Weight Loss Mistakes

If you did everything right on your weigh loss program, you would have no problem reaching your diet goals. But since most dieters do not stick to their diet, the body of your dreams, stays just that: dreams. The reason: mistakes.

Mistakes can range from giving into cravings to not going to an aerobics class. And once this happens, the typical response for many is to berate yourself. After all, no one wants to make mistakes, so some criticism is in order.

I suspect the biggest reason for this self-criticism is the human need to be perfect. No one with an ounce of self-esteem wants to make mistakes. So, some harsh words to ourselves may seem in order, or is it?

If we take a step back and look at how some mistakes have added to our society, we should realize that they are not always bad. In fact mistakes led to the invention of rubber, penicillin, sticky-notes, and even chocolate chip cookies.

Yes, I know that making a mistake on a diet in most cases leads to more weight gain or at least no weight loss, but so what. The urge to gobbled down a bag of chips was just to great to resist. OK. You did the damage. Now What?

Do you beat yourself up for not having the will power to resist or do you quickly forgive yourself and promise to do better next time? If you choose the former, then expect to be miserable and eventually repeat the behavior again and again. How come?

Well criticizing yourself just makes you feel bad and feeling bad doesn’t decrease your chances of repeating the mistake, but just the opposite. And why is this?

In the field of positive psychology, studies have shown that happy people are more likely to exhibit greater self-control and coping abilities. In addition, the findings also show that happy people live longer, have more successful relationships, more success at work and have better physical and mental health.

So what should you take from this. Simply put, even though you may succumb to the urge to eat a half or maybe even a whole bag of cookies, forgive yourself and go on. And if you think about anything, remember the times when you didn’t succumb to the temptations. More importantly, be happy.

Your road to the body of your dreams may not be a smooth one, but by keeping a positive attitude and being happy with yourself even after some stumbles helps to keep your self-esteem high. As a result, this allows you to better cope with setbacks and eventually reach your goals.