Ringing in the new year with a pledge to ring the changes is a common phenomenon.
On 31st December, many of us tell ourselves that this year I will turn over a new leaf – I will lose
weight, exercise daily, drink less, stop eating out etc. How many of us vow that this year will be ‘my
year’ where we will shed a few kgs & get into shape? We make many such resolutions for ourselves.
But come February only a few of us are walking in a cloud of zen modelling our perfect figures and
glowing skin. And for most of us after a long dark struggling month of January we can hardly be
blamed for reaching out to the comforting slice of cake or a glass of wine. So why is it that just 1 in
10 of us really achieves our goal? The reason being we make the wrong resolutions for ourselves.
Here are a few resolutions we should not make :
The 1st one is “I want to lose 10-20 kgs this year”
Well this is a perfect long term goal. But break this into small achievable targets like “I will lose 3-5
kgs this month”. Once you have achieved this, you will be motivated further to do more each month.
Then the 2nd one “I am going to try …………….diet”
This blank could mean any of the fad diets that you might see your friend, colleague or sister
following and finding success. FAD DIETS DO NOT WORK FOR A LONG TERM. Instead adapt a lifestyle
modification which will give better results than any particular fad diet which you will give up
eventually.
The 3rd is “I am going to give up eating xyz food”
Most of us decide to give up on some food which we consume everyday, thinking, it might do the
trick to lose weight. But giving up on a particular food will give you a craving for the food. You will
eventually end up eating more of it. The trick is to consume a variety in your meals with moderation
rather than complete elimination.
The 4th resolution is “I am going to stop eating in restaurants”
Missing a night out with friends just for the sake of a diet is not a way of life. You will wind up being
frustrated and finally land up indulging further. Rather follow one of these principles. You could have
some small snack of a filler before you go to dine out. This way you would not indulge too much.
Secondly you could start with a small portion of salad or soup to fill up your stomach and end up
consuming fewer calories than otherwise.
The 5th resolution a lot of us make “I will follow a low calorie all salads diet”
While severe low calorie diets will give a weight loss initially, you will gain it all back as soon as you
start eating normal again. And not to forget that it puts you on starvation mode. Instead, develop a
healthy eating plan with your dietician which is practical and easy for you to adapt, even when you
are busy.
The 6th one some people make “I am going vegetarian”
Fish, chicken and eggs are the non-veg foods rich in protein and moderate amounts of fat. So
eliminating these with a thought of losing weight is not necessarily a good idea. A transition of non-
veg to veg may in fact add in more calories (being unaware of the sources of protein and instead
consuming carbs). However do not forget that lean meats make ½ of the plate. Other parts are
made up with carbs and veggies.
And the 7th is “I am cutting calories by skipping meals”
Skipping meals especially breakfast often puts the person on a fast track weight gain rather than
weight loss as the indulgence in fattening foods increases in the day. Also, skipping meals means
lowering the metabolism which is not such a good idea while losing weight. Instead of skipping any
meals increase the frequency of consumption of meals to small and frequent meals rather than
concentrating calories over a particular meal.
The 8th is “I won’t eat after 9 pm”
There is no thumb rule that you should stop eating after a particular time. Any extra calories
consumed would be stored as fat irrespective of the time of consumption. As a norm remember to
keep an hour and half gap between the last complete meal and sleep. If you would be sleeping much
later post dinner it would make sense to have a small filler like a glass of skimmed milk or a fibre rich
fruit rather than sleeping hungry.
And the 9th one is “I would do rigorous exercise”
Any form of cardio exercise along with weight training schedule is effective in weight loss. The
exercise has to be more regular than rigorous. Rigorous exercise can lead to injuries which will
further hamper regular activity. Hence aim for a regular routine rather than suddenly increasing
intensity which might lead to fatigue rather than feel good.
So pick the right resolution and build up to what you want to achieve rather than setting yourself
a goal that is unrealistic.