A quick one this time…

For years, I bounced from one diet to the next, stuck in a cycle of weight loss and weight gain, feeling like I was always getting it wrong – surely, it shouldn’t be that hard to maintain a steady weight?

Starting any new diet without understanding the reasons for your weight gain or taking steps to make changes to your relationship with food, make giving up or regaining the weight almost inevitable.

So before you start on the next one, a couple of questions for you to think about:

1. Do you overeat? What, when, why?
2. Why does your weight bother you? What would be different if you were lighter?
3. Is your next diet coming from a place of poor body image, low self-esteem, a need to show you have willpower and can stick to something, someone telling you you ought to?

There are all sorts of other things to consider, but these are a great place to start. Maybe hold off from that new diet plan for a couple of days to give yourself time to understand what’s really going on behind the scenes.

If you feel you might need extra help with your relationship with food, please seek professional support from your GP or an eating disorder specialist – see https://www.beateatingdisorders.org.uk/