Trouble-Shooting
When you start the diet
Weigh Yourself
- Weigh yourself on the first morning of your diet, ideally without clothes and before you eat.
- Make a note of your weight.
- Resist the temptation to weigh yourself again, until the morning of Day 8.
- Then weigh yourself on the same scales and at the same time.
Take Measurements
- When weighing yourself, take your measurements.
- Measure bust, waist, hips, thighs and upper arms.
- Make a note of these measurements.
- Take your measurements every 2-4 weeks and make a note.
After the First Week
OK, so you’ve just completed your first week on your diet.
You feel you’ve done well.
You stand on the scales full of expectation and what happens?
YOU WEIGH THE SAME! (Gulp)
HELP! – WHAT’S GONE WRONG?
First off, don’t panic! You are not alone. Many people do not lose weight after 7 days.
For some dieters weight loss does not happen for 10-14 days.
There is nothing wrong if this happens – it’s just the way your body works.
It is still adjusting to your new way of eating.
If you are sticking to the diet properly, the pounds will come off.
Trust me. I know a lot about dieting and dieters.
NOTE 1: GETTING ON THE SCALES
The first thing to remember, is that we gain weight during the day.
This is why it’s important to weigh yourself at the SAME TIME of day.
For example, if you weigh yourself on Day 1 at 0800 hours, then re-weigh yourself on Day 8 at 0800 hours. Don’t weigh yourself on (say) Day 7 at 2200 hours, otherwise you will get a totally false reading.
NOTE 2: RETAINING FLUID
Our menstrual cycle has a significant affect on our fluid retention.
This may lead to a ‘false’ reading on the scales and cause us to think we are heavier than we really are.
To be entirely accurate, therefore, allow a full cycle to pass before assessing your true weight loss.
In addition to these pointers, here is a short checklist to help eliminate obvious errors.
10 Things To Check
How close are you to your normal weight?
Are you close to what is considered normal for your height?
If you are and you still want to lose 10-15 pounds, then you will have to be patient.
The closer you are to your normal weight, the more stubborn these last few pounds are.
Are you following your diet as closely as you think?
Many people believe they are following their diet exactly, even when they’re not!
So ask yourself again: Are you following the diet?
For example, have you forgotten the ‘invisible’ extras:
- The handful of peanuts
- The couple of candies
- The little cake that looked so small it couldn’t possibly do any harm
- The tasting while cooking
- The kids leftovers
- The items you ate off “other people’s plates” (the bits that don’t count!)
- The nibbles you had while standing at the open fridge
These little ‘invisibles’ can add up to a lot of calories over the week.
Are you going for long periods without eating?
If so, try to eat something every 3 hours.
A piece of fruit is fine.
Remember: eating, like exercise, speeds up our metabolism.
Are you taking any medication?
If so, you may have to make allowances for this.
All medication affects how our body works and may slow down weight loss.
Even taking a 5-day course of antibiotics for a sore throat can affect the rate we lose weight.
Are you getting enough sleep?
Lack of sleep can play havoc with our weight. Many new moms are affected by this during the first couple of months of night feeds. However, as soon as baby starts sleeping through the night the weight loss speeds up.
Are you working shifts?
Our body clocks were set thousands of years ago and even though we are very sophisticated creatures, our body clock hasn’t caught up with that. Our body loves regularity. It loves to be in bed by 11 and up at 7! Any change in this routine and it rebels.
Those of you who have changed to shift work may have gained weight even though you haven’t changed what you eat a great deal. Losing weight on shift requires a bit of extra patience and care. But don’t despair, I see people succeed all the time.
Are you taking enough fluids?
Aim to include at least 4 glasses of water each day.
Are you getting regular exercise?
If not, now is a good time to start. Just 20 minutes are day helps to increase your metabolic rate.
Is it aerobic exercise?
Pumping iron and jogging is fine but aerobic exercise is best for weight loss.
Start a Food and Exercise Diary
If you have carried out the above 9 checks and nothing seems to account for your lack of weight loss, I recommend you keep a food and activity diary for 14 days.
- Write down everything you eat, when you eat it.
- Do not write it down at the end of the day – you won’t remember everything!
- Keep it for 14 days (no less), then check how closely you’ve been following the diet.
- If you are still unsure about what (if anything) you are doing wrong, here’s what to do:
Send me your 14-day diary by email, together with details of your height/weight and I’ll tell you what the problem might be and how to overcome it.
So whatever happens, don’t worry.
I will help you to succeed.
Trust me.