Diet Survivors™ Newsletter March 2006
The newsletter for normal eaters
The mission of Diet Survivors™
This newsletter is for struggling dieters who would like to find a better way. Our mission is to help our readers understand
the difference between adaptive
change and technical change. Most dieters make
technical changes, such as
altering the food to be lower in fat or carbohydrates, buying a new scale, or making
a resolution to skip breakfast. But these are surface changes, and only some of them are helpful.
Adaptive change, on the other hand, goes deeper and requires courage. An adaptive change
involves changing what you tell yourself. True weight loss, or any other kind of great success, follows this more internal form of change.
Technical changes can be good, too, in their place, and we will address which ones make sense.
A note for you rule followers: There is no one prescription in these newsletters.
There is no "hidden diet." These newsletters are based on the premise that normal eating is the route to health and right weight. They can help you find out how normal eaters eat, and how to restore your own good judgment about when you're hungry and full.
Psychologists today agree that Americans do not take enough time for contemplation.
Yet contemplation time can revolutionize you on the inside, and lead to great insights. These insights lead to decisions which
benefit you, your family, and the world around you. Why not set up a regular fifteen-minute meditation time in your busy life? Find
positive materials to meditate on during those fifteen minutes, or print this newsletter and meditate on its contents as a start.
Post-holiday eating blues?
No need for despair. The holidays seem to come decorated with garlands of false beliefs and flashing lights of "must do's." It's no
wonder we become disillusioned with ourselves. No, contrary to popular opinion, it's not the holiday food that causes you to overeat.
How you think has more to do with failure or success than any circumstantial temptation
or deprivation.
Experts give only lip service to the aberrational thinking surrounding the holidays, in the form of "People often have too
high an expectation, and then they feel let down." The experts are right, but they don't go far enough. There is a strong
connection between exaggerated thinking
and overeating, which begs closer inspection. So let's get a little more specific.
Thoughts that lead to overeating
Do you recognize yourself in any of these? Even if not, you might think of your own personal irrational beliefs.
- I deserve to enjoy the holidays by overeating.
- Overeating is desirable and good.
- The problem is too much food in my house (or at a party).
- The problem is all the junk food in my house.
- Eating a just-right amount takes all the joy out of the holidays.
- I have no discipline.
- I do not have the willpower that it takes to force my body to do what it doesn't want to do.
- I can only lose weight by following a "plan."
- I've been bingeing for so long that I am no longer able to determine when I'm full. I can never be a "normal" eater.
Some new thoughts about weight loss
Don't forget, the key to making true adaptive change in your life is to meditate and dwell on new beliefs. It won't be easy to
dismantle and replace some of your irrational beliefs. But it's worth the time and effort.
So pick out one or two new thoughts which your rational mind tells you are true, and meditate on them throughout your day,
day after day, until they have replaced a false belief you once had. You can also think of your own. Just make sure they are true!
Here are some examples of truths.
- I do not have to believe that food brings happiness.
- The high I feel from overeating is not normal and can be reversed over time.
- Food is a way to dull feelings, but I have the courage to accept myself and my feelings.
- Hurrying to drop the weight for the summer is not good for me. I will take my time.
- Placing food above all other forms of enjoyment is a form of addiction.
- I have jumped over many other hurdles in my life. I am capable of "breaking up" with my food.
- It's not shameful to have a relationship with food. This happens to lots of people and I'm not alone.
- I am able to rise above my circumstances. I do not have to clear my pantry of "kid food" in order to stay away from it.
- It's not helpful to eliminate carbohydrates or eliminate fat in my diet. I can alter myself instead of the food.
- I can, indeed, learn to be satiated by tiny amounts of delicious, regular food.
- Eating a just-right amount at each meal can be my new source of joy when it comes to eating.
- I do have discipline and willpower. In the past, I might have been directing all that control toward compliance to a plan or diet.
Or, I might have been directing all that effort toward my stubbornness and unwillingness to change. Now I know that I can direct my
energy and efforts toward changing what I tell myself.
- I don't need any plan except to find my body's internal ability to recognize hunger and satiety (fullness).
- My unwillingness to make inward changes has not been making me happy.
Make one change in your diet life
How about taking your technical changes in slow motion? Have you ever tried that before? If you haven't done so already, consider
for this month adding a new liquid to your diet. Many dieters habitually avoid drinks so as to "save calories" and be able to
"chew more." They will only drink non-caloric drinks, such as water and diet soda. Yet they also report that they always feel thirsty
and dehydrated, even if they're drinking eight glasses of water a day!
And why do we want to chew more food anyway? How did we come to view overeating as desirable?
If your ultimate goal is to get back in tune with your body's signal that you are full, it won't
make any difference whether it's milk or buttered toast that makes you full because when you're full, you're full.
Did you know that
wet foods help you feel satiated (say-shee-ay-ted)? It's the opposite of what you may have been thinking! So try adding back a just-right amount of caloric
wet foods, such as a half glass of juice with your meal or some applesauce with your pork chop
or a small bowl of soup for lunch. How about a small glass of delicious whole milk? But
that's just an example. Don't force yourself to drink milk if you don't
like milk! Find the wet foods that you like, not what someone else likes.
Make one change in your diet thinking
The suggested adaptive change for this month is to tell yourself the truth about chewing more.
Your replacement belief can be "Chewing less is becoming my new joy." Try having a bowl of soup for dinner, with some nice, grainy, buttered bread. But wait until you're good and hungry—it will taste so good if you're truly hungry!
These Web pages provide sensible advice on healthy diets, nutrition, and weight loss.
However, no advice given here is intended as a substitute for professional medical advice.
Always consult your doctor when deciding to make significant dietary or lifestyle changes.
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Last Modified: Wednesday, 06-Feb-2008 07:12:45 PST
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