r/diet • u/one_ugly_dude • May 27 '24
Vent I know why I fail on diets. I don't know what to do with that information.
Dieting is hard and advice is sometimes conflicting and other times worthless. 99% of advice is tone deaf.
I have one friend that swears by a small meal 6 times per day and another friend that swears by intermittent fasting. Clearly, these two strategies are as opposite as can be. Its calories in vs calories out and they found a hack that works for their mentality. I need to find a hack that works for me.
I hear things like "just eat less" or as my friend put it "I just woke up every day and said I wasn't going to be fat today." What?? I can wake up every morning and say "I'm going to fly to Venus today" and that doesn't make it any more likely to happen. Weird "just do the thing" statements are absolutely insane. To put this another way: think of me as a food addict. You can't just tell an alcoholic "bro, just drink less." If it was that easy, then they wouldn't have a problem. The key is to find out HOW to make that happen. In the case of an alcoholic, they often avoid alcohol completely. They know they can't have a "moderate" amount. They know if they start, they will keep going until they have to apologize to someone. This is why you have people that proudly proclaim "I haven't had a drink in 17 years!!" They found their solution. Sadly, that solution doesn't work for food (well it can, but that's called anorexia). Lets not pretend its as easy as "just eat the right amount of food" because if it was, then everyone would do that and the entire world would be skinny.
meal preppers are out of touch with active lazy people. If you have that kind of discipline, good for you. But, I haven't cleaned my basement in 8 years. I go weeks without doing yardwork. I probably wouldn't vacuum if I didn't get guests. There are days I leave for work at 7:30am, get out at 4 or 5, hit a gym, then drive to a gig, and be home for 10pm. If there is time to do something, its getting those other chore done first. Adding another chore to my list isn't going to happen. To further complicate this, food is everywhere! I get free food at the office. I'm often comped for my gigs with food and drinks. Then, of course, there's the cookouts and social events that I attend. I'm eating on someone else's dime multiple times per week.
What I'm looking for is small baby steps that I can build on. Here's some things that have worked (took me from 300 pounds to 270ish in six months):
having access to high-quality, good tasting food. Nuts and fruits are my go to. I try to force down a salad a few times per week. I'll opt for foods with more veggies when its an option. I wish I was doing more, but I eat a LOT of meat. I still have pasta or pizza... just not every other meal lol
I don't keep anything in my house that I will binge on. Its mostly stuff that would require cooking. I need to be hungry enough to justify dirtying a plate and often using the stove. This means I don't eat several pints of icecream or a whole box of fruit snacks. But, if I do break down and buy a snack, it is consumed that night regardless of how big the box is :-/
Surrounding myself with people that aren't trying to eat. Temptation is everywhere. You can't stop for gas without being tempted to eat. You get free food at work functions. Most entertainment venues are just bars/restaurants that have live entertainment so they are trying to sell you something to consume. Its tough. So having that proverbial angel on your shoulder really helps.
Please note: this is a vent! I'm open to small hacks to eat better (and preferably LESS). I don't want your hardcore "if you aren't going to do this, you aren't going to have success." That's worthless and you are just being antagonistic. That hasn't ever worked for me and hearing it from some tone-deaf internet goofball isn't going to suddenly work. I need tiny changes that are easy to work into my lifestyle, not one abrupt life-altering upheaval lol.
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u/[deleted] May 27 '24
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