
The Dark side of Weightloss
The Dark side of weightloss, these are the parts about dieting that are not so good, the parts that pull you back to where you’ve come from, it stops you going forwards and you know what… most of it is mental..yes it’s in your head but some of it is in other people’s heads..
1. You’re going to have to make changes to your lifestyle
This might sound obvious, but when it comes to it, it might be hard to make all the necessary changes. After all, it is often not just one change we have to make but many. We have to prepare for what we will have to give up and what we are prepared to push through to get what we want.
For instance, we might have to start doing exercise. You might be used to going down to the pub, sitting in front of the tv, well somethings going to have to change and you are going to need a lot of motivation to get your bum off the sofa and to keep going.
You’re going to have to fend off peer pressure of friends who want you to stick to your old lifestyle. You might have to cut down on alcohol and when you go out with friends or go out less.
All change has a consequence and there are good consequences and bad and it is learning to deal with the bad consequences like changes to your lifestyle that might not be such fun. To help you make the changes, make one change at a time, and explain what you are doing to friends.
2. The dark side of weightloss comes with Partner and friend sabotage.
Some of your friends might be happy that you’re the bigger friend. It might make them feel good, because they are not the biggest one. They might have a buddy on which to binge fast food. They might well want to lose weight but are not as motivated as you and feel jealous that you’re losing weight. You’re going to have to deal with subtle changes as well.
Your relationship with your partner will change on some level, maybe you’re not doing the same social things as much anymore. If you want to lead a healthier lifestyle and they don’t there is going to be a clash. Psychologically if you are becoming more confident, more assertive and better at saying no, that is going to rock the boat a little.
It is about then discussing why you are making these changes and reassuring your partner that you still very much want them in your life. Your partner might be a bit of a feeder, they show their love by cooking and making your food, and to turn that down could be very rejecting for your partner so saying you are making changes to your food, you still feel the same way about them can be reassuring.

3. Weightloss takes time
Weightloss doesn’t happen overnight, even though some diets promise that you will lose large amounts in a short space of time. That is not healthy nor sustainable for you. The key to sustainable weight loss is by making small changes, lots more small changes as you go along so you mould your life slowly to a healthier version of you.
It’s not only is then manageable on a physical level, because you get used to slowly eating healthier foods but on a psychological level because you learn how to get past cravings, stopping food and giving unhealthy things up.
So it is managing your expectations that if you haven’t lost 10lb in a week, not to get all upset and depressed, to just celebrate that if you have lost 1lb, it’s still a loss and on the way to progress.
If we don’t see results it can be really hard to keep yourself motivated, so it is about finding ways to keep going even when you just might want to throw in the towel and give up. Have positive solgans, and pictures to remind you why are doing this.
4. You’re going to fall off the wagon.
When we start a diet, we start with full positive intentions. I am going to stick to this one. But inevitably we are human, our lives changes and emotions are running the show, so we do sometimes want that cake or whatever smells good in front of us and that is just part of the dark side of weightloss.
Here’s the thing. Allow yourself to do it. But do it minimally, in other words, don’t go for a huge slice, go for a small slice. Don’t go for the whole three courses, go for two courses or something you really want. The more we then deny ourselves something the more we want it and then it’s a form of torture to ourselves.
Accept that yes you are going to want some fatty, sugary food at some time. Allow yourself so much of the thing you want and once you’re done, breathe. You will no doubt notice that as you do get healthier the less of unhealthy food that you do want to eat.