Motivation and Mindset: The Best "Diet"

Social support and having humor is always important to stay on track with diet and lifestyle change.

Most people are on an ongoing quest to find the perfect diet. Weigh Watchers, Paleo, Atkins, Keto, Plant Paradox, Vegan are all common diets that people try. The variety of diets never ceases to amaze me.

Say, what causes people to consider and try a new diet? What makes a person push the go button on a diet change? The biggest factors are:

1. Knowing someone who had success on a diet

2. Successful Marketing,

3. People like the food list

Only around 40% of people stick with a diet after 6 months (New Year diet changes). At two years, 90% of people are back to their old habits. Any weight that has been lost is often gained back. Diets alone have a BAD record of getting people to a different state of health and an optimal body weight.

Why do people fail at diet/ lifestyle change and weight loss attempts? A lot of this has to do with False Hope Syndrome.

What’s that?

False Hope Syndrome goes like this: people get excited about reaching their goals. Their excitement is centered on trying something new and different….a new method. The chosen method may or may not be suited for them, but in either case most people tend to give up because they lose track of their purpose (why am I doing this?). When results do not come in quickly and a diet is “hard” to follow their mind says things like “screw it”, “this is too hard”, “I deserve to eat……” “all things in moderation”…….”this is not worth it”.

People then tend to go back to their old habits. Change is not sustained. Life and health status stays the same.

Is there a better way? I like research and science. The best research on change psychology and successful weight loss clearly says that in order for the majority of people to actually change and meet their goals they need to learn how to change.

In other words, the best “diet” that people can adopt is one that actually causes long term change to occur. Dealing with motivation and mindset is step one. Foods list, diet books, and weight loss apps do not get the job done.

In an effort to help people make their health, nutrition change, and weight loss goals before January (the new year resolution attempts) I have created on online program called the Nutrition Reboot.

The first part of this class happens to be called: Motivation and Mindset.

This class will lay the foundation for success that most weight loss and lifestyle change programs and diets are lacking.

Ready to change your food choices and lose weight?  Contact Jason Cornish, Medical Fitness Specialist, Personal Trainer, and Health Coach in Auburn, AL today at 402-521-0314 or email at jason.a.cornish@gmail.com.

Disclaimer: Please consult your doctor before you begin any exercise program. The content of this blog is for educational purposes only. You are responsible for the outcomes for the use, misuse, or lack of use of the information presented in this blog.

Best Diet Tactics for 2020

Low Carb Holiday Cuisine= Almond Flour Cinnamon Roll Pizza

Last year at this time, I posted an article on the best diet strategies my clients used to lose weight in 2018. If you missed it, check it out here:

https://www.eightfoldfitness.net/blog/2019/1/20/diets-that-actually-work

For individual diets (low carb, keto, intermitted fasting) I still see clients succeed with many different diets depending on their body and situation. Some people do great on low carb diets, while others lost the most body fat on plant based diets with higher carbohydrate intake. It all depends on one’s life context, microbiome, hormone levels, and stress.

What diet is best for you? Short answer= It depends.

In 2019, more than ever before I worked with many of my clients on the none macro nutrient (protein, fats, carbs) aspects of diet. It turns outs that some nuts and bolts buying/ cooking/ awareness strategies got many people that were stuck to a better spot with their weight loss goals.

Here are some of the top tips and tricks from 2019.

1. Protein Turns Down Hunger

   Food high in protein is the best way to turn down hunger signals. Knowing this is especially important for late night snackers. Having a big salad with 4-6 ounces of protein for supper was the perfect solution for few of my clients that struggled with late night snacking. For others who struggled with snacking during the day, eating sufficient amounts of protein at every meal (which will turn down hunger) is the key to stop snacking so much.

2. Junk Food Exorcism

   Don’t buy junk food. Don’t let it in your house. Owning how you are in control of what is purchased at the store can be very powerful. If you can’t say no to ice cream, cookies, or a whole block of cheese with crackers know this: you don’t have to fight it IF you don’t buy it. Can spouses and children make this more difficult? Yes. Are you going to throw out this powerful tactic so easily because of others? I hope not. Flexibility and understanding should triumph bad food habits when it comes to family members and spouses. Try having a conversation with them about what you need. Are you the shopper? You are in complete control.

3. Habit Smack Down

   Speaking of habits….being aware of your food habits can often set people free from them…. eventually. Awareness is the first and most powerful step to change. Do you usually stop at Starbucks and consume 450 calories of a sugary coffee drink? Are you aware that your 3 “handfuls” of nuts a day equals 600 calories a day? You love drinking beer and wine. OK, but if you want to lose weight you need to realize that you are drinking 1800 calories a week in alcohol. Having this awareness along with repeated efforts to change is how progress is made. With enough energy (think about this word), old habits can fade away.

4. Processed Food Check

   Changing the type of processed foods a person or family buys can also yield great results. The “deadly” kind of processed foods that I am worried about are usually a combination of carbs, sugar, and vegetable oils (crackers, chips, cookies). For some people, changing from standard processed food to heathier versions produces good results. For example, switching from chips to roasted pumpkin seeds can be a healthy change with a similar flavor. Other people find that making their own “treats” is the best way to go. Adopting recipes made from almond or coconut flour instead of wheat flour can completely change how good or bad something like a cookie can be for a person.

5. Goal Setting

   Short and long term goal setting with accountability is one of the best ways to change one’s habits. Having a health coach on your side is helpful during this process. Clients often come up with goals, I help refine them, and then I help facilitate change. Just the act of writing out one’s goal on paper can provide a lot of energy to change.

Along with finding the right kind of diet, paying attention to habits and patterns is a great combination to actually lose weight and keep it off. There still is no quick fix to losing weight. Anyone who loses weight and intends to keep it off (along with lowering all risk factors for disease that comes with an unhealthy lifestyle) has to adopt a new life style for about 2 years to really make it stick (both habitually and metabolically). These are the facts. Two years may seem like a long time but this is NOT bad news. This is great news! I would challenge people to think this way: Just like a bad relationship with a person, why would you want to stay in a bad food relationship? Why would you ever want to go back to food habits that harm your body and shorten your life?

Diet and habit change is the best way to lose weight. Are you ready for results? Contact Jason Cornish, Medical Fitness Specialist, Personal Trainer, and Health Coach in Auburn, AL today at 402-521-0314 or email at jason.a.cornish@gmail.com.