one has reached their target weight, it is thought this is the final achievement, but it is not, it’s only the beginning. Most people I know who have been on diets tend to regain all the weight they have lost over a short period of time. I, myself have experienced this over the past 30 years.

What we actually need is a dietary program that includes smart, thoughtful cooking recipes which will offer us the pleasure, without the guilt of the extra calories. Eating raw, boiled or grilled food regularly with a salad as a side dish, is frustrating!! I discovered that there are recipes, low in calories, which offer satisfaction in preparing them and more importantly in eating them. I discovered that the reason I failed with my diets all these years was the fact that I was feeling guilty to eat foods which were delicious in taste. Now, I know that I can have delicious dishes with fewer calories, and still lose weight. Now I know that I can succeed. 

Feeling so stressed about my continual failures, in August 2011, I decided to put my new strategy to the test … I am now almost mid-way through achieving my goal and things are getting seriously difficult. The difference is that now things look more promising,  because this dietitian is more open to new suggestions.

Success for me is not only to lose the excess weight but to educate myself in how to handle food; how to cook it, and how to eat it – guilt free.

If I manage to think healthily I will stay healthy, and I have found this to be a fact!