Diet Derailer - Things that can ruin your diet!

Any eating plan that is too restrictive will backfire. A healthy relationship with food is necessary to make permanent lifestyle changes. Mentally labeling foods "good" and "bad" is an example of an unhealthy relationship. Cravings are our body's way of telling us what it needs. An occasional indulgence is not harmful to healthy eating. Letting an indulgence transform into a binge is where the damage occurs. Mental health needs to be logical, it is not realistic to promise yourself you will never eat chocolate, wings, pizza, ice cream, or (feel free to enter your vice here…) ever again.

In order to achieve overall wellness, you should have healthy eating habits as well as a healthy mindset. Our mentality has a huge influence on what we are physically capable of accomplishing. A common and classic diet derailer follows:

You have successfully stuck to a healthy diet and workout routine for a week when your friends invite you to dinner. At dinner, you enjoy a nice meal and drink and do not go overboard. However, weighing yourself the next morning you notice you have gained 3 pounds.

This is where mental health will greatly impact your wellness goals. Below are examples of a positive versus negative mindset, it is important to focus on logic to prevent yourself from letting one indulgence snowball into a binge.

Sane Thoughts
• A pound is an excess of 3500 calories, which means to gain 3 lbs overnight, I would have had to eat 10,500 calories-without burning any (pretty much impossible to do)
• I ate a later than usual, the weight gain is probably reflective of the food not yet digesting compared to when I eat earlier during the week
• The weight gain can just be water weight from having a drink with dinner, since I don't usually drink with dinner during the week
• Three pounds is a normal fluctuation, generally weight fluctuates 2-5 pounds anyway
• Since I was out with friends, I slept less which can affect hormone levels which impact the physical body
• Restaurants generally use oil and spices, sodium may be causing me to retain some water

Sabotaging Thoughts
• I knew I should not have gone out to eat, I am never going out to eat again, I just wasted the entire week (this thought fails to acknowledge the benefits eating and exercising does for your body regardless of weight)
• Now I am not going to eat anything all day to "make up" for last night
• I am fat and always will be (research has proven that positive thinking aids people in losing weight, negative thoughts prohibit you from reaching your goals)
• This next week I am only going to drink juice, eat cabbage, (insert any crazy fad diet you have thought about trying here) these restrictive diets lead to binges

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