5 reasons you can't stick to a diet

Do you make plans to eat healthily and stick to a diet plan but then crumble at temptation as soon as you see the cheese platter and wine?

Or start a new diet with mountains of motivation only to let it all fizzle out after a couple of weeks?

People often drop out of weight loss programs very soon after starting. Research shows that those who have better early weight loss are more likely to stay on the program and are more likely to achieve successful longer term weight loss. The problem is, how do you get past the first few days?

It can be mentally tough to stick to a new eating plan, especially when it introduces many changes into your life.

Perhaps the most important aspect of any diet is that it should be practical and deliciously healthy enough to follow. We look at the reasons why people have such a hard time sticking to a diet and how the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet offers easy solutions for each of them.

Are you trying to lose weight? Read our comprehensive guide on weight loss to understand where to begin, what happens when you lose weight, and what doesn't work when it comes to dieting.

1. I feel hungry and deprived

If you go around hungry all the time, sticking to a diet isn’t going to work. Your body demands energy and fighting hunger is just not sustainable long-term.

The reason why eating a higher protein and low GI diet works - which is core to the Total Wellbeing Diet - is that the higher protein meals help to control your appetite and the low GI carbohydrates help you feel fuller for longer, making you less likely to crave foods between meals.

The Total Wellbeing Diet also doesn’t demonise foods but includes foods from all food groups and offers a balanced “everything in moderation” approach to healthy eating. Lean meats, fish, dairy, eggs, tofu, rice and legumes, in addition to fruits and vegetables, are all part of the plan. And, unlike many other diets, you can actually enjoy the occasional piece of chocolate, choc-chip cookie and scoop of ice-cream with our daily indulgences!

As Professor Manny Noakes, Research Director of the CSIRO’s Food and Nutrition Flagship and co-author of the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet, says: “The Total Wellbeing Diet for many people is a very large change in thinking and habits. Asking people to completely cut out all sweet food and go ‘cold turkey’ would most likely result in drop offs or non-compliance.”

2. I don’t have all day to cook

Let’s face it, none of us have hours free every day for food shopping and cooking, let alone think about what to make for dinner.

All meals on the Total Wellbeing Diet are easy to cook and family friendly. Ingredients don’t have to be sourced from the local farmer’s organic market or health food store. They can all be bought at the supermarket and prepared at home.

Because of the convenience and cost-effective nature of the Total Wellbeing Diet our members are getting healthier every day. There’s something to be said for a diet that’s designed around the society that we live in – not the other way around – it’s practical, realistic and easy to follow.  

3. I have friends and they’re not doing my diet

Food is a crucial part of our social lives. We have lunch with work mates and eat dinner with family and friends. If your diet doesn’t allow you to eat out, or cook a meal that everyone can enjoy, you’ll lose out on quality downtime with the people you love.

And while many diets dictate what you should eat every day, the Total Wellbeing Diet is flexible. There’s the option where you can customise your daily menu by swapping out a prescribed meal for one that suits a special occasion and your mood (the 12 week program includes over 1000 recipes). Eating out? No problem. You can record the foods you have eaten at your favourite restaurant into your food tracker.

4. I just really like chocolate

Unless you have superhuman willpower, many of us have a soft spot for the occasional indulgence. Yes, the Total Wellbeing Diet allows for chocolate and wine. But even better, and part of the broad approach of the diet, is there’s meals such as grilled bananas drizzled with honey, and dessert such as apple and rhubarb crumble.

Far from restrictive, the Total Wellbeing Diet includes low quantities of added sugar in some of the recipes  that help people stick to an overall healthy diet.

Plus, it sticks to the World Health Organisation’s  recommendations that adults have no more than 10 per cent of added sugar in their daily diet.

5. I’m not that into exercise

Just like food prepping and cooking, many of us don’t have the time to go to the gym. If you want to exercise from home, we have an exercise plan for that with detailed step-by-step video tutorials on how to do each workout.

Exercise is crucial to staying healthy long-term and that is why we offer something for everyone. We also have running programs – from learning to run to doing your first half marathon, programs for golfers, cyclists, footy players and hikers, and several levels for people who prefer to work out at the gym.