Have you frequently lost weight only to regain it? Many individuals struggle with yo-yo weight loss for most of their lives.

What Causes Yo-yo Dieting?

It seems like a great idea to drastically cut back on your food intake for rapid weight loss. However, your body sooner or later prepares itself for a decrease in calorie intake. Your body will adapt to this lowered calorie intake by conserving energy and metabolic rate (the way your body burns food for energy). Eventually, the initial weight loss slows down or stops.

Many dieters at this point would wrestle to sustain their diet. What happens next? The weight slowly creeps back up.

This extreme calorie limitation causes a reduction in muscle tone. Typical signs are flabby upper arms and buns.

Alternatives to yo-yo diets

Hope for a long term supportable approach instead of a quick one. Aim for a modest weight loss of 1-2 pounds a week instead. I you plan on decreasing caloric intake, do it gradually. Depending on how much you have to lose, two hundred up to a 500 calories decrease a day would be commendable.

Consider your diet as a healthy eating plan instead of a temporary one.

Increase your level of physical activities by incorporating them in your daily life. For example, take the stairs or try something you enjoy such as dancing or hiking.

Plan on eating frequently throughout the day. Eating frequent smaller meals will prevent you from overeating later on.

Overeating and Emotional Eating

Okay, maybe your problem isn’t yo-yo dieting. It’s possible that your eating has become a habit such as eating junk food when you sit down in front of the TV.

Perhaps your are an emotional eater. When stress, you skip meals, when bored, you raid to refrigerator. Here are some tips to overcome emotional overeating.

Overcome emotional overeating

It is time to examine what is causing you to use food to solve your emotional eating habits. Find an alternate to eating. Try taking a walk to clear your head. Invite your friends to a game of miniature golf on your birthday. Have healthy snacks at your place of work. You can grab these instead of the junk in the vending machine.

Try to manage hunger by eating several small meals a day. Remember that if you go hungry, you will make poor choices or you will tend to overeat.

Never fill yourself at mealtime. It is all right to leave food on your plate. You can also train your body to be satisfied at 60% capacity.

Be aware of what junk food can do to you, and get rid of them. Replace them with healthy choices such as whole-grain bread, fruits and vegetables.

Corny or not, do things to remind you of your goal. Put up a sign at your desk that say: A year from now, you may wish you started today. Maybe you can put up a refrigerator sign that says: When I cheat on my weight-loss goal, I am cheating on me.

Finally, if you overeat, do not fall off the wagon. Get back on track right away. Not tomorrow — today. Because tomorrow will never come.

Athletic Club Rochester offers group exercise programs in Rochester and Rochester personal training.