The Slim Habit Blog

When you look in the mirror in the morning and then wish you hadn’t, then it’s time to start to think about doing something about the large tyre that has appeared round your middle.

The first thing to do is to have a really good look at what you are doing wrong. Don’t try and kid yourself, if you’ve put on weight there is a reason – actually, probably several.

When you decide that you want to be thinner, you have to be prepared to make a plan or course of action, work. This is not the time for half-hearted efforts. You either want it or you don’t. What sort of commitment are you prepared to make. Get this right at the onset will determine how successful you are going to be.

If you have a sweet tooth you are going to have to give up the candy bars and the sandwiches, the full fat cheese and all those delicious cakes. You have to make yourself aware of all the things you think have contributed to your weight gain and cut them out.

Do you know what the value of calories there is in what you eat every day? Do you know how much energy you use in a day – or how many calories you eat? You need to know this.

There is one thing that you need to avoid and that is reducing you calorie intake dramatically. If you do you are going to put more weight on in the long-run.

How much exercise do you take? You have to be honest with yourself here. There is no point in convincing yourself you take enough exercise when in your heart of hearts you know perfectly well that you take very little.

Exercise is very important because it burns calories. It’s also very good for you. We were not meant to sit around looking at television or playing computer games. Our bodies were meant to be used. It is certainly true that if you don’t use it you lose it – something to remember! Losing weight effectively is about learning new habits, new slim habits that will help you to change. If you don’t change, and are not prepared to change, no amount of dieting will ever result in permanent weight loss.

To be able to say goodbye to diets forever is something all dieters dream of.

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Do diets work? Every year, more and more people decide to go on a diet to try and get rid of unwanted pounds. They put their faith in some new formula which promises to deliver their dream – permanent weight loss. Be it the Atkins diet or the South Beach Diet, their expectations are always high. These diets can deliver short-term weight loss, but the majority of dieters will be disappointed because permanent weight loss will not happen.

The essential ingredient that is missing is the means to effect change, permanent change. What is needed are new habits, slim habits if you like, that can be repeated and practiced to effect that change, not just another restrictive diet.

Traci Mann, who is a psychologist at UCLA has been doing some very interesting work on the effectiveness of diets. She didn’t take just one or two diets, she studied 31 – and over a period of between two and five years. What she discovered is that for the majority of people, diets don’t lead to better health benefits or sustained weight loss.

The study found that you can lose between 5 to 10% of your bodyweight on any number of diets, but the weight comes back. The majority of dieters put all the weight back on again – plus some. Going on a diet can actually make you fat. Another study found that only one person in every 100 loses weight permanently – that’s a failure rate of 99%!

There have been some enormous advances made in the fields of neuroscience and psychology. There is now a far better understanding about how our body and brain work, how they interact and what we can do to make change and take control of our lives. One new weight loss system, the Slim Habit, puts this new knowledge into plain, easy to understand language and translates it into practical applications – ’slim habits’. This is interesting because learning new habits and discarding old behaviors is the way to achieve permanent weight loss.

Making change is not difficult, but it helps to have a program that supplies a knowledge base and also a means of offering long-term support. We need help and a formal structure if we are to identify our old behaviors and learn new habits. We have to have a means of taking control of our lives to make long-term change. It needs to be a program of learning and where we can discover our true strength and resolve.

Habit change is not difficult, but it takes commitment – as does anything that is worthwhile. Permanent weight loss doesn’t come from a formula or by spending eight weeks restricting your calorie intake, it comes from learning new habits.

For those struggling to lose weight permanently, the big weight could soon be over.

Henry John has been writing and commentating on health matters for many years. He has a particular interest in permanent weight loss and behavior change and has been a member of the Slim Habit team. www.slimhabit.com

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If you’re overweight, here are a few questions to ask yourself:

·         Would you like to lose weight and feel better mentally and physically?

·         Would you like to significantly reduce the risk of a heart attack or stroke?

·         Would you like to protect your heart and live longer?

·         Would you like to reduce the risk of getting cancer?

·         Would you like to stay younger and be able to live a long and healthy life?

These questions are ‘no brainers’ really, aren’t they? Each one of them share a common thread – exercise. If we take regular, intentional exercise we significantly reduce the risk of attracting disease and improve our quality of life.
Too many of us lead a sedentary lifestyle these days. We spend hours sitting in front of the television or the computer; we don’t have to forage for our food; we have easy access to vast supplies of relatively cheap, high-calorific food – we can even have it delivered to our door. We can eat ourselves silly without moving a muscle. When we want to go somewhere we just jump in the car or take a bus or train or plane and, hey presto, we’re there! It’s all so easy. We are caught up in this modern-day lifestyle whether we like it or not – and it’s killing us!

The consequences of a lifestyle where there is such a low level of physical activity is starting to become more and more apparent. An increase in the number of people who are overweight …yes! An increase in the instances of heart disease and stroke…yes! An increase in cancer rates in people who are overweight or obese…yes! An increase in diabetes…yes! An increase in the number of deaths associated with being overweight or obese…yes! It’s not a pretty picture. Is there an answer? There most definitely is.

If we want to lose the pounds and maintain a sensible weight, if we want to lead a happy, healthy life and feel mentally and physically well, all of us need to take regular, intentional exercise.

Regular, intentional exercise is no big deal. It doesn’t have to be difficult. It doesn’t have to be a chore or painful. The fact is that the thought of exercise is always far worse than the reality. The reality of regular, intentional exercise is that it can enjoyable, and fun too.

For many people the idea of taking regular, intentional exercise conjures up thoughts of making a public exhibition of their lack of fitness, of pain and sweat and misery. It doesn’t have to be like that at all.

The simplest (and one of the most effective) way of taking exercise is to walk. Walking is simple, natural and doesn’t require any special skill or equipment – other than a good pair of shoes.

In the past, running was thought to be the most beneficial aerobic exercise, speeding up your heart and getting your metabolism going, but these days research has proved that walking is able to give you the same long-term health benefits as running – with a lot less risk and a lot less sweat. Running is perhaps more time –efficient, but fast walking delivers the same benefits.

Getting started is always the hardest part, but once you’ve got going you’ll find it easy and you’ll start to really enjoy it. You need a Personal Exercise Plan that doesn’t drop you in at the deep end with an exacting exercise programme. You need something that sets out a gradual programme of exercise that builds up slowly and gently to a level that you feel comfortable with, and that gives you maximum benefit. The Slim Habit has an excellent Personal Exercise Plan which gradually gets you into the way of taking regular, intentional exercise which gives your weight loss efforts a real boost.

Getting the exercise habit is so important. It’s important if you want to achieve long-term weight loss. It’s important if you want to be healthy. Get the exercise habit – get the Slim Habit – and you’ll feel better in yourself and about yourself.

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