Worried About Your Weight? Thnking of Going on a Diet

This post is not for my regular readers, but for any newbies who are showing up because they are getting bombarded every day by news reports and emails and ads warning them about the the horros of overeating during the holidays and of being overweight in general.

And my message is... if you do want to lose weight, December is not the time to start. (Unless you're of a religion that doesn't celebrate Christmas, in which case, go for it!)

Traditionally, there are Christmas parties, and holiday parties, throughout the month, in which people have tons of food available and typically eveyrone "overeats" - either on real food like turkey and so on, or on snacks like pies or candy.

Supposedly the average person gains 5 pounds during December.

Big deal.

It's a once a year thing... Thanksgiving and Christmas... once a year...

Now I'm not saying that's a license to pig out... I'm saying don't be ashamed if you do pig out!

The thing is, if you've just now decided to try to lose weight, December is a bad month because of all the temptations put in your way. It's soooo easy to be tempted, to eat, and then to think your willpower sucks and that you'll never be able to lose weight because you can't stop eating.

As I've said to my regular readers, that's not true. Willpower is a muscle and can be exercised and strengthened like any other muscle.

But if you don't have willpower - as evidenced by the fact that you're overweight and are coming to Weight Loss Without Tears to find out how to lose weight that you haven't been able to lose - then don't sabotage yourself by trying to start a diet in December. You're bound to be tempted by some type of food, stuff yourself with it, and then beat yourself up even more for having no willpower - vicious circle.

So - keep reading this blog, and prepare to go on a diet on January 2!

For those who have been following my program for a while.. if this is your first December, take it carefully. The idea is to never feel guilt, never feel despair, never give up.

Remember, it's all about knowing yourself.

It's all about learning about yourself.

If you've reached that level of caloric intake where you're eating small portions of food and losing one to two pounds a week... if you suddenly eat double what you're normally used to... how does that effect you? If you've been successful in eating only half a Snickers bar as a treat a day, and you have a whole Snickers bar...or you eat a pecan pie or a pumpkin pie... how does that effect you.

Are you able to maintain that slight increase in food? Does one piece of pecan pie spur you to want another one immediately, or do you start craving another piece in the middle of hte night?

But the main thing to find out is after Christmas is over. After the relatives have left and all the food and the leftovers have been eaten.

Have you gained weight? If so, how much?

Don't worry - you can lose it - the question is, how long will it take.

Can you go back to your pre-Christmas (and Thanksgiving) eating habits with no problem, or do cravings kick in and is your willpower to resist them wobbly. (And is this exacerbated by the fact that tere's so much snow on the ground that you can't get out for walks?)

If you can get back to your pre-Christmas eating habits...do you lose a pound or two after that first week? If not, no problem, your body simply has to get back to that state of caloric imbalance that you'd been in before. Spend another week eating "normally" (everything you want, just smaller portions, as you had been doing) and by that second week, a pound will have come off.

Then, just continue on as usual.