Day 25: What kind of dieter are you?

 Now that most of my neighbors and friends know that I am writing a blog about my weight loss challenge to lose 20 lbs., I am often asked, “What diet are you on?” I guess my answer could be, “the what works for me diet.” Let me explain. Have you ever wondered why there are so many diets, diet books, diet videos, diet websites and diet blogs? Have you noticed that each and every one of them has a person (or more than one person) bragging about how quickly and easily they lost weight using this or that diet plan? It seems that every diet plan works for someone.  But so far, no one has found the one diet plan that works for everyone. When it comes to diets, one size does not fit all.

 Knowing what kind of dieter you are can help you to choose the diet plan that is right for you. I asked myself the five questions below. It helped me to understand where my strengths and weaknesses were and the tools I would need to be successful. I think I have found a plan that works for me.  Maybe you can find a diet plan that works for you, too.

1. How have you been successful at losing weight in the past? (a) A structured menu plan that gave me very little choice about the foods I ate, (b) A flexible menu plan that allowed me to eat some of the foods I enjoy, (c) A plan where I just ate what was provided to me in calorie-controlled portions.
2. What type of food is most likely to cause you to cheat on your diet or to stimulate out-of-control eating? (a) Sweets and desserts, (b) Salty and crunchy foods, like pretzels or chips, (c) Fatty foods like bacon, whipped cream, butter, mayonnaise.
3. What has caused you to go “off track” when you dieted in the past? (a) I couldn’t control my hunger. (b) I felt different from everyone else. I wanted to be “normal” again. (c) I felt angry that I was being deprived of food and felt I deserved food as a reward. (d) I was able to stay on-track, but after I lost the weight I could not maintain the weight loss as my old eating habits returned.
4. When a diet plan fails or when you notice you are gaining weight, how do you respond? (a) I think there is something wrong with me. (b) I think there is something wrong with the diet I was using. (c) I think I need to take control of the situation, but I don’t know what to do.
5. How would you rate your ability to be persistent, even in the face of obstacles? (a) I cave in at the first hint of difficulty. (b) I can be persistent but only if I am rewarded frequently. (c) I am able to keep going if I believe my goal is reachable.

[Via http://20lbsgone.wordpress.com]

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