5 Secrets To Stick To Your Weight-Loss Diet Program

   Struggling to stick with your diet program? You aren’t alone. Millions of people worldwide fall off diet programs every day.

   Why is it so hard to adhere to a weight-loss diet program? Experts say that your body does, actually, conspire against you. In an effort to return to the weight it’s used to, it is making you feel hungrier and slowing your metabolism as you lose weight.

   Fortunately, we have some suggestions that can help tip the scales in your favor. Let’s take a closer look at five powerful secrets for sticking to your diet plan. Put them into action and see the results you’re looking for.

   Get A Diet Buddy

   If possible, don’t go at it alone. Those who get a diet buddy stand a much better chance of success in the long run, as they will support each other on the way.

   At the least find someone who will support you and keep you accountable as you need it. Report (whether or not you have used good eating habits and followed your eating plan) to another person daily (through email, texting, or voice messages). Stay accountable to yourself by weighing yourself every day.

   If you’re new to an area, it can be hard to make friends and find that support system that makes you feel at home. Join a gym, take healthy cooking classes, or join a local meeting to find like-minded people who share similar goals. You may not click with everyone you meet, but in no time you’ll have found a key person or two who can be the foundation for your new support system and will help keep your goals a priority.

   Another option is to get a virtual buddy. Technology makes it easier than ever to connect with like-minded people−and it doesn’t matter where they live! Online communities can be great resources for support and tips. Chat on message boards about topics from diet and nutrition to exercise and fitness. You can even find message boards purely for discussing motivation.

   You will hit hard times, and it will really help to have someone by your side.

   Eat Slowly

   Eat everything sitting down, slowly, and enjoy every bite even if you don’t feel like it very much.

   This way it will be much more difficult to allow yourself to eat off plan, eat mindlessly, or binge.

   Keep A Food Journal

   According to a new study in the journal Obesity consistently keeping a food journal can help you avoid regaining the weight you’ve lost.

   The researchers asked 220 obese women to record what they ate at least three days a week. They were instructed to write down the type of food or drink, how much of it they consumed, how many calories it contained, and what time they ate it. At the end of the year-long study, the most diligent diary keepers−those who jotted down journal entries at least three times a week over the course of several months−were less likely to pack on pounds they’d previously lost. Some even dropped additional weight.

   Simply jot down the most critical numbers (maybe that means calories or portion sizes, you decide)−and you may find that the number on the scale doesn’t creep back up as quickly as it has in the past.

   Another idea is to write down your goals, struggles, setbacks and successes. This can be a great way to support yourself even when no one else will. Sometimes just writing about your struggles and reminding yourself why you’re working toward your goals is all you need to get going again.

   Use Hunger-Busting Strategies

   Hunger is another reason why many people can’t stick with a fat loss diet plan. That’s natural, but avoidable. Either they cut their calories too much, or they lack foods that promote satiety, or both.

   Focus your diet around foods that break down and digest slowly. Lean proteins coupled with fibrous carbohydrates are the best choices, followed closely by small doses of dietary fat.

   While fat calories can add up quickly, small amounts can work wonders for hunger control.

   Set Short Term Goals & Motivate Yourself

   Motivate yourself every day by reading a list of reasons that you want to lose weight for every morning. Pull out this list at vulnerable times of the day as well.

   Think about what you want to accomplish in three weeks. It can be beneficial (and motivational) to dream about your transformed body in a year’s time, but only in tandem with achievable short term goals. Otherwise you will lose sight of the light at the end of the tunnel.

   Reward yourself for meeting your goals. If you meet your goal of losing a pound or working out five times, pamper yourself. Whether it’s a long bath or a day off from exercise with no guilt, have a reward in mind for meeting your goals and stick with it.

   Stop looking for the perfect diet or the perfect combination of foods. Eat in a very healthy way but allow yourself to have one favorite food, in moderation, every single day. If you find it difficult to satisfy the moderation guideline, one solution is to consume it shortly before bedtime, brush your teeth, and get in bed.

   In the short-run, it will also help if you have a list of powerful distractions to turn your attention away from food.

   Tell yourself that every time matters. It’s not necessarily the calories: it’s the HABIT. Every time you eat something you weren’t supposed to, you strengthen your giving in muscle, which makes it more likely that the next time you’ll give in and the time after that and the time after that. Instead, every time you stick to your plan when you’re tempted to eat something else, you strengthen your resistance muscle, which makes it more likely that the next time you’ll resist, and the time after that and the time after that.

   Remember that Rome wasn’t built in a day, and you won’t lose all the weight you want in a week. Keep it simple. Focus on the here and now. Find a program, such as The 3 Week Diet, that focuses on the coming weeks. Use that time to build good habits, and you will be prepared for the future months.

   Want to make the 3 week concept work for you? Check out The 3 Week Diet plan, which teaches you how to build proper habits over the course of three weeks. Equip yourself for a future of weight loss and health maintenance.