Are You Addicted to Diets?

I am always on the search for an answer to why it is people would rather diet and follow the next craze, th

an they would opt for a weight loss coach and put an end to diets altogether and to all the yo-yo craziness. I always tell people that if I could figure that out, I'd be a millionaire! Well, this week's blog is about my ever forming theory. It might not make me a millionaire, but it might help to get a bit closer to answering my question - comments especially welcome on this one!

My thoughts on this were sparked by an emaiI received from a lady looking for another weight loss option. She has again, been there, done that seventeen times, lost and gained, believed the promises, bought the books, tried the diet plans, but is still no where near losing weight than she was when she started. We had been exchanging emails for a while, as she was considering her options - a very wise thing to do. Although I was a bit baffled as to why she was considering options she had already tried and friends of hers had already tried, but were still in the same position. When I asked her she replied "but, it worked at the start." THAT got me thinking!

Don't they all?? Don't all diets work at the start? That is what gets you hooked! You are so desperate to lose weight, that convictions at the beginning are always strong and when you see the pounds dropping, then you get a buzz, a real buzz - an addictive buzz. A rush of excitement of what could be, of success, of a high level of pleasure. Just like a drug may give you.........at the start. But ultimately what happens is that you are so focused on the buzz, that you lose sight of the bigger picture, the long term picture, of your WHOLE LIFE picture. You lose sight of the fact that the diet is impossible to maintain. You lose sight of the fact that it won't fix your emotional eating issues. You lose sight of the necessity of figuring out the real reasons behind your eating behaviours and you lose sight of how you are going to feel when the diet starts slipping and the scales inevitably start creeping up again. None of that matters when you are filled with the immense sense of achievement/excitement/happiness/joy you feel in the few seconds in time when you step on the scales!

The addiction is to THAT feeling. The euphoria from seeing a lower number on the scale. The addiction is so great, that you will do anything to get it back, including try that same old diet you've done seventeen times before, that worked at the start, but clearly didn't work at all or you wouldn't be here considering it again for the eighteenth time, would you? Do you really want to lose weight or are you just addicted to diets?

I get it, I totally do. I can see exactly why diets are addictive. But haven't you ever wondered what it would feel like to never have to worry about seeing the scales go down ever again? Haven't you ever considered that there is actually a life where diets don't exist, where guilt about food is eliminated and the emotional roller coaster that comes along with it is banished forever - OR is the buzz of the start of a diet so great, that you really haven't even considered it??

Please start to think beyond that buzz, of the bigger picture, of your WHOLE LIFE. Sorting out the reasons behind your eating behaviours may not be the quickest or easiest option, but it's the ONLY one that's going to work and if you value real happiness with your weight, it's the ONLY OPTION YOU HAVE LEFT.