This might seem like common sense. But if you take the time to write down everything you put in your mouth you’ll realize that you’re actually taking a bite of food, whether it’s a few M&Ms from a coworker’s candy dish or a few bites of food while you’re cutting a plate of food for your kids. Everything you put in your mouth has calories. Most people make the mistake of only writing down the foods they eat during a planned meal. They may also write down a small snack. But they forget about the cream they put in their coffee, a spoonful of ice cream they snuck when doling out dessert, a few crackers they popped in her mouth because they suddenly had a sugar craving.
Some people will find themselves disciplined enough to resist mindless eating. But if you’re just starting out in your diet, or not sure how your willpower will hold out, the best thing you can do to kick this habit is to keep a small notebook tucked away in your pocket or in your purse. Every time you get the urge to bring food to your mouth pull out that notebook and write down what you are about to eat. That one small move will snap you into the realization that you might be consuming calories that will negatively affect your diet.
There are a whole lot of reasons why people eat mindlessly.
Sometimes it because of depression. That depression can range from life changes or even frustration over your current health and happiness. For women, it could come at the time of the month when you’re menstruating. Some women have strong cravings during that time and eat without even realizing it. Again, using the small notebook to break that habit will significantly improve your chances of staying on track and not consuming more calories than you need to in any given day.
You probably have a barrel full of excuses that you pull out every time you talk about why you haven’t lost the weight you want to lose. It could be anything from a sluggish thyroid to faulty genetics to just not having enough time to think about weight loss. I’m here to tell you to knock it off! The only way you will lose weight and keep it off is stop making excuses for why you’re not succeeding. I’m not saying that any of those excuses aren’t valid. Many are. In fact, having a sluggish thyroid or other genetic problem may be an additional barrier to how fast you can lose weight. But using that excuse as a crutch will only keep you from making any progress at all.
People with “bad” genetics and even health problems do manage to lose weight when they put their mind to it. The thing that keeps them from losing weight is falling back on the reason it is so difficult for them.
To break these habits learn everything you possibly can about this “excuse” for not losing weight. For instance, if you have a sluggish thyroid, talk to your doctor about being put on medication to regulate it, if needed. Learn what foods interfere with thyroid hormone production.
Allowing yourself to use excuses for why you are unable to lose weight will only be self-defeating. Why bother trying when you’ve already decided that you won’t succeed? Empower yourself to change those excuses around and become proactive in your desire to lose weight. You may not lose weight as fast as someone else who does not have the same issues you have. That’s a fact of life.
But that doesn’t mean you won’t lose weight. And I can guarantee that you won’t lose any weight if you continue to use your excuses as a crutch.
