How to break the viscous cycle of Yo-Yo dieting!
This is the most common diet question and struggle I hear:
How do I break the vicious cycle? I start eating well and after a week or two I can’t seem to maintain it. EVERY TIME I’m fatter than I was before I started
Fundamentally the way we are taught to diet is flawed hence why more than 95% of dieters will fail and shocking 66% will end up fatter two years later.
It’s really NOT your fault.
What you haven’t been told is that this not only sets us up for yo-yo dieting it also creates what we call rebound weight gain! Like a boomerang that weight you just lost will return at lightening speed and bring along a whole new cast of extra fat with it. Why you ask?
Well I am telling you what the food and diet industry do not want you to know. Why do you say that Jill? Because once you know this, you will never start another diet again and you will stop funding the financial gains that the food and pharmaceuticals make from us being #beigewashed (brain washed).
Your AMAZING body (which happens to be the result of 4 billion years of evolutionary success) has evolved to survive periods of food scarcity. What this means is that when calorie intake and food volume is suddenly reduced your body will naturally recalibrate the metabolism to become less efficient at burning fat and more efficient at storing fat (like a room thermostat set to temperature, when it get’s colder the heating kicks in and when it gets hotter the heating turns off). Eating less calories, the body will adjust the metabolism (turning fat metabolism down, turn hunger up and make you tired) in order to survive the impending famine (which we commonly call a diet).
Diets work against our body instead of with because generally our perception of dieting teaches us to create deficit of calories and the bigger the better for faster weight loss. It’s like trying to hold your breath under water. You can only do it for so long before you will have to come up for air.
What does balancing hormones mean?
Here is what happens when you eat less calories without hormonal balance (standard diet):
- Increased cravings, food addictions and binge eating
- Poorly managed energy levels and crashes at various times of the day
- Poor sleep
- Excessive hunger or increased appetite
- Fatigue
- Loss of motivation and will power
- Preoccupation with food and thoughts of food
- Obsession with points, calories or macros
- Obsession with weight and scales
- Average diet lasts around 19 days
Here is what happens when you balance hormones (real food with plenty of volume):
- Your hunger and appetite is stabilised so you naturally eat less food
- Increased satiety
- Increased motivation and energy levels
- Fewer crashes that often lead to binges, junk food or overeating
- Improved sleep
- Sustainable fat loss
- Reduced set point and reduced risk of weight gain rebound
- Increased fat loss and maintenance of muscle leaving your feeling firmer instead of softer
- An increased focus on inch and fat loss
I just want my old body back from 6yrs ago
The key steps to breaking the vicious cycle of yo-yo dieting
- Learn which foods can help bring about metabolic and hormonal balance to aid sustainable and enjoyable fat loss (click here to join the support group)
- Be willing to not only change your body, approach to food but also your mind!
- Raise consciousness (mindfulness) and awareness of your thoughts you are better able to question each move you make
- Don’t start a diet! Don’t even use the word diet. Just the word alone can create feelings of deprivation and difficulty.
- Think of it as a fun, new journey and a way of looking at nourishing your body for health and wellbeing
- Learn to appreciate how amazing you are! Only then will you create the feelings of love and respect that will lead you to naturally making better choices
- Plan and prep your food ahead. Always have the right choices to hand as often as you can to avoid being caught out
- Avoid spending time in environments or around people who aren’t willing to change
- Include foods you enjoy everyday. Even just a small amount of your favourite food such as a couple of squares of dark chocolate or small glass of wine can ensure you enjoy and sustain the new way of eating
- Learn to monitor the feedback your body gives. Some foods will be your super power and keep you full and satiated and other foods will be your kryptonite leading you to overeat, binge or feel more hungry later for example
- Expect to fail and embrace it as part of your research. Expecting perfection and feeling guilt when we don’t get it right leads us to feeling less motivated and more likely to return to our old ways
- Give your taste buds time to adjust to a new style of eating. After time you will start to enjoy foods you thought were bland or not sweet enough and start to find your previous choices less enjoyable
- Good sleep, regular movement such as walking, stress management, hydration and illness for example can all impact hormones. Be aware of how this might effect your hunger or energy levels for example.
I hope you are starting to see why the reason you can’t stick to a diet or why you end up fatter is really not your fault! So stop those diets now, throw away the scales (read why!) and get yourself eat real food like nature intended.
Big love, small tummies!
Jill – The Fat Controller
