Diet Survivors™ explain technical and adaptive changes
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What are technical and adaptive changes?
Technical changes are external
Technical changes are the kinds of changes we make on the outside. For example, if we want to quit smoking, we get on a program to taper off, hoping that our desire to quit will exceed our desire for another cigarette. Technical changes are external. We try taking away the ashtrays and avoiding people who smoke. We get rid of all the cigarettes in the house. Sometimes, this method works.
Too often, however, technical change isn't enough, because our inner desires are stronger than any outward change we might try to make. If someone else in the house smokes, for example, we might give up and blame our failure on the other smoker. But there is another way.
When it comes to dieting, technical changes abound. You can eat low-fat dressing, avoid bread, follow a food plan, remove all the sweets from the house, or resolve only to indulge in "bad foods" when you eat out. Sometimes, dieters lose weight using only technical changes, and a few even keep the weight off.
But the reason many dieters fail in the long run is because they have only tried these technical, external changes. Meanwhile their inner self-talk is screaming for the old days.
Adaptive changes are internal
A popular and "successful" weight-loss program advertises a disclaimer on its materials and their Web site: "Results not typical." Why are they required to post this disclaimer? Because over time, most dieters gain the weight back.
There is nothing really wrong with the dieting program of which we speak. It offers good, sound nutrition, a scientific method of calculating proper portions, and support meetings. It's just that its members receive little or no instruction in changing their inner selves. By what measure, then, does this business consider itself "successful"? Think about it...it's a flourishing business, with plenty of repeat customers.
Repeat customers? Apply your rational mind to this matter. Do you consider a diet program with repeat customers and a "results not typical" disclaimer to be successful? Do you view a diet program which boasts a lifetime membership program to be the answer for dieters?
Diets fail because the dieter doesn't make adaptive changes. Adaptive changes are the internal changes in our attitudes, beliefs, and feelings. All three can be changed, with a little work.
Self-awareness is the first step. As you become self-aware, perhaps by recording your thoughts, you can start to realize that your attitudes are negative, your beliefs are distorted or irrational. Your feelings, which arise from attitudes and beliefs, can indeed change as you deliberately change what you think.
Smokers who make an adaptive change become aware of their attitudes that they're entitled to smoke—it's their way of relaxing. They becomes aware of their beliefs that they need a cigarette in order to concentrate. They think that stress is a bad thing, and that they must medicate it with cigarettes. As they begins to replace these distorted thoughts with more rational ones, and starts to embrace stress as a normal part of life, their feelings of frustration and anger over their expected losses will be transformed into hope and acceptance of a new way of life.
The same is true for the dieter. To see some examples of distorted diet beliefs and their replacement beliefs, read the March 2006 issue of Diet Survivors.
An example—becoming a writer
Suppose you want to become a writer. You find out what writers do. You organize your desk, buy some books on freelance writing, and try getting something published. But is that really all? Those are necessary technical changes, but there is something more.
You will also need to change how you view yourself. Maybe you've never had much confidence in yourself. Maybe you're afraid to take risks. Perhaps you second-guess your own opinions. These are internal matters; they require adaptive change.
To become a writer, you don't earn a degree to prove your title. Instead, you'll need to start calling yourself a writer, so that others begin to perceive you as a writer. You'll need to make a decision to remind yourself fifty times a day that you do have the ability, and that you do have something worthwhile to say. You'll need to force yourself to dance for joy the first time you get a rejection from an editor, and tell yourself that each rejection brings you one step closer to an acceptance.
Such changes in your beliefs and self-talk are not easy. It is because of the needed adaptive change that many folks don't achieve their dreams. But everyone is capable of adaptive change. It's simply a choice to shift your focus and concentrate on new attitudes and beliefs.
Want to know more about technical and adaptive changes?
These concepts are described and illustrated in a wonderful book about leadership. Find out more about Leadership on the Line by Martin Linsky and Ronald A. Heifetz.
Other questions about Diet Survivors? You might find the answer in a back issue of the Diet Survivors™ newsletter. Or you might like to discuss adaptive changes with other non-dieters. And don't forget to order our new book, How to Survive Your Diet and Conquer Your Food Issues Forever by Linda Moran. Read a summary.
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Last Modified: Wednesday, 06-Feb-2008 07:13:23 PST Betterway Press
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The psychological advice contained within these Web pages is approved by Dr. Joan Henry
Copyright © 2005 Betterway Press
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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