What To Do With Your Tub Of Flab

What have you done to try to lose weight? Diet pills and the grapefruit diet? Eating celery and carrots? Mixing those powder drinks into shakes and slipping a bit of ice cream in there just to give yourself some sugar? Have you thought about a colonic to get a quick few pounds off you or even the popular starvation diet, only for a few days just to fit into the sexy little black dress for the party this weekend?

Those might work if you are already thin and you really don’t have a problem with your weight. But then again, if you don’t have a problem with your weight why would try the above mentioned techniques? Sounds pretty senseless to me.

Most of the time those who are overweight will go to drastic measures to lose several pounds really fast. It’s not the way you do this or even whether the pounds stay off forever. It’s what happens in the mind. The moment you step onto the scale and see the number slide down a few pounds. It gives you a psychological boost to think maybe you have what it takes to actually lose the weight you want.

But what is the next thing that happens? You start an exercise program or start with the treadmill. You’re excited to step on the scale at the end of the week. What do you think you find? That’s right, you find not only have the numbers gone back to your original starting weight, they have actually increased.

You step off the scale, give it a little kick, and swear at it like it is the enemy. In fact, you’re sure the scale is your enemy. And as you walk over to the fridge to take out your favorite snack, you swear you’ll never do that again.

You feed yourself all the food you have been craving, especially since you have been starving yourself. And by the end of the week you feel bloated, miserable and constipated. What do you think happens next? That’s right, you try another fad diet. And the yo-yo dieting begins all over again. Lose a few, gain a few, gain a few more, lose a bit more. Give up. And start again.

Is there a better way to lose weight, even for those who need to lose 25 pounds or more? Yes. Now, I bet you have the picture in your mind that I am going to tell you to go and sweat it out at the gym. Imagine carrying your tub of flab to the treadmill while there is a sea of tanned, toned bodies all making working out look easy. You wipe the sweat from your brow.

You don’t have to kill yourself at the gym or bring yourself to the point of passing out while you start jogging for the first time in 20 years. Start easy and start balanced. Maybe all you’re ready for is very light exercise and moderate changes to your eating habits.

Instead of spending your money on eating healthy cookbooks which are great when you are at that place with your fitness goals, next time you go shopping start in the produce aisle and buy three days worth of fruit and vegetables. You don’t need to throw all your food out on the first pass. Start gradually. When you find yourself going to the fridge for ice cream, take out some sweet strawberries or blueberries and snack on those. Buy some pistachios and place them in the cupboards next to the chips and the next time you are looking for something salty, pour a few pistachios onto a small plate and take time to enjoy their taste.

Small steps in your fitness goals will boost your self-esteem and that feeling of “I can do this”. Before you know it all your hard work will pay off and your tub of flab will disappear.