Stop “diet mentality”.
Thinking about “going on a diet” also means that you can go “off the diet”. To many, “diet” does not mean “a lifestyle change”. The word brings up thoughts of restriction, deprivation, hunger, and not being able to eat what we want. It is usually a temporary solution and not sustainable or healthy, in the long term.
In the dictionary, there are two definitions of the word “diet”. The first is: “the kinds of food that a person, animal, or community habitually eats”. The second: “a special course of food to which one restricts oneself, either to lose weight or for medical reasons”. I encourage the concept of “lifestyle change” or “a way of eating”.
Often, when someone changes the quality of food that they eat, they end up eating less because the healthier foods are less calorically dense. By including high fiber foods from Mother Nature vs. processed and refined foods, less calories are available to store as fat because the calories in fiber are eliminated. By eating a balanced diet of healthy carbohydrates (oatmeal, brown rice, sweet potatoes, fruits & veggies), lean animal proteins (fish, chicken breast) and mostly plant fats (avocado, almonds), we tend to have less cravings and feel more satiated, too.
If weight loss is the goal, change the quality of the food you put in your body, control your portions, and exercise. Avoid the “diets” that zap your energy, negatively effect your health, and make your journey towards your goal, miserable.
At Freedom of Fitness, we encourage that “your way of eating” be healthy, most of the time, not a diet that changes dramatically from one extreme to another.
No “die” with a “T”.
