Six Diet Trials steps

[percival]

Edited to say: I wanted to post this in the hpw8watchers LJ, but didn't. Argh.
Well, I hope you won't mind reading this. Diet Trials was a BBC series that monitored a scientific study of four diets: Slim Fast, Dr. Atkins (low carb), Rosemary Conley (low fat) and Weight Watchers (calorie control). The Conley and WW diets seem to be the most sustainable; Atkins is a quick fix, but unhealthy in the long run.

I've turned to dieting literature again for two reasons:
1) my husband has a BMI of 29. So we need to watch his weight
2) I've ditched my diet. I feel so much more energetic now. Better. Happier.
But - the temptation of sweets is in my life again. Cutting out sugar doesn't
equip me with ways of dealing with the hunger for something sweet and soothing,
because I haven't quite addressed the psychological issues behind this.
- Eating when I'm bored
- Eating when I want to comfort myself
This is what I need to work on now. I can get my sweet fixes in healthy ways, now
all I need to do is make sure I "sanitise" my attitude to food. Such as eating
until I'm full, then stopping.

*** *** ***

these are the six steps recommended in the book that accompanies the BBC Diet Trials series.

Step 1: Plan your assault on the toxic environment
We're being enticed to eat more, eat more fattening food, and
exercise less. No wonder we consume less calories and are fatter than ever.

Step 2: set smart goals
eating well is a skill that needs to be learned, like crotcheting or show-
jumping. Be easy on yourself.

Step 3: make the most of your food by eating a balanced diet. (cf. recent article in
Scientific American and the Food Pyramid)
eat differently - identify where you can make small changes
in the right direction
shop smart: read food labels

Step 4: get your head straight bout food. That means: be honest with yourself about
your eating habits and attitudes and change unhealthy attitudes

Step 5: Energise your daily life.
Get some exercise. Build it into your day

Step 6: Sustain. Now that you have the skills to manage your weight, keep at it,
monitor and restrain yourself. The overall goal is to lose weight by
gradually developing healthy eating habits

That's it, folks! The book is very well written and helpful.

Percival

Comments

[acusa-dora.livejournal.com]

I'm really enjoying Weight Watchers, although I'm not always perfect at the plan. There are days when my hormones (convenient excuse) lead me to use all my points on a Snickers bar. Overall though, I've noticed that I cook a lot more, the meals are more varied, and I'm more likely to get up and walk more--just for fun. One really great side effect of getting rid of the treats in the house is that my son looks so much better. I got a call this morning from a friend who saw him walking to school and says he looked terrific--very energetic and happy. So, it does make a difference to have everyone eating on the same plan. I have to buckle down a little with the exercise. A few weeks ago, I hurt my arm--I think the tendon. I had all kinds of pain in my elbow that radiated up and down for about two weeks. I had lifted something very heavy out of the trunk of my car with a jerking motion. I can't life weights quite yet and I haven't been doing Tae Bo, which I love. (something about punching is very satisfying . . .) Anyway, I recommend WW.

[piperx.livejournal.com]

Blech. I hate diets. I have real difficulty eating regimented meals.

Those are all very good points of advice though. My hubby and I try to eat well by cutting starches almost completely out of our diets, always including a salad and/or veggies and always grilling our meat. We *never* eat fried foods or pizza. We're really good about that. However, we have a lot of difficulty making time for exercise. That's not good.

The toxins in food is horrible. I recently read that aspartame does evil things to your body and worse to potential embryos. I've since stopped drinking Diet Coke. In fact, I've heard really horrible things about all sugar substitutes. It may not make me thinner, but I'm sticking to good old 100% natural sugar from now on.

I'm so glad that getting rid of the diet has been good for you. I could tell it was stressing you out.