Diet damage control
So you’ve been extremely diligent this week, exercised regularly and eaten all the right foods. Then Friday night rolls around and you find yourself faced with some mouth-watering chips or an irresistible plate of takeaway. Most of us give in and then immediately regret it. To find some answers on how to prevent diet sabotage, we culled some iVillagers’ suggestions from the diet message boards. Here are their simple strategies:
- In the face of a tempting Indian meal one iVillager suggests, ‘Eat really slowly. Chew each mouthful twice as long as you normally would and put your fork down occasionally between bites. That way you really get to taste your food (the difference is amazing), your brain has more time to register when your tummy is full, and you don’t feel pressured to eat just because everyone else is, or just because the food is there.’
- Another iVillager says, if you know you are going out for a meal with friends, ‘try and eat light meals during the day, but don’t starve yourself or you’ll end up eating the whole lot once you’re at dinner.’ She also adds sensibly that, ‘Unless you’ve got a will of iron, you aren’t going to be able to resist, so eat small portions and try to drink a diet drink or water.’
- Another iVillager’s approach is as follows: ‘I don’t have a drink during the week because I would snack at night. During the week, I concentrate on work so I don’t think about food. Weekends I relax and get easily sidetracked, so I make myself buy healthy food, except the kids lunch box treats and crisps.’
- iVillager Stinny suggests one way to get back on track with your diet: ‘Before you eat anything, ask yourself how hungry you are, on a scale of one to ten (ten being starving), and only eat if you are a six or over. It’s a really good trick and it makes you think before you eat.’
As far as the emotional ups and downs are concerned, most of us are much too hard on ourselves and need to allow some room for mistakes.
iVillager Blinxmum says: ‘Right, so you’ve had a blowout, which does not a diet break. We’ve all been there.’ She adds: ‘Just put it behind you. There’s no point feeling guilty– it’s extremely counterproductive because you just start to think in negative terms – how you can’t cope or can’t do it. Just forget it happened and carry on as normal.’
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