Weight loss isn’t a pill you take in the morning. It is a commitment you make all day long.
Permanent weight loss is something you carry with you into bed every night. And wake up with, refreshed in the morning.
The problem with weight loss is that it is difficult. It took years for you to get to the weight you are now. All those extra pounds settled on you seemingly without notice. They just appeared. Without much effort. Now, years later, you know you are overweight, you want to do something about it, and it takes effort. Daily effort. Why was it so easy going on, and so difficult coming off?
You see, you and I, and most of us, are genetically fat. Our bodies are organized to make us gain weight easily, and lose weight slowly. Lots of health reasons for that, and not a little to do with having babies. But knowing that doesn’t help us get the weight off – and keep it off – which is where we want it to be.
There certainly are some “natural” products that can assist your weight loss. Plus, the big weight loss companies want you to believe they can help you lose weight. Truth is, they can, too. Weight loss is amazingly easy if you eat a lot less than you were eating when you were gaining weight. Starving yourself skinny works. Quite well, too.
But, here is where it gets scary. When you are eating 1,000 calories less a day (Weight Watchers cuts your calories in half, the HCG diet has you on 1/4 your normal daily calories) something goes terribly wrong inside of your body. It hurts your long-term weight loss goals in several ways:
- low calorie diets tell your body to hold on to body fat, because you may need it later
- these diets make you hungrier, so sooner or later you are going to binge and devour everything in sight
- the diet tells your body to store more fat at each meal, because you are starving and will need it later
- low calorie diets lower your metabolism
The “it lowers your metabolism” part is the key to understanding why you quickly regain lost weight, plus some extra. Once off the diet you resume eating much the same way you did before. Trouble is, you have lower metabolism now. Eating the same food, but with a lower basic metabolism, means you quickly regain. That’s why I call the weight loss companies “weight re-gain companies.”
So, what can you do?
The real problem with losing weight “quickly” is it comes back on even more quickly. What does “losing quickly” mean? If you are losing two pounds or more per week, you have a 99% chance it will all be back on your hips and thighs before you know it. The “weight re-gain companies” will tell you their “scientists” say losing 2 pounds a week is “healthy.”
What they are not telling you is that, healthy or not, losing at that rate GUARANTEES you will put it ALL back on. Remember, these companies are some of the biggest food companies in the world (HJ Heinz, Nestle, Unilever) – and they absolutely LOVE repeat customers to sell pre-packaged “diet” foods to. They have no interest – ZERO, ZILCH, NADA – interest in you solving your weight problem once and for all. It would put them out of business… think about that a bit.
Which brings us back to that “weight loss isn’t a pill you take in the morning.” What is the commitment you should make every day? Let’s start with the most basic one, the one thing you absolutely MUST do every day, but everyone seems to forget:
- Stop gaining weight
That is the key to real weight loss – stop gaining weight. That has to be your first step. Set yourself a goal that you will not weigh more tomorrow than you did today.
Don’t begin by trying to lose weight – in the beginning, JUST DON’T GAIN MORE. Draw the proverbial line in the sand, make a mark on your scale, and whatever you do today, make sure you have done nothing to gain more weight by the next day. It is really that simple.
Keep that “I’m not gaining new weight today!” regime going for two weeks. Focus your attention on that – NOT ON LOSING – FOCUS ON NOT GAINING. And you will see some powerful lights go off in your head as you learn some things you really needed to learn for long-term weight loss. Start there. And it will not end there.
So the “weight loss pill” you need to give yourself every morning is a commitment to not gain weight today. And if you can do that for a couple of weeks or more, you will be ready to learn how to lose weight healthily, and will be prepared to put the right way to lose weight into daily action. (More on that action plan later.)
If you want to read the beginning of this article, please go here.
9 thoughts on “Weight Loss Isn’t a Pill You Take in the Morning”
I do not do diets. They just do not make sense to me. Why should I spend every breathing moment counting calories and making sure that eat specifically X ounces per serving. I eat what I love. That said I am so not a fan of fast food and greasy foods. I try to eat healthy and exercise. Am I on my desired weight? No, but I’ve been there and I know it is possible by leading a healthy lifestyle.
What a great post. I know too many who have tried to lose weight by cutting down to one meal a day. Of course they gained weight instead.
I have often stated that I can lose 20 lbs on any diet–then the weight loss stops and I would gain it back-plus!! I have now lost approx 60 lbs and unfortunately it took Diabetes to make me radically change my eating habits. But change them I did. Our bodies are genetically programmed to hold onto fat in times of scarcity (hey those early humans could not always find food!) – Because I now eat less but more frequently I am still losing about 1/2 lb a week–at this point I need an entire new wardrobe! Am I happy–YES–will I let myself gain it back–NO–this time the weight will stay off because it is the change of eating habits and diet–not pills and potions doing the trick!
Such a great post!! I think many of us forget this all too often.
I agree! So many people think a pill will do everything when in fact it is exercise and food intake!
Definitely something great to think about. To lose weight and be healthy, you have to focus more on being healthy than on losing the weight. when you focus on being healthy the excess weight starts to come off on it’s own.
I thought that by taking a pill I would lose weight. I was so wrong! I needed to eat healthy and exercise. Great post!
Great post! I did hear somewhere that if you don’t eat, or not enough, in a day, thinking you will loose weight faster that way, it actually will backfire on you! Because at your next food-intake, your body will store all the fat and sugars and whatever else thinking that there might not be more food in a while coming in… Eating, staying healthy and weight loss is all a way of being. you have to work hard at it but pays off in the end!
Well said! I think too many people think some miracle diet pill will help them loose weight. I think what they forget that the best way is good old HEALTHY diet and exercise!