Are You in Diet Mentality or Lifestyle Mentality?

Are you tired of yo-yo dieting and not achieving your weight loss goals? Have you considered that it may be your outlook on dieting? Let’s take a look at the difference between diet and lifestyle mentality.

According to an article at sparkpeople.com, “The Difference Between a Diet and Lifestyle”

“The basic difference between a diet mentality and a lifestyle mentality is simply a matter of perspective. Having the right perspective may not make tofu taste better than chocolate, but it can make all the difference in the world when it comes to achieving your goals, avoiding unnecessary suffering along the way, and hanging onto your achievements over the long haul.

Trust me on this. I’ve lost well over 350 pounds in my life—I know how to do that. But I also put 200 of those back on again, getting bigger each time. The 150 pounds I lost a few years ago is staying off, because I’ve changed my perspective.

Here are the main ways a diet differs from a lifestyle:
1. A diet is all about numbers—the number on the scale and the number of calories you eat and burn. Success is defined in terms of how well you stick to your numbers.

A lifestyle change is all about you. It’s about lining up your eating and physical activity with your real goals and desires. Success is defined in terms of how these changes make you feel about yourself.

2. The diet mentality assumes that reaching a certain weight is the key to finding happiness and solving other problems. That’s why messing up the numbers on any given day can be so upsetting—it means you’ve messed up on just about everything that really matters.

The lifestyle approach assumes that being overweight is usually the result of other problems, not the cause. Addressing these problems directly is the best way to solve both the problems themselves and your weight issues.” To read the entire article click here.

Want to live a life free from dieting? Barbara Cox of ABC Nutrition Services is an expert in the non-diet approach. To schedule an appointment contact ABC Nutrition Services at 775-329-0505 or visit ABCNutritionServices.com.