The Elimination Weight Loss Diet - What If I Don't Lose Weight Right Away? (Chapter 8)

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Chapter 8 – What If I Don’t Lose Weight Right Away?

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As I explained in the previous two chapters, random weight variation due to water retention can interfere with determining actual weight loss. That is why it is recommended that you only weigh yourself once a week (Chapter 6) and that you record and graph your weight loss (Chapter 7).

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Assuming that you are doing this, you should wait three weeks before assessing if your diet is working.

A. If after three weeks, you have lost three or more pounds, your diet is working and you should leave things alone.

B. If you have lost only 1-2 pounds, subtract an additional 300 calories and continue dieting.

C. Finally, if you haven’t lost any weight, subtract 500 additional calories a day from what you are currently eating.

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Next let us examine possible reasons why your original elimination of 500 calorie per day isn’t working.

1. Your eating habits were not stable when you started the diet.

More often than not, people decide to start a diet while they are still gaining weight. In that event, the 500 calories a day that they eliminate may be needed just to stop gaining weight. Don’t lose any sleep over it, simply eliminate an additional 500 calories per day.

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2. You underestimated the 500 calories worth of food that you planned to eliminate each day.

Quickly recalculate the calories for the foods that you decided to eliminate and subtract 200-300 additional calories per day. It is easy to under estimate calories. Results are what count, not how accurately you can calculate.

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3. Your activity level declined since you started the diet.

Check to see if you are sitting more or have quit walking, shopping or doing anything else that uses up calories. If you can’t think of anything that has changed, simply subtract 200-300 calories per day to make up for the calories that you stopped burning through activity.

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4. You are cheating on your diet and either you refuse to admit it or you don’t even realize that you are doing it.

Be honest with yourself. Are you eating between meals or taking larger helpings or seconds. It is easy enough to convince yourself that it isn’t enough to matter, but every little bit counts. Try inserting a planned snack instead of simply grazing and eliminate the equivalent calories.

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5. Subconsciously, you have increased your portion sizes to compensate for the fact that you have eliminated some items from your diet.

This is relatively easy to do. If you eliminate one item from your meal, your plate may look a little empty, so you take a little more of the items that you havent eliminated.

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The most important thing to remember at this point is that most diets fail because people become discouraged or impatient. All successful diets require motivation, determination and patience.

After three weeks, you should simply make any necessary adjustments based on your progress to date and continue dieting.

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