How to Make Your Diet Enjoyable
There’s nothing worse than starting a diet and instantly feeling like you’re missing out on things that you enjoy about your ‘normal life’.
What’s important to realise, is often we build up this up in our head before the diet even begins. Thinking “once this diet starts I won’t be able to eat out, I’m not going to drink any alcohol, I’m going to workout 5 days a week AND do 10,000 steps per day”. The extreme mindset of dieting adds to the restriction felt during the diet.
IT DOESN’T HAVE TO BE LIKE THIS!
I’m going to share my favourite tips on how to make your diet enjoyable so that it’s sustainable and if you do things the right way, the results will last long term too!
Give it a go…
It sounds way too simple to actually be a tip but its because I see the same patterns happen over and over. Women jump on a new diet and completely change the way they eat. Forcing down food that they found on a free diet program from the internet. That’s just not necessary.
There is no ‘good’ or ‘bad’ food. What’s important is that you have a balance of micronutrients and macronutrients. This is important for a number of reasons.
Firstly, its important for overall and long term health. Your body needs different nutrients for its fuel. It’s also a good way to get a variety of foods so that you’re not bored.
Through balance, you can choose to includes meals that you like eating. Stop ditching the carbs and instead include a smaller portion of them on your plate.
I’m so disappointed by how many women I speak to are still fooled by the old myth that sugar is evil. If you don’t enjoy it then I’m not telling you that you need to eat it. But there’s absolutely nothing wrong with including it in your diet. You can read more about this in the “Is Sugar Bad For You?” Blog post that I’ve written: HERE.
Snacks might not just be sugar. It can be whatever you enjoy eating. If you cut out your favourite snacks completely, you’re more likely to feel restricted and then ‘fail’ on your diet, leaving you feeling guilty and as if you’re a failure… which you’re not!
Be aware of your feelings during this time and be kind to yourself. It’s rational to feel hungry, to feel cravings and to feel frustrated. Don’t punish yourself for feeling this way. In fact, you are actively trying to lose weight. That means your body will want you to feel hungry so that you eat more to avoid weight loss. That’s your body’s job to ensure survival.
Too often we consider ‘hunger’ uncomfortable and we avoid it. We avoid it by eating again and feeling guilty for going against the diet goals we’ve set for ourselves.
Instead, be aware of your feelings and allow yourself to have those feelings.
>> Click here to read about 5 Easy Ways to add Mindfulness to your Routine.
The worst thing you can do at the start of a new diet is set excessive exercise goals for yourself. Far too often I see women aiming to double or even triple what they’re already doing. That’s absurd. It’s also not necessary.
Reflect on how much exercise you’re doing currently: both formal and your daily steps.
If you can, set a goal for slightly more than what you’re doing currently. If that’s not achievable, don’t worry about changing it – you only want to set goals that are actually going to be met by you.
If you’d like to add in some weight training but don’t know how to, you can download some free resources that I have:
Starting a new diet comes with a lot of different emotions. Don’t set it up to be even harder on yourself than it needs to be. Simple steps are going to get you a lot more progress with a lot less effort over the long term.
