Do You Have Diet Burnout?

By Anne M. Rensberger, LICSW

Wondercoach

More Weight Control, Nutrition & Exercise Articles

Do You Have Diet Burnout?

If you ever had a lot of weight to lose you probably have been there. You feel like a burnt piece of toast from the challenges of weight management.
You know you have burnout if you are sick of counting calories or carbs, or eating smaller portions, or exercising, or following whatever program you are using to lose weight.
You feel discouraged by the relentless need to be attentive to weight management and there seems to be no vacation from your efforts.
You feel everyone else in the world can eat what they want, but you can’t. Plus, despite how hard you try, you still have problems adhering to your weight management plan.
Do you ever suspect your friends, colleagues and family enjoy acting as food police and diet experts? Do you feel like people are looking at every bite you put in your mouth?
Have you ever had someone ask, “Are you allowed to eat that on your diet?” Are you exasperated by the number of “experts” that offer unsolicited diet advice or regale you with how successful they have been on their diet?
Do you find advice such as “just put down the fork” less than helpful? Do you find yourself so resentful of all this so-called help that you feel like giving up totally?
How can you fight this feeling? You have to realize that there will always be people who will monitor your eating no matter what. But, remember many are doing it out of love because they care and worry about you. Therefore, you must give them something to do that is helpful, but is not nagging.
You have to be very clear about what you need and about what you don’t need. For example, you might tell your family not to bring sweets into the house, to nix the comments on what you choose to eat when you go out to a restaurant, and to join you on your evening walk. Or, you might tell colleagues that they can help you by letting you choose the eating-place for lunch and by not offering you homemade goodies they bring into the office.
If you have a lot of weight to lose, you can expect these challenges and times when you feel frustrated at others and at yourself. Remember, your weight is not a measure of your self-esteem, or your value as a human being, nor does it define who you are.
Losing weight takes persistence, an ability to laugh at your own foibles, the willingness to forgive your transgressions, to believe in your own capacity to change, and the assertiveness to deal with your friends, family and colleagues.
It helps when you have someone in your corner. There are many excellent programs available to help you along the way.