One week into January, and chances are, you are already searching for an excuse to break the diet that was your New Year’s resolution. Fear not: HC Bucknell has you covered! This article is not a license to begin an anti-diet regimen that includes sitting around all day eating leftover Christmas cookies for every meal. It simply acknowledges that while diets don’t usually work in the long run, small, gradual lifestyle changes DO.
New Year’s Day slyly emerges at the most opportune time of year: right after we have indulged in holiday feasts, drinks, and days of lounging around, the time comes to change our holiday habits in the hopes of achieving health and happiness. Unfortunately, people often seek a “quick fix” to remedy and undo the collateral damage our bodies suffer from holiday indulgences. Fad diets seductively offer quick results, but the harsh truth is that in order to obtain and then maintain a healthy body, one must commit to the long haul.
From a historical, biological, and evolutionary perspective, crash diets don’t work. Or at least they don’t produce lifelong-lasting effects. Of course you will lose weight if you eliminate carbs from your diet, but once you reach your “goal weight,” what do you think you will do when presented with a bread basket at a restaurant? All hell could break loose…as well as the buttons on your jeans(!).
Overcompensation results from deprivation. Our bodies are not meant to be deprived of an entire food group.
Why begin an endless cycle of yo-yo dieting when you can just adopt a healthy, manageable lifestyle? And by manageable, we mean one that includes cookies and pizza, because who are we kidding if we try and write off pizza for the rest of eternity?
Here are some guidelines for making realistic lifestyle changes that you can maintain:
Start small and be specific. If you try and cut out an entire food group or forbid yourself from ever having dessert again, you’re going to end up caving, binging, and feeling guilty. Make small, incremental changes to your diet. For example: don’t drink soda unless you’re at a restaurant; or eat a portion of vegetables at dinner every night; eat a whole grain muffin instead of a chocolate chip one. Substitute or replace unhealthy foods with smarter choices instead of boycotting the food entirely.
Be realistic. You won’t feel guilty if you are honest with yourself. Acknowledge the fact that eating out and attending parties are part of being social, so don’t fool yourself by vowing to never eat another Chipotle burrito again.
Respect your body. Nourish it, don’t punish it. Eat healthy because you love your body, not because you hate it. If you diet for a superficial reason, like attaining a certain weight on the scale, you’re setting yourself up for either inevitable failure or a sense of false happiness.
Treat yo’self. Don’t deprive or restrict yourself of the occasional treat. Doing so will only make it harder to upkeep your diet in the long run. And besides, life is too short to say no to cake.