YOLO So Don't Yo-yo!

So today I want to talk about yo-yo dieting. This is a trap that many of us have fallen into and might in fact still be there. When I use the term yo-yo dieting, I’m referring to extreme behaviours leading to weight loss that are then followed by a rebound phase before the whole process starts again. It’s something that isn’t linked to feeling particular good, as the extreme part involves behaviours that aren’t maintainable with over training and over restriction, and then the rebound is often linked to feelings of shame, guilt, failure and uncontrollable weight gain. Not a happy pattern to be living through but it’s one of the most common things I see with clients I start working with who want to get in shape, however haven’t ever quite managed to get there or to have maintained it.

I’m not going to pretend that there is one magic way to break the yo-yo cycle, and I have found that it differs person to person. However I think one of the key things you can do is to focus on discipline and intentional action. Lots of people have goals and will happily state their intentions but far less people action them. New year’s resolutions are a great example of this as something like 97% of people stop working towards them after 1 month. I think many yo-yo dieters get caught in a similar cycle of saying they want something and maybe starting to work towards it in an extreme way, but then ultimately fall short, as it’s something that they can’t sustain. The pain and severity of that approach overcomes the want for the goal, and so they stop. They then engage in behaviours that take them in the opposite direction to where they want to go and are therefore no longer putting action and intention behind their goal.

Many people unfortunately give into what they want and can get instantly and in the present moment e.g. another drink or slice of cake as its fun and feels good right in that second, instead of thinking about the bigger picture about what they might actually NEED in order to feel good in the long run.  Choosing a quick fix crash diet to get more instant results rather than thinking about where this well lead you in the long run (another yo-yo cycle most probably!) is another example of this. If this is you, then putting action, intention and discipline behind the goal of slower but more sustainable and structured weight loss would be what you NEED even though you might WANT results in a few weeks!

I can relate to this myself as I tend to go extreme with work and training. If I don’t stay disciplined, I’ll over work and over train and just like an extreme diet, I’ll reach a point where I can’t sustain it anymore and burnout. I must have the discipline to enforce rest even if I want to train or work, as I know it it’s what I need in order to be more productive, both physically and mentally in the long run. It’s having the discipline to action these things that is the game changer and with this mentality, perhaps a way out of the yo-yo dieting cycle.

Focus on what you need to do to get the result you desire not necesserily what you want to do. I hope that’s given you some food for thought and perhaps some motivation to try a different approach to getting in shape. And remember….YOLO!

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