You Don't Have to Be Perfect, Just Be Better

If you are like most people you have lost weight before, but eventually you found yourself right back where you started.  While I was never much of a dieter, there have been times in my life when I tried to eat healthier.  I would do well for awhile and then I would have a bad day.  One bad day often led to two bad days.  Eventually, I was back to my old ways.  Anytime I ate something I should not have I would get discouraged. Somehow I convinced myself that one bad day ruined all the good days.

Then one day when I had lunch with Rick - a good friend of mine.  I described to him my pattern of failures.  Rick, who is very dedicated to health and fitness, said, “Dude, don’t be so hard on yourself.”  He explained very few people maintain a perfect diet. He said my goal should not be perfection.  Instead, the goal should be to make consistently better nutritional and fitness choices.  This was a simple, but powerful, insight.  Suddenly I realized that losing weight, and keeping it off, was about making “better” choices. 

My first “better” choice was the decision to give up Coca Cola.  I chose soda because at that time I was drinking over 700 calories of soda a day.  Making this one dietary change eliminated nearly 5000 calories a week from my diet.  With Coca Cola on one end of the continuum and water, which I don’t like, on the other end of the continuum I began considering the different beverages I could drink in place of soda.  Fortunately, there are many options in the middle.  Here are just a few: (1) soda half and half (half regular soda and half diet soda); (2) diet soda; (3) sports drinks; (4) sport drink half and half; (5) no calorie sport drinks; (6) no or low calorie soft drinks; (7) flavored waters; and (8) water or tonic water flavored with a bit of fresh juice – orange, lemon or lime.  Some are obviously better than others, but all of them have a significantly lower calorie count than regular soda. 

Not every choice is right for everyone.  For example, there is a lot of research highlighting concerns about artificial sweeteners.  CNN.com recently ran an interesting article on the sugar vs. artificial sweetener debate.  If you are uncomfortable with artificial sweeteners then avoid them.  Otherwise feel free to use them as a tool.  Within three months, simply by making a combination of better choices, I eliminated regular soda from my diet.  In that three month period, doing nothing else but eliminating soda (and eventually almost all sugary drinks), I lost 25 lbs!!!  Over time I applied this philosophy to all aspects of my diet - with lots of success. 

Pick a problem area in your diet. Consider the range of lower calorie/reduced fat options available – e.g., lower calorie versions of your favorite foods.  Runner’s World has some great tips and substitutes that will help you cook healthier versions of your favorite foods.   Kath Eats REAL FOOD and Cheap, Healthy, Good are both great blogs dedicated to healthy food.  The web is full of ideas for preparing healthier food.  Take some time and do a little research.

If you want to start losing weight try to identify the biggest problem area in your diet.  Commit to making better decisions regarding this specific area.  You do not have to be perfect, just be better.  Make consistently better choices.  Stay dedicated to making this one effective dietary change.  Once you have made that one change a habit, you will be ready to tackle your next challenge.