Five Tricks to Make the Diet Stick

Ever started diet program, only to fall off it and give up instead trying again? I have and I imagine that most people have faced this challenge. It may not seem like it, but odds are that the failure happened before the diet began, not after. Benjamin Franklin once said, “Failing to preparing is preparing to fail.” So before that diet begins here are five things that need to be considered to create the best possibility for success.

The most important step is to plan ahead.  Properly planning includes planning out all of the meals for the week. This includes knowing ahead of time when eating out will be unavoidable. This scheduling when those cheat meals will happen is just as important as planning the healthy eating. If the challenge is known ahead of time, it can be planned around. Take the time and sit down to look at the week ahead; what events present a challenge to finding something healthy to eat? This time of year is especially busy for my family; my son has T-Ball twice a week, I play softball once or twice a week, and we have dinner with friends at least once per week. Potentially, there could be five nights a week where our family is rushing around and away from home during the time we would normally cook. But eating healthy is a priority for us, so we plan ahead. Sometimes this means that my wife cooks two meals in one night. One for that night and one for the next; is it work? Yes, but it is easier the exercising off the drive thru.

Typically, my wife will go grocery shopping Friday afternoon after she leaves work. One of the keys of planning ahead is shopping for the entire week. When she shops Friday after work, she does it knowing what our schedule will be like for the next seven days. Meals are planned ahead of time and all the food is bought in one trip. This is a time saver later in the week. Before the meal, we know when it will be eaten. Knowing when food will be eaten is made far easier by knowing what will be consumed. Success in eating healthier means knowing what and when. Why? To become healthy.

One of the keys to getting the timing right for eating healthy meals is cooking in bulk. This is one of my personal keys to success. The simple reality is that I need more calories than my wife. I accomplish this by taking about 90 minutes every Sunday to cook an extra meal for myself for every day Monday-Friday of the coming week. It takes for little planning because it is the same meal for each day; making possible to plan ahead to cook in bulk. This stays time later as well as the stress of scrambling for a healthy option. What is my meal? Eight ounces of ground turkey, one medium-sized sweet potato, 1 cup of roasted Brussel sprouts, one cup of roasted broccoli; this is my post-workout meal.

The proper post-workout meal is an important part of enhancing the effects of exercise. But another nutrient is vital and often neglected: water. Most people are chronically dehydrated. What is the best gauge of hydration? It is not waiting until the thirst sensation is present. The color of urine is a far better indicator of hydration. It should look like clear lemonade. If it is darker than that the body is dehydrated; the more yellow and pungent the urine, the greater the state of dehydration.  To avoid this and to ensure proper functioning and maximize the potential for fat loss, drink a gallon per day. The best diets are better when the body is properly hydrated.

No body is perfect and no diet is perfect either. Earlier I discussed the value of looking at the week ahead and identifying when there will be challenges to sticking with the program. This leads into the final point; plan the breaks. Know ahead of time when there will be moments of stepping away from the program. Planning ahead is granting permission to temporarily step away, while knowing exactly when the program will be resumed. No diet is going to be perfect and adhered to all of the time. Instead of overreacting and binging when the opportunity arises, go into the situation knowing it is a temporary break. Doing so will alleviate the guilt, shame, and frustration that normally accompanies an unplanned break for the program. 

Winners do not seek perfection; they seek resilience to overcome the times when plans fall apart and goals are missed. Consistently sticking with these tricks is the key to making it work.