"Stick with your diet" is easier said than done, of course. Individuals who are overweight are not always strong on willpower to begin with. Making a lifetime commitment to a very changed diet can be more than realistically expected … unless they have help.
That help can come in several forms, including an understanding and skilled nutritionist, support groups, as well as friends and family. Those are all terrific, but in the end it comes down to the individual and his or her desires and ability to do what's needed.
Simply feeling guilty will not do, though. A more positive approach, one that starts on the inside with the right self-generated 'carrots' (and a few helpful 'sticks' as reminders) is the way to go.
Start by understanding why it can be difficult to find the will to do what you know is best for you. It usually comes down to an inability to keep real to yourself the connection between cause and effect, between your actions and the outcome. Fortunately, curing that is not as much an impossible dream – nor just a lot of squishy, ​​psychobabble-sounding advice – as it may seem.
Mentally connecting that desired object (say, sugary food) with a very undesirable effect (such as dirrhea and pain) can help drastically taper off the desire, usually enough to stop you from indulging. After all, you would not eat arsenic-laced cookies, even if you knew they had a very sweet taste.
That same imagination technique can be used to help you bolster your willpower in a more positive way. Develop a few mental scenes that show you eating what the doctor has recommended. Stand in front of the mirror and see yourself as you are. Then turn away and see in your mind's eye the slim, new you.
