Now that you’re committed to changing your life for good, keeping up the focus is a must. But, when you’re on a life-changing journey, it’s hard to stay on track at every stage – danger zones are pretty inevitable. So, here’s how you can keep the scales steady and your weight loss on the right track!
1. Diet dilemma – getting hungry
You know the score by now – starving yourself, skipping meals and snacks and generally not eating enough to keep your body and mind fuelled will, sooner or later, derail your diet. Research shows that feeling hungry and deprived can mean that you’re much more likely to overindulge at some point. So opt for three main meals a day with healthy snacks in between and, if you need ideas, check out The Club's menu plans.
2. Diet dilemma – being unrealistic!
Being too hard on yourself and setting your expectations too high is bound to derail your diet. So, set small achievable goals and when you reach them, celebrate! From her own incredible experiences, Biggest Loser Season 3 finalist Kirsten urges you to change your lifestyle gradually and you’ll be much more likely to succeed. She suggests, “Make small changes if you’re not ready for the full-on new you. Stay motivated with little goals; long term, you might want to lose 50kg but you could have, say, 50 small goals and celebrate every time you lose a kilo.”
3. Diet dilemma – friends, parties and celebrations
According to research from the Pennsylvania State University, feeling relaxed and at ease at social get-togethers with loved ones means you might be tempted to eat more, up to 50% more, compared to eating alone. That’s because you’re more likely to linger longer over meals to keep the good times going. Another reason could be that it’s so much easier to concentrate on your friends and on your conversations rather than on what and how much you pop into your mouth. So, some of the time, don’t make it all about food. To avoid this diet danger zone, try some non-food activities like shopping or bowling or visiting a new art exhibition or a museum or a market. But when a meal is a must, think about lunch instead of dinner; you might have time constraints if you’re working/need to pick up the kids/have another appointment cutting your table time. You might find it easier to choose lighter lunch options, too. If you’re going out for the evening, try to have a snack of fresh fruit or low-fat yoghurt – you'll find it much easier to resist the high-calorie nibbles/drinks if you do. And, if you are entertaining at home, always choose light, healthy meals such as those from The Biggest Loser Club Cookbook.
4. Diet dilemma – eating out
Having an eating out plan will help you get focused about what to expect and how you will react to challenges. So, before you go out for a meal, decide on your options. Will you skip starters? Will you share a main course? Portion sizes at restaurants have grown dramatically over the last decade so you might find sharing a main course plus extra vegies/salad might just do the trick. Or, you could choose to indulge and share a favourite dessert with a friend. When eating out, there’s always the potential for overdoing it and if you do, don’t despair – plan to reduce your food intake the next day and step up your exercise levels for a few days afterwards.
5. Diet dilemma – the lure of the vending machine
Being tired and feeling hungry are red light times which can leave you vulnerable. Having a plan can help you stay in control. At work, plan ahead and BYO – keep some healthy snacks stashed away, like fresh and dried fruits, vegetable crudités (cucumber, carrot, capsicum and celery), low-fat wholegrain crackers and low-fat dips, low-fat yoghurt, sugar-free jellies and lots of water. For colder days, vegie soup is warming and filling or try fruit or herbal teas.
6. Diet dilemma – boozy beverages
Alcohol needs a special mention as many of us need to be really careful with what we drink. Not only are alcoholic drinks loaded with calories, but drinking too much weakens your willpower as well as your inhibitions – diet or otherwise. So do take it slow with alcohol. Quench your thirst by making your first drink a diet soft drink or water then have one glass of wine with your meal if you want to. Switch back to water or low-calorie soft drinks afterwards and be strong!
7. Diet dilemma – holiday time
Holidays are all about a split from routine, fun and relaxation. And, all this can make it easy to break your own diet rules. Tasty local foods and free food at resorts are difficult to resist and a drink or two when you’re away is a part of your holiday, isn’t it? If you are due to go on holidays, you have options; either be disciplined and try to stay on track with diet and exercise or, relax a little and expect to veer away from your course – but not too much. An all-out splurge will leave you feeling down and depressed when you return home.
8. Diet dilemma – the weight-loss plateau
One of the biggest potential diet derailers is the dreaded weight-loss plateau. You've been doing everything right, exercising and eating well and the numbers on the scale have been steadily dropping. Then suddenly: zero. This might be difficult to digest, but reaching a weight-loss plateau is a normal, natural part of your weight-loss journey and no excuse to give up. Turn things around! Congratulate yourself on your achievements so far. Then, consider what you can do to jump-start your body to continue moving in the right direction – can you spare half an hour and boost your exercise levels and burn an extra few hundred calories? Walking is an effective and convenient way to burn extra calories; for many people, moderate walking at 5 km per hour burns up to 100 calories for 30 minutes and brisk walking burns even more. Be strict about weighing your foods and stick closely with your plan. And, with a few minor adjustments you'll soon be back on course.
9. Diet dilemma – not being mindful
Keeping track of what and how much you’re eating and how much exercise you are doing is essential. So, make a promise to always be mindful about what you eat – don’t ‘hoover' up the kids’ leftovers or regularly taste mouthfuls of your cooking, because it all adds up. If each bite is worth 25 calories, for example, by the end of the day or after ten bites, you could have racked up a massive 250 extra calories, that’s nearly 2,000 calories by the end of the week! Be aware of absolutely everything you eat with the help of The Biggest Loser Club's online diary. Measure and weigh your food to avoid ‘portion distortion’. You could make things a little easier by asking your butcher/fishmonger to supply individual 100g servings, buy potatoes that weigh 100g each instead of a whole bag and use measuring cups and spoons until you know just what a cup or a tablespoon looks like.