THINK yourself SLIM

Sunrise dietitian Susie Burrell shows you how to lose weight simply by making small daily changes in the way you think, plan and take control of your food

Energy in versus energy out – if only weight loss was that simple. While nutrition is a science, the reality is this: eating is a behaviour that’s driven by psychological variables which impact the food choices you make. As such, for you to be successful in losing weight over the long term, you must become aware of your food-related behaviours and know how to adjust them to support your weight-loss goals. Here’s how to start.

Commit to planning

We’ll consume whatever foods are readily available, which means if your goal is to eat better, you need to have the right food ready to go. And if your kitchen is full of tempting treats, it’s time for a clean out. Planning is key to dietary success. It’s about knowing what you’re going to eat for dinner a few nights in advance. It’s about packing your lunch each day and making sure you find the time to shop for nutritious ingredients rather than processed or fast foods.

Accept your future

For a person managing diabetes it’s natural to feel frustrated about needing to eat fewer carbs, or having to cut back on sugar when you feel others can eat what they like. But thinking about what others are doing and then using that to justify poor food decisions is simply distracting yourself from your main goal: to lose weight and be at your best. Once you accept that eating well and watching your weight is something you’ll need to do for the rest of your life, it’s easier to focus on those health and weight-related goals.

Create an environment that breeds success

We tend to eat the same types of food as the people we spend time with. If you find you eat higher kilojoule foods with certain people, you may decide to spend less time with such influencers around meal times. But if that’s not possible to do, consider bringing your own food or looking online and choosing better options from the menu in advance. Creating healthy environments is a crucial aspect of maintaining your wellbeing and weight control.

Say no to the ‘all or nothing’ approach

Often people describe themselves as being on a ‘diet’ or completely off it, in which instance they eat whatever they like, usually in large quantities. The secret to dietary success is consistency, not perfection. A one-off treat or a couple of glasses of wine is no reason to throw your entire eating plan out the window until you’re ready to eat ‘perfectly’ again. Rather, weight control as part of a healthy lifestyle is about eating well most of the time, and indulging occasionally.

Monitor your lifestyle

Keeping a close eye on lifestyle choices, whether it’s keeping a food diary, weighing yourself regularly or using an activity monitor to count your steps, is the most powerful way we learn to practise healthy behaviours. Knowing the amount we eat, or how much we move, can motivate us to keep going. Or it can remind us we need to make extra effort or, perhaps, cut back. Either way, you remain in control and can make adjustments to get results.

Just do something

We spend a lot of time ruminating on what we should do, which achieves nothing. Instead, shift those thoughts into action. For example, don’t think about whether or when you should go to the gym, simply make a date and go with a friend. And rather than feeling bad for eating more than you wanted, direct that mental energy into motivation to make a healthy meal for the next day.

Don’t give up!

When things aren’t going as you’d like, it can be tempting to throw in the towel, which can explain why we often start and stop weight-loss programs. Long-term weight loss is about learning to get back on the horse even if you’ve had a bad day, week or month. Over time, you’ll create lifestyle habits that are really positive. Ultimately, consistency is key to successful weight control. n