You’ve probably tried a diet or two. Maybe It was a great experience, maybe It was hell on earth.
Some may be better than others but the same things can be said about almost every diet, the better prepared the person is going into the diet, the more success they will see.
Now, I’m not a diet hater—and I’m not a diehard fan either. I think people should do whatever feels best for them. If a diet works for you, go for it. But if you find it’s messing with your relationship with food or causing you to fall back into old habits, then maybe it’s time for a different approach.
Bottom line: do what makes you happy and helps you feel your best.
With our members, we focus on preparation. Before anyone makes a major change to their eating, we work to get them ready. And honestly? That prep alone often leads to some big shifts—without even needing a strict plan.
There are steps that can be taken to make sure you can stick with your new way of eating for long periods of time, and to be honest this direction is much easier once you get a handle on it.
STEP ONE- CLEAN UP YOUR FOOD
CHOICES
This is just as easy and vague as It sounds.
Start by looking at what you’re currently eating. Don’t overhaul everything. Just clean it up a bit. That might mean one less takeout meal, one more home-cooked dinner, or adding some veggies where there weren’t any before.
This step isn’t about “eat this, avoid that,” or counting calories yet. It’s about building awareness.
When you tend to get hungry
What actually satisfies you
What you crave (and when)
When you’re most likely to overeat
But for this first step – clean things up, be aware of your food choices, and focus on learning more than making drastic change.
If this isn’t something that works for your brain and you need some more direction here are some examples I give people to get started:
- Increase your water intake (aim for 0.5 – 1 oz for pound of bodyweight)
- Eat more vegetables (have a serving of vegetables at 2 meals per day)
- Cut sugar intake down
- Cook most or all of your meals (limit takeout or meals out)
- Stop eating while watching TV
STEP TWO- Track Your Food
Once you’ve gotten into a better rhythm with your food choices, it’s time to bring in a bit more structure
Food tracking is simple – not easy – but simple.
With all sorts of different apps, connected food scales, and whatever else they have out there, the food tracking process simpler than ever.
That doesn’t change the fact that tracking food is tedious and hard.
There are two options you can go with here
- Write It out by hand
- Plug It into an app
Neither option is right or wrong. Whichever you know you can more consistent and accurate with is the right choice.
Writing things out by hand takes out all the confusion of the numbers and suggestions the apps are throwing at you and for many people can decrease some stress of the food tracking process.
Put your focus on being as diligent as you can. Measuring/weighing food portions will be the most accurate way to track food. The more accurate you are, the more ability you have to change things along the way.
STEP THREE: Make Strategic Changes
This step only works after you’ve been consistent with steps one and two.
Remember, we are not on a diet here. This process helps get you in a place of control when It comes to your food, health, and fitness.
You are already making strides from steps 1 and 2 and this is where you are now in control to move things as you please. Where you move things depends on your goals: are you looking to lose weight, lose fat, build muscle, or just change the way your body looks/feels.
That particular goal will dictate the changes that are made in step #3.
For example:
Someone looking to lose weight this might be the time to drop calorie numbers down a little bit and increase some activity outside of the gym. These things paired together can be a recipe for steady weight loss.
Someone looking to increase their strength while losing some weight along the way, the same tactics may be used but with a stronger focus on protein intake and activity with a smaller drop in overall calories.
If you are at a place where you don’t know what needs to be done for your goals, send us an email at Jeff@naglefitness.com and we will help create some steps you can follow to make the progress you want.
To wrap things up; our goal here is to show you an alternative process to just hopping into a diet that may not be sustainable right now. You can use these steps to help get you ready for that diet you want to follow OR they can be used in replace of these diets where you are in control of the outcome!
This process can be repeated
until you reach an area where you are happy, comfortable, and still healthy!
It is a long road to get there
but it is a healthy process that has effects that are longer lasting.
In good health,
Jeff
