Why Diets Don't Work and How to Win the Battle of the Bulge!!

Happy New Year!! Hey, its time for a New Years resolution. Lets lose some weight!!! What?? It’s February already?? How did that happen?? Anyhow...

Yes, this is the year I am going on a diet and going lose that bulge!! Sounds familiar??? Probably. So the great battle begins. Hmm... Which diet will I try this time? Anyone for Atkins? Maybe the South Beach Diet. Or perhaps, I will go old school and try Weight Watchers.

Flash forward 3 months- What has happened? Have you lost the weight? How many times did you cheat on the diet? How many times did you have a bad day, bad week, or month perhaps? Did you fall of the wagon? Did you get back up, only to fall off again?

Sounds familiar and discouraging. Welcome to the wacky world of dieting. Where the numbers go up and down and all around. Whee!!! Get me of this ride, please!!!

For anyone who has attempted to go on a diet, we all know how frustrating this can be. After all, how man times can you say, "I was doing so well. I just don't understand what happened." In essence, this is the key that frustrates many people; the feeling that they can't win at this game.

I myself tried the diet game 4 times with little success until with the help of g-d I was fortunate to figure it out. So, what is the solution? How do you lose weight and keep it off? As you could imagine this is not a simple question. In short, a diet alone will not work. Exercise must be included in your efforts if you are to lose weight and not "find it back."

Right about now, you must be saying, 'Exercise, I hate exercise." Having said that let me discuss why exercise with better nutrition works and why dieting alone is a losing proposition. Suppose someone is eating 2,500 calories a day and decides, "That's it, I am going to only eat 1,500 calories a day!!" Initially, the person begins to lose weight. However, this person also begins to miss the foods they used to eat. Eventually, this person will give in and "fall off the wagon". Why does this happen? In short, we are wired to like food. We are also wired to like routine. When one break routine such as eating less food the brain goes to work and tells you are hungry. Additionally, when you deprive the body of the food its use to it goes into slow down- you know; your metabolism slows down. So... your metabolism slows down, you break your diet, and you’re back to square one.

OK, I get it. Diets won't work. Why does exercise work? In short, it’s all about beating your metabolism. Initially, when one eats less, a reduction of calories should in theory make one lose weight. However, we all know the metabolism, puts that plan to a screeching halt. However, when the diet is combined with exercise, you can fight the metabolism problem.

So how does this exercise and dieting exactly work? Like anything else, this requires several steps.

Step 1--> Use the following table to record your daily intake of food.

Day	Breakfast	Snack 1	Lunch	Snack 2	Dinner
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday

Step 2--> Now for the fun part. After you have done this for a week, it will be time to deduct 250-500 calories a day from your daily intake of food. 250 calories a day will help you lose a 1/2 pound a week and 500 calories will help you lose a pound a week. As you can imagine giving up 500 calories a day is quite a challenge. Yet, the results are limited. With this in mind, add an exercise routine, which has you burning 500 to 1,000 calories a day. If you burn 1,000 calories a day, the net loss can yield a loss of 2 pounds on a weekly basis. As you can see, exercise clearly delivers far greater results.

Step 3--> If this does not motivate you to join a gym or go running around the park, then consider the following; Just about every study on this subject has conclude the following;

* The average life span of the active person is about 10 more years than their couch potato counterpart.
* The more you exercise, the more you will be able to eat guilt free.
* You will regain energy that you never knew you had.
* You will look a minimum of 10 years younger.
* You will gain a new sense of happiness.
* You will be able to think quicker.
* You will look great!!

Step 4--> You might be thinking, "This sounds nice, but how am I going to find time. Besides, didn't I tell you that I hate exercise.” With this in mind, I have the following remedy. Try exercising just once for about 20-30 minutes. After you conduct this activity, you will probably be happy- feel good about yourself. To put in more blunt terms, "No one feels depressed or down after they workout." Why is this? Simply put, endorphins. Additionally, your daily tensions can be addressed in a fun and constructive manner. More importantly, every study on this subject validates that daily exercise will make you happier, deal with your tensions, and of course make you healthier.
Step 5--> Have said all this, why would anyone resist a regimen of exercise. Well, this comes down to one thing; routine. We are all victims of our routine. Think about it. Do you not eat the same foods even if they are not good for you? Do you continue to watch a long television series long after its prime? If you are wondering why; it’s routine. Similarly, we are used to not exercising. Therefore, our mind will make every argument to stop you from starting this new routine. For example, one of my friends recently asked me, "Isn't jogging bad for you in the cold weather. I mean, how do you breathe?" To which I responded, "I breathe fine in the cold." Clearly, this was an attempt to validate a couch potato life style. Not so long ago, I used to have the same excuses. The old, "I'm too busy" and "I'm not as young as I used to be." Until one day, I realized, enough is enough!!

Conclusion--> Obviously there is more to this story. Likewise, there is a great deal I can say on workout routines and so on. However, I will have to save that for another posting. In any case, the point is, I broke the habit of giving up. With this in mind, break the habit. Exercise, for one month. After that, you will have a new routine and "Here's to a brand new you!!!