Wednesday, March 9, 2011

"I Just Started Dieting"

My next two posts will focus on two issues that have really been bothering me lately. Rather than sitting and steaming over these issues, I've decided to talk (or type...) about these issues and get the opinions of my loyal readers.

In honor of National Registered Dietitian Day I thought I would start with an issue that I know is on the top of many RD's minds, and that has to do with DIETS. How many times have you talked to someone who has told you, "I just started dieting" or "I'm starting a new diet" or "I'm on a diet"?

Merriam-Webster.com defines "Diet" as this:


I'm wondering when that last definition appeared. Ten, twenty, thirty years ago, perhaps? I know the first three definitions have been around for hundreds of years, because let's face it, they are the true definition. Our last thirty years of food obsession and weight obsession helped create that last definition, and that's where my rant begins...

When will people learn that "dieting" doesn't work? What will it take for people to realize that to "go on a diet" is really another way of saying "I'm going to really watch what I eat, try to be healthier, lose weight for a while, then go back to my normal way of eating and hope that the weight never returns".

The use of the phrase, "going on a diet" implies a temporary solution to a problem that took years to develop. Right?


When I talk to people who tell me they are "going on a diet" they are most often miserably dreading the idea of this impending "diet". They have some incredibly detailed plan for losing weight by not eating "xyz" or only eating "xyz" and they know they will dread every minute of it. No one who tells me "they are going on a diet" is ever smiling when they say it. No one ever says, "Hey Gina! Guess what?! I'm going on a diet! Can you believe it?! I'm SO excited!"

But you know what?? They should be excited! Why? Because if they aren't excited then they are doing something wrong, and they will likely fail at their attempt to lose weight. And before I go any further I would like to propose a change to the phrase "going on a diet". I would like to call it "going on a lifelong journey to better health". Yeah, much better (and I'm not taking credit for this phrase, it's been around for years!). "Hey Gina! Guess what?! I'm going on a lifelong journey to better health"! Even just saying that makes me happier than "going on a diet", but anyway, I digress. Back to what I was saying at the beginning. If someone isn't excited about "going on a diet" then clearly they aren't making the right changes. It's when people make drastic and unappealing changes to their diets that the plan ends up failing in the end. If you go into your "journey" with a positive attitude, and plan meals that are tasty and delicious, and allow yourself to ease into the journey, you will succeed!




I propose that we no longer use the word "diet" or the term "going on a diet" and we all change our attitudes and focus more on health, longevity, eating anything and everything in moderation, and feeling great in our bodies, rather than focusing on "dieting" and eating "cardboard", going hungry, being miserable, but hey........ also losing weight!


Who's with me?!?!?!


Enjoy good food. Enjoy feeling great about who you are. Enjoy living life not focusing on "diets" and food. Enjoy the journey of life and enjoy making your life-long journey just a bit more healthy, not just for weight purposes, but for mental and physical health purposes.... for a better quality of life!



By the way, have you noticed more companies are doing "quick weight loss" plans such as the one below?

Ummm, this isn't unique. This is called eating a healthy well-balanced diet! Sorry Yoplait, you didn't come up with anything special and/or different, but I do give you credit for pointing out the obvious....eating healthy and/or losing weight can be easy, and delicious!

I also thought I'd share this great article, which talks about some "diet rules that don't suck". Even though I just preached the fact that I hate the term "going on a diet", I still like this article. Enjoy!

QUESTION: Are you with me? The phrase "going on a diet" signifies something that is temporary, and it's time to get rid of it...permanently!

38 comments :

  1. I never use the word 'diet,' unless it is a temporary situation, like in the clinical setting (low phos, low potassium, etc). I agree..diets don't work because they're temporary. Until someone is willing to make lasting change (I always call it an eating lifestyle), they won't lose weight!

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  2. Great topic! I actually try not to use that word as well because what it signifies to many - I had a hard time writing my post today trying not to use the word Mediterranean "diet" too often, even though it's an incredibly healthy lifestyle/long-term way of eating!

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  3. SO AGREED! diets always fail when ppl take drastic changes- it is more important to just live healthily!

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  4. Excellent post! I completely agree and any client I work with is NOT ALLOWED to even use the word diet. Diet = negativity. Diet = deprivation. Diet = failure. I get so frustrated when I hear people talk about their latest "diet." I literally want to roll my eyes and drown out the sound of their voice bc I know in 2-3 weeks time, they won't have lost any weight and they will be binging at some restaurant saying "what the hell."


    ps. I got your bars! I will email you my full review tomorrow!

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  5. That business with Yoplait makes me so mad! It's such a marketing scheme. Like you said, that's a healthy intake (not diet ;) ). I use the word diet all the time...to reference someone's intake, not a caloric restriction (though I use it for that, too). What word can replace decreasing calories/increasing caloric expenditure to reduce weight? Hmmm.

    Happy RD Day, Gina!!!

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  6. I'm totally with you! When I work with clients, we spend a lot of time refining their outlook on being healthy (and dieting---or changing that paradigm, at least on a personal level).
    The diet mindset is flawed severely, and research has shown this, yet people continue to try it because it's ingrained in our society.
    I'm fighting it though, one person at a time!

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  7. love this post! totally agree. ps. happy RD day!

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  8. Ugh I know! Diet is shadowed with negativity and, as you said, already sets someone up with a feeling of failure. What's wrong with just deciding to eat healthier and enjoy treats once in awhile? I don't understand the diet mentality.

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  9. TOTALLY with you!!! Let's get rid of that phrase!!!

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  10. This post makes me happy. They aren't diets, they are lifestyle changes! I've been reading your blog for quite a while now and I really enjoy it! I like the fact that you aren't an extremist and still eat chocolate and drink beer.

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  11. I'm with you! I try not to use that word, and say lifestyle or just 'eating healthy' instead. Diet sounds temporary or extreme to a lot of people.

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  12. I'm soooooo with you Gina!!! I hate the word diet because it means restriction, avoidance, limit. The moment I say I go on diet I feel stressed out and anxious. but a lot of people doesn't realize that and the don't know that to achieve long term change either healthier or lose weight, the only way to do is by little steps, small changes and no drastic change of follow certain rules that are incompatible with their life style.
    Great post!!!

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  13. I definitely agree. Such a bad connotation that word has. I am on a "diet" of sorts now and I am dreading it as much as anyone dreads cutting out things they love. My son has awful reflux and since I am breastfeeding, I have to go soy and dairy free for at least 3 weeks to determine whether my diet is contributing to it. The is soy and/or dairy in everything! Ugh!

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  14. I agree, Gina. A former client of mine just told me she's cutting out grains, dairy, and sugar. It's frustrating when people feel they have to go to extremes or eliminate foods that they like because they are on a diet. (Especially when I hoped she had learned something from working with me! Sigh.)

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  15. I agree - technically everyone is "on a diet". I think it's positive to change a diet, or even watch a diet though. Isn't weight loss a natural side effect of positive diet changes?

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  16. I'm absolutely with you! I sometimes will use the word "diet" but only with the original intent of the word! "Going on a diet" is just a recipe for disaster.

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  17. I am totally with you. I have become that annoying person that lectures any of my friends when they say "I'm going on a diet". It's just not a realistic way of living and rarely works, from experience I know! I hope that this country changes it's perspective to a focus on healthy balanced living instead of diet/weight loss.

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  18. I agree with you 100%. I think is very sad and ignorant when people say “yeah Im on a diet and I cant eat anything for x amount of days”. Im thinking, are they serious? Do they seriously think this is going to work? But, I cant blame them as society still has a long way to go in teaching people that what they should be aiming for is a healthy lifestyle and not a short-term starving solution. I actually referred to the concept of healthy living rather than dieting in one of my blog posts: http://dancelovedine.blogspot.com/2011/02/my-weight-loss-accomplishment-part-ii.html
    Im with your in this revolution! The word diet should be removed from the dictionary! :)

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  19. Hallelujah! In this age, diet often is associated with restrictions...but a lifelong journey towards health, now that's something we can all get excited about. It's also something we're more likely to stick with! It's hard to tell people that diets don't work, especially when they've just begun one and so desperately want to lose weight. But unless you change your outlook towards food and exercise all together, a diet is rarely going to work out in the long run. Not to mention, I see people hop on these Weight Watchers bandwagons all the time and fill their "diets" with protein bars and other crap...even if that could be maintained in the long run, would that really be best? Nope.

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  20. I've felt the same way for a long time - I frequently use the term "diet", but I use it in the sense of "this is what I'm eating" and as a lifestyle thing. The proper definition :D

    And yeah. We should absolutely feel EXCITED about the way we eat. If we don't, then we need to readjust the food AND our attitudes, I think.

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  21. I've felt the same way for a long time - I frequently use the term "diet", but I use it in the sense of "this is what I'm eating" and as a lifestyle thing. The proper definition :D

    And yeah. We should absolutely feel EXCITED about the way we eat. If we don't, then we need to readjust the food AND our attitudes, I think.

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  22. I never say the word diet either- people sometimes say it to me like "Kelly's IBS diet" or something but I'm like ugh- I feel like that implies I'm trying to lose weight which I'm not, just trying to keep my body happy :)

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  23. I'm with ya girl. I don't even like saying the word diet around my clients!

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  24. You should start your diet with proper nutrition. Eat the right food and always exercise.

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  25. My thoughts precisely! You have said all that I have to say on this...and I may have done a Thursday thoughts on this topic too. I tell people they are not going on a diet, because when you go on you can go back off, and your diet is merely what you eat, so I tell people to change their diet. This is a huge pet peeve of mine. Going on a diet is a media campaign that is so negative and traps people into this awful mind set.

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  26. I'm with you! As a fellow medical professional, the "dieting" phenomenon is really frustrating. It's also frustrating when you work with people who have little access to better foods. (So many underserved neighborhoods don't have a real grocery store nearby.) Here's to hoping we'll have not only better "diets" available to all Americans, but healthier environments to make that transition easier.

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  27. this is so dr. oz of you i love it. he's my 2nd favorite nutrition person after you of course. i hate when people ask me why i'm dieting when i bring salads for lunch. i'm like uh i'm not haha i didn't know eating a salad is being on a diet..

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  28. This is a great article! I'm on the same page as you. It's ridiculous when people go on there diets and think that's really the solution, especially those detox diets. Most of the detox diets say to eat lots of fruits and vegetables and no meats or processed foods. So... you're saying I should just eat healthy? If only we had more advertisements for healthy eating and not dieting.

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  29. I have the same feeling about diets, they are just a temporary solution. I take my dietary habits seriously and eat only stuff that agrees with me/mostly vegetarian/ whole foods.

    Thanks for this post.

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  30. G, I am TOTALLY with you!!! Too many companies just take advantege of the "diet mentality". Thank you for reminding us that Diet does NOT mean restriction!! I have to admit i get caught in that mindset without even realizing sometimes. :)

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  31. I am totally with you!
    Just saying, "I'm going on a diet" has such a negative connotation. Diet is as stated in the dictionary..a quick fix.
    Great post! Have a great weekend Gina!

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  32. Diet=negative connotation!! I think healthier lifestyle is a MUCH better way of putting it :)

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  33. when i attempted to start dieting this year, i dreaded it. i was not happy. i hated the term "diet"...i don't want to even think about it because i overeat when i think about that.

    i had to find my motivation first and think about why i had to do it--that it's the lifestyle i am changing.

    i'm still finding my way there, and it's a blessing you've made this article.

    thanks! :)

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  34. Oh, yes! That is a phrase I dislike. My Mother is always "going on a diet" and when she says that I just want to leave the room. I like your wording much better!

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  35. I couldn't agree with your more. When I gave up the dieting mentality everything change for me.

    You can't go off your healthy eating lifestyle - you can make better choices some days than others but that is real life!

    Excellent post!

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