Mini Habits for Weight Loss
Stop Dieting. Form New Habits. Change Your Lifestyle Without Suffering.
By
Stephen Guise
Blog: http://stephenguise.com
Book site: http://minihabits.com
Mini Habits for Weight Loss by Stephen Guise
Copyright © 2016 Selective Entertainment, LLC, All Rights Reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, except for brief quotations, without written permission from the author.
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Check out minihabits.com for additional Mini Habits for Weight Loss content, tools, and resources!
Mini Habits
If you haven’t yet, I strongly recommend you read my first book, Mini Habits. Although you don’t need to read Mini Habits to benefit from Mini Habits for Weight Loss, it will give you more of the nuts and bolts of the original mini habits strategy.
Based on the science, Mini Habits is arguably the most effective habit formation strategy in the world. And, based on reviews, it’s arguably the most loved and the most successful! Many lives have been transformed as a result of adopting the mini habits strategy. It can change your life too!
Mini Habits Book: http://amazon.com/dp/B00HGKNBDK
Mini Habit Mastery
If you prefer video and want to learn the mini habits concept, you can take the Mini Habit Mastery Video Course. Use coupon code “MHWL55” for an exclusive Mini Habits for Weight Loss discount. Mini Habit Mastery is among the world’s most popular habit courses, with over 9,000 students.
Mini Habit Mastery HD Video Course: https://www.udemy.com/mini-habit-mastery/?couponCode=MHWL55
How to Be an Imperfectionist
My second book applies Mini Habits to the problem of perfectionism. If you struggle with depression, fear, and inaction, this book has a lot to offer. It’s the highest-rated product I’ve ever created.
How to Be an Imperfectionist book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00UMG535Y
Tuesday Messages
Every Tuesday, I write about smart life strategies and email them to subscribers. People have told me this content is life-changing. When you sign up, you can look through the archives of previous messages of interest. These are exclusive to subscribers and free. Also, signing up means you’ll get to know when my next book or course is available.
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- Preface
Part One
Introduction: Diet’s Two Definitions
2. Brain Change before Body Change
3. Weight Loss Speed: Beware the Counterattack
4. Everyone's Wrong: Weight Loss Is Not About Carbs, Fat, or Calories
Part Two
5. General Strategy: Look, If It Were Intuitive, We’d All Be Slender Billionaires
6. Food Strategy: Here’s a List of Foods to Eat and Avoid. Just Kidding. Let’s Do Something Smarter.
7. Fitness Strategy: Let’s Make it Fun
8. Mini Habits: Everyone Laughs until They Experience the Results
9. Situational Strategies: Rules Can Be Broken, Strategies Are Forever
10. Conclusion: You’ve Tried Dieting Many Times, Try This Once
-
Preface
Mini Habits and the One Push-up Story
"Success is simple. Do what's right, the right way, at the right time."
~ Arnold H. Glasow
I prefer to do the easiest and most enjoyable things, even if it’s sometimes at the expense of moving my life in a healthy direction, and I don’t think I’m alone in that.
For most of my life, my propensity to do the fun but less advisable things was extremely frustrating. It kept me from becoming the person I wanted to be. But I found a way to turn the odds in my favor. Not to be dramatic or anything, but my life changed forever on December 28, 2012. Here’s what happened.
The end of the year was three days away, and I sat on my bed thinking about making some changes. Namely, I desired to exercise consistently, something I had never been able to do. I’d do it for a week or two and quit. The reasons varied; there was always an excuse.
I’m not fond of New Year’s Resolutions with their arbitrary start date of January 1, so I decided to begin my change that day by exercising for 30 minutes at home. Problem: I couldn’t do it. I felt lethargic, unmotivated, and out of shape. The idea of exercising actually repulsed me, and no motivational tactic helped. I had been in this situation before, but a recent book I read gave me an idea.
Earlier that month, I had read Thinkertoys by Michael Michalko. Michalko gives readers a number of creative problem solving tools, one of which is called “False Faces.” To use this technique, you simply consider the opposite of your current idea. A crude example: If your idea is to build a water park, maybe the opposite idea would be to build a desert-themed park. The opposite idea is not meant to be great in itself, but to open your mind to a wider spectrum of possibilities.
My idea was to exercise for 30 minutes, but I had hit a motivational brick wall, so I tried out “False Faces” to see if it could solve my problem. Since I saw my workout as an intimidating amount of effort, I figured the opposite would be something that’s very easy to do, say, one push-up.
I laughed at myself for considering such a worthless idea.
Thanks for nothing, Mr. Michalko! Your little technique didn’t work!
One push-up? I may have been down, but I could do better than that. Eventually, I decided to do it out of self-mockery and frustration for failing to get motivated.
If I can’t do a simple 30-minute workout, then I’m going to do one push-up. Great job, Stephen. You can do a push-up. Your dreams will surely come true now.
As I lowered myself to the ground, my joints creaked, my arms were weak, and my body screamed at me to sit on the couch… but all I had to do was one push-up. So I did, and it transformed my life.
While in push-up position, it seemed silly to do a single push-up, so I did a few more, then stood up. At this point, I was intrigued. This was the same way I would have started a 30-minute workout. I had already met and exceeded my goal, and my body was warmed up. I set a few more small goals and my push-up count reached 50 reps. After that, I grabbed my pull-up bar and did the same thing. A full 20 minutes of exercise later, I faced the ultimate challenge.
I had the idea to do a 10-minute ab program to finish off my workout, but my brain shot it down like a professional skeet shooter. You’ve had your fun with exercise, Stephen, but I’m drawing the line here. Go play video games.
Resistance was strong, but I’m a quick learner. I used my new secret weapon, and made sure to compliment my subconscious (the source of resistance). My thought process went something like this.
Bingo. It worked. 10 minutes later, my abdominal muscles were ablaze. I sat on my bed with a glass of water and took it in: My one push-up had somehow grown into the 30-minute workout that I was unable to do before. My brain nearly exploded out of surprise and delight. I had broken through an amount of resistance that I had never overcome previously. That situation had always meant failure, but this time, I succeeded. What could this mean for my future?
From that day on, I vowed to do at least one push-up every day. Admittedly, I missed two days in the next six months, but otherwise, I always did my push-up(s). Sometimes, it would spark a full workout as it did the first time. Other times, I would only do five to 10. On a few occasions, I did just one push-up to meet my requirement.
A Pleasant Surprise
I was already happy about one measly push-up sparking full workouts and more exercise; then I noticed something even more exciting. The baseline level of resistance I felt to exercise had decreased significantly over time. When considering exercise, I no longer felt repulsed. How could I? It was now part of my life and I did it in varying amounts every day. I knew I was ready for the next step.
After roughly six months of doing one push-up per day, I began going to the gym. To this day, unless I’m traveling, sick, or injured, I go to the gym several times per week. My unwillingness to exercise is no longer an obstacle.
When one push-up morphed into a full gym habit, my already-wide eyes grew to the size of bowling balls (you should see the picture). Just as I had leveraged small steps into a big change, I knew I could leverage this entire concept to improve different areas of my life. I immediately began daily goals of reading two pages in a book per day and writing 50 words per day. My reading and writing activity spiked. As a long-time writer, I had been thinking for the previous year about writing a personal development book, but couldn’t decide on a topic. Well, I certainly had one now!
Using my 50 words per day goal, I wrote a book about this concept called Mini Habits: Smaller Habits, Bigger Results. That’s right: I used a mini habit to write Mini Habits. The words poured out of my soul. I was excited to tell others about this discovery, and scared that nobody would read it or believe it.
Since it was a ridiculous premise, but I knew it worked, I researched habit formation, willpower, and motivation, and it all came together. This crazy “one push-up a day” idea actually had scientific merit! This made me even more excited to share it because if I could explain exactly how it worked, people might believe my story, try it themselves, and change their lives. The book was published on December 22, 2013, almost exactly a year after I did that single push-up that changed my life.
Luckily, a lot of people did read it. Mini Habits has become a worldwide bestseller, selling more than 125,000 copies in its first two years in over a dozen languages and becoming the #1 selling self-help book in three countries. This was my first book, and its success is a reflection of the success readers have had with it. People changed their lives with this strategy, and shared it with others.
The mini habits strategy is different from 99.9% of self-help content because it emphasizes consistency over all else. Other books that correctly promote consistency don’t usually have a thoughtful application strategy for it. Importantly, Mini Habits doesn’t merely say “be consistent”—it is woven into the fabric of the strategy.
What does any of this have to do with weight loss? More than even I thought when I started writing this book. It turns out that behavior change and biological change work in much the same way, and the strategic mistakes that prevent people from changing their behavior also prevent them from losing weight. For example, when people forcibly restrict their calories, they almost always gain the weight back, just as someone reverts to their typical way of living after trying to force themselves to reach ambitious goals.
Being overweight is not a crime. It doesn’t lower your value as a human being. Weight, however, can affect your health. It can affect your ability to do and/or enjoy activities. It can affect your self-esteem. It can affect nearly all aspects of your life.
If you want to lose weight, do it for yourself. Don’t do it because you’re “supposed to be thinner” or have a certain body mass index (BMI). There is no rule that states “Thou shalt have a BMI between 18.5 and 25.” Body weight is a shallow, incomplete measure of a person’s health. Some exceptionally muscular and fit people are actually considered overweight or even obese according to their BMI.
When you say you want to lose weight, what you really mean is that you want to play with your kids without getting winded, you want to look in the mirror and feel good about what you see, you want to impress someone, you want to live a long and healthy life, you want to improve your overall quality of life, or you want to look good in spandex. These are all fine reasons to lose weight as long as they come from you.
There are two parts to this book. Part one covers weight loss: current popular methods, why they’re broken, how the brain and body naturally change, how weight loss works, and the resulting best approach.
Part two covers strategies that are based on the conclusions of part one. We’ll begin part two with the ideal psychology of weight loss. How should we think about our weight loss journey in general? How should we approach food and fitness? Once these questions are thoroughly gone into, you’ll have a solid idea of not only the best way to lose weight, but the best mindset for weight loss. For example, you’ll know that processed food is a major cause of weight gain, but also that you shouldn’t try to resist it directly.
At this point, you’ll be ready to formulate your mini habits plan, and there’s an in-depth guide to help you create a plan that suits your lifestyle. Unlike dieting, a mini habit plan is completely flexible and adaptable to you. Once you’ve got a mini habit plan, we’ll talk about situational strategies, like how to handle holidays, snacking, temptation, peer pressure, eating out, and buying groceries.
Some books give you recipes. Some books give you a list of foods to (not) eat. This book teaches you how to change your behavior to lose weight permanently, and that’s more valuable than the world’s greatest recipe book or most accurate list of weight loss foods. When you can change your behavior, you can become the person you’ve always wanted to become.
The techniques in this book are powerful and transformative, and yet they’re so simple that anyone can succeed with them.
Part One
Introduction: Diet’s Two Definitions
Before we begin, to avoid confusion, we need to define the two ways people use the word “diet.”
Every single person has a diet (#1), but not everyone is on a diet (#2). The second definition is also known as “dieting.” The easiest way to think of it is that #1 is a noun and #2 is a verb. Dieting or “going on a diet” is something you may or may not do, but a diet is a noun that every person possesses.
I mention this so you don’t think I’m contradicting myself as I verbally destroy the practice of “dieting” (v) and then suggest a particular type of diet (n) for weight loss. To “go on a diet” or start “dieting” means that you’re consciously modifying your food type or amount. It’s one specific (and ineffective) strategy to change your diet (n) and lose weight. If you determine a particular diet is ideal for weight loss, dieting is NOT the only way to get yourself to eat that way.
Mini Habits for Weight Loss is not training wheels for those who can’t stick to a diet; this is the advanced program. It’s entirely different and much smarter than dieting, with a higher success rate. Dieting is for temporary weight loss. We’re aiming for real, lasting change.
1
The Unhappy Marriage of Weight Loss and Dieting
Dieting and Smoothie Cleanses Are Effective for Weight Gain. Wait... What?
"It isn't that they can't see the solution. It is that they can't see the problem."
~ Gilbert K. Chesterton
Brace yourself, because this will shock you.
In 1986, scientists sought to find the metabolic impact of yo-yo dieting. To simulate this behavior, which is marked by repeated weight loss and regain, they alternately restricted and expanded the calorie consumption of obese rats. The rats completed two full “yo-yo” weight loss cycles.
To lose weight the first time, rats were fed 50% of the average food consumption of control rats until they had lost 131 grams of weight. Once the rats regained that weight, they used the same 50% restriction for the second weight loss cycle, and the rats lost 133 grams. That’s almost the same, right? Yes, but the amount of weight gained or lost—the typical focus of dieters—was not the focal point here. Instead, the scientists looked at how long it took the rats to lose weight in each cycle (using the same diet). They wanted to see how yo-yo dieting affected the rats’ metabolism, if it changed the rats’ propensity to lose (or gain) weight. It changed significantly, and not for the better.
It took the rats 21 days to lose 131g the first time. The second time—which used the same exact calorie restriction diet—took 46 days, more than twice as long. The effect was even worse for the weight gain part of the cycle. After the first weight loss, the rats took 29 days to regain their pre-diet weight. After their second weight loss, it only took them 10 days to regain the weight.
By losing and regaining weight repeatedly, the rats’ bodies became more than twice as resistant to weight loss and almost three times as prone to weight gain (by function of time on identical diets).2
Cycling weight gain and loss increased the rats’ food efficiency, meaning that the rats’ bodies became more conservative with the energy they took in and stored as much fat as ratly possible. This is the opposite goal of a person (or rat) trying to lose weight, but it’s the natural biological response of a starved or partially starved animal. If you lived in a time when famines were common, such increased food efficiency could save your life. But for those of us who have an abundance of food and artificially restrict our intake to lose weight, well, that still tells our metabolism to slow down and not burn too many calories because, for all it knows, the next meal might not be coming anytime soon.
This study is one of many to find weight-gaining metabolic shifts in rats from calorie restriction yo-yoing. 3Thankfully, this is just rats and has nothing to do with humans, or else someone would have told us 30 years ago, right? Wrong. This biological mechanism affects us, too.
Every person should know about this analysis, but few do. Consider this: UCLA researchers looked at 31 long-term studies on dieting and found that, across the studies, dieting caused 33% to 66% of participants to regain more weight than they lost while dieting.4 If those numbers seem bad, well, they’re almost certainly worse than that. Many of the participants they followed up were contacted years after their study’s conclusion. Not all participants reported back about their weight change, and who do you think would be least likely to report back? The ashamed ones who regained the most weight.
“These studies likely underestimate the extent to which dieting is counterproductive because of several methodological problems, all of which bias the studies toward showing successful weight loss maintenance.”
A three-year study of almost 15,000 children aged 9-14 found that those who dieted were more prone to binge eating.5 Those who dieted, male and female, frequent and infrequent, gained more weight across the board in the study’s duration. That is strike two against dieting (or are we at four yet?).
Another study compared twins, which is interesting, because it takes genetics out of the equation. Over 4,000 individual Finnish twins were monitored for 25 years. The twin halves who attempted intentional weight loss (dieting) gained more weight than their genetically identical siblings, and weight gain increased with subsequent dieting attempts.6 The dieting halves probably increased their desire for foods that would make them gain weight by depriving themselves of them.
In a 1944 study called the Minnesota Starvation Experiment, 36 male volunteers were semi-starved for 24 weeks. One of the primary observations was that most of the men became depressed and emotionally distressed.7 At least they lost weight, right? Right! Predictably, yes and then no.
For 24 weeks, the men ate only 1,600 calories per day (which isn’t enough for grown men). They did lose a lot of weight at first, but then their bodies responded as bodies always do to sustained calorie restriction: “The men lost an average of a pound of body fat a week over the first 12 weeks, but averaged only a quarter-pound per week over the next 12, despite the continued deprivation.”8 When the men’s bodies increased their food efficiency (remember the rats?), their rate of weight loss slowed to a crawl. (Those watching their waistline see this as a bad thing, but it’s actually a phenomenal survival adaptation.)
At the conclusion of the study, the men were allowed to recover and eat to satiety, and they ate up to 10,000 calories a day. What else does that tell you about their bodies’ response? If their bodies could speak throughout this experiment, they’d say, “Famine! Conserve as much energy as possible, and when you have access to food, gorge on it and store it as fat in case the famine persists!” That’s exactly what happened. They bounced back to their former weight rapidly, and then some. They accumulated 50% more body fat than they had before the study began. Yikes!
The Biggest Loser is a hit American TV show with millions of viewers. It has been one of the most successful reality TV shows of all time. The premise: Which contestant can lose the most weight by show’s end?
What do you think is the recipe for weight loss on the show, the one that produces massive double-digit and even triple-digit weight loss numbers in a short amount of time? It’s the same one we just covered. Exercise for hours every day and severely restrict your calorie intake to create a big calorie deficit.9 Yep, that will do it! Considering the information we’ve just covered, go ahead and take a guess about what happens to these contestants during and after the show.
During the show, contestants lose a massive amount of weight, some of them dropping well over 100 pounds. What happens next?
A study followed 14 Biggest Loser contestants for six years after the show, and all but one of them regained weight after the show.10 Four became heavier than when they started the show. Even worse, nearly all of them suffered from abnormally low metabolism for their size, and lower metabolism than when they started. Low metabolism makes weight loss much, much harder, and weight gain effortless.
When this study came out in May 2016, I saw Good Morning America discuss it, and those on the show acted as if we hadn’t known about this concept for decades. My first thought was, “Why are they acting surprised?”
Thirty years ago, we saw this exact same thing happen with rats. Forty years before that, we saw it happen in the Minnesota Starvation Experiment (1944). We already knew that when you semi-starve an animal, its body reacts by slowing metabolism, increasing hunger, and storing as much fat energy as possible to increase its odds of survival. This isn’t merely common sense—and it is that—it’s also proven science.
Even worse, we’ve generated a pessimistic view that all weight loss attempts are futile because people will regain the weight later. But that’s because our notion of how to lose weight is too narrow. It’s like saying that every time you start a fire, it will become a forest fire (because you only start fires in the middle of dry forests). If you do something wrong, you’ll get terrible results every time.
If you want to get fatter, try dieting. Buy the books that promise “X pounds lost in X days.” The science clearly supports these methods for weight gain. What’s that? You want weight loss? Oh. To do that, you’ll need a different strategy.
Imagine that you were one of the rats in the yo-yo dieting study. If you had just seen firsthand what diet cycling did to you, and someone told you about a semi-starvation smoothie “cleanse” that could help you lose 15 pounds in 10 days, what would your reaction be?
Imagine that you were one of the men in the Minnesota Starvation Experiment. Would you adopt a calorie-restriction diet to lose the fat you gained from… having a calorie-restriction diet? Didn’t Albert Einstein once say something profound about doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting a different result? Their suffering aside, it must have been shocking to gain so much fat so fast after semi-starving themselves for months! Maybe you have already experienced this same unfortunate weight gain effect from diet cycling, but you probably attributed your weight struggles to other things because you assumed dieting was the only way.
Let this soak in. Anyone who says they’re going on a diet has a great chance of gaining weight because of it. This is not an opinion. This is what the data shows. The true cost of following short-term weight loss solutions isn’t merely wasted time, effort, and momentary suffering, it’s all that plus further weight gain. The people and rats in these studies had the dream scenario for dieting—they had their calories controlled for them, so they wouldn’t have to fight themselves to eat less, and all it did was make them fatter in the end. All of them. And calorie restriction, ladies and gentlemen, is the most common strategy for weight loss worldwide. Sigh.
Calorie restriction isn’t the main problem, it’s just one part of the bigger “dieting” problem. There are some quality, nutritious diets out there with the potential to bring lasting weight loss. But if so many people are on wholesome, nutrition-based diets, why do obesity rates continue to rise?
Simple. The crux of weight loss is not whether or not you eat blueberries or grapes. It's not about if you're a slow carb, low carb, low calorie, paleo, or Mediterranean diet aficionado. It’s not about if you can eat the perfect diet for 30 days. The crux of weight loss is whether or not you can sustain healthy lifestyle changes in the long term. Go about it the wrong way, and not only will you lose time, but you’ll also screw up your metabolism or your view of healthy food in the process. (If you’ve already done that, you can reverse this damage with the right strategy. The body and mind are capable self-healers.)
Let’s get to the root of the problem, then.
If you look for weight loss books, what will you find?
The marketplace is saturated with dieting books. Amazon's category name is even called "Weight Loss & Dieting," as if weight loss has fallen in love with dieting, they’re getting married, and any other suitors are too late.
Are there any who object to this union? I do. Vehemently so!
The marriage of weight loss and dieting is sad, because the entire concept of dieting is broken. As with some spouses, it doesn't work. At the risk of giving relationship advice in a weight loss book, healthy couples make each other better. The dieting industry makes billions of dollars every year, despite being ineffective. How many people believe it’s impossible to lose weight and keep it off because dieting failed them? There are a lot of frustrated people because of this failed marriage.
Does Dieting Ever Work Long-Term?
Since many scientists assume dieting is “the way,” short-term studies are used to try to validate its various forms. A. Janet Tomiyama reports in American Psychologist: “Several studies that are often cited as support for the long-term success of diets followed individuals for less than one year, six months, or even less time.”11
There’s an overabundance of short-term studies on weight loss and dieting, because we don’t like the results of long-term studies. A 7.5-year study found that women who had consumed a low-fat diet weighed only one pound less than those on a typical Western diet.12 Studies on dieting have found that most diets work well in the short term, whether they’re based on calorie restriction or eating better foods. But they generally don’t work long-term, because they’re so poorly designed.
We’re in this situation because of a chronic short-term focus. Even on a consumer and personal level, people are making major life decisions based upon seeing a friend drop 12 pounds in two weeks on a smoothie cleanse. Oy vey, people!
Do you know the single most effective short-term weight loss solution? Don’t eat any food and work out for two hours a day. You will lose more weight faster than you’ve ever lost it before in your life! With my new diet, The Newest New No-Food-Necessary Diet™, you’ll lose weight so quickly it’s dangerous (literally). Lose up to 20 pounds in one week! It really works! I hope my sarcasm is clear. Do NOT try The Newest New No-Food-Necessary Diet™. Some people would scoff at this idea as if it’s absurd, when they’re doing this exact thing to a lesser degree (e.g., calorie-restriction diets or masked calorie-restriction diets such as cleanses).
Short-term solutions are as worthless for weight loss as our fence was for keeping our family dog, Shiloh “Houdini” Guise, in our backyard (she’d jump over our 6-foot fence and swim around in the local lake). Just because a diet says 30 days instead of a week or lets you drink a few green smoothies instead of completely starving yourself, that doesn’t make it any more sustainable. Weight loss plans are either sustainable for you or they aren’t—it’s black and white—and almost every weight loss plan out there is unsustainable, superficial, and a waste of your time.
The Wrong Focal Point
Have you noticed that the only two variables the weight loss industry is bent on changing are the type or quantity of food we consume? Book after book after book tells you it’s the carbs, it's the meat, it's the calories, it's the wheat! Here's the formula.
Nothing is inherently wrong with this process. It makes sense to question the foods we eat and seek the ideal ones for our health and weight. This, however, is the wrong focal point. We don’t need the perfect diet formula; we need an alternative to the broken dieting method. Even those books with clever titles about being the "non-diet solution" to weight loss proceed to incorporate the exact same principles of dieting into their “non-diet.” Most commonly, they’ll give you a list of foods to eat and not eat and some sort of unsustainable application plan (with a cheat day if you’re lucky).
We’ve mistaken the diet (n) as the problem to be solved, which has introduced way too much complexity into what has always been a simple truth (eat real, whole foods to lose weight). We have hundreds of diets (n)—many of which recognize the basic correct foods to eat—but they share the same broken dieting (v) strategies.
The broken concept of dieting is to attempt to quickly switch from one way of eating to another, often (but not always) for a set period of time.
Whether it's a plan designed for life or one for 10-30 days, it's usually: Eat this way and you'll lose weight. Get motivated. Do it. Good luck!
This is a lousy strategy that consistently fails, and people have tried everything to get it to work.
Some make diet plans in which there are no rules and you just try to eat the right foods. This is closer to a real solution because it’s flexible, but it isn’t structured or strategic enough to change behavior.
Others try to take your decision-making out of the process. This can work for some time, but eventually, people will make their own food choices. Taking away your freedom to choose is rarely effective, because you can take back your power of choice at any time. It’s better to change the way you make decisions.
Some ignore the types of foods we eat and simplify the goal to counting calories, but calorie counting is a pain to maintain, it’s inaccurate, it doesn't focus on proper nutrition, and, as we just covered, it causes long-term weight gain. In his book The Calorie Myth, Jonathan Bailor succinctly describes the accuracy problem with calorie counting: “Since the late 1970s, we have gradually worked our way up to eating an additional 570 calories per day. But let’s estimate that over those few decades, we each ate a more modest 300 additional calories per day. According to traditional calorie math, the average American should have gained 907 pounds of fat between 1977 and 2006.”13 That didn’t happen because traditional calorie math is bunk. Our bodies are not calculators. It’s not “calories in, calories out” (CICO); it’s more like “calories in, complex biological reactions, calories out.”
If you’ve quit dieting, you’ve probably told yourself that it was too strict, too complicated, or too bland. That is probably true, but the flawed assumption underlying those thoughts is that you'll ever find "the right diet.” Let me just tell you: The next popular dieting book won't work any better than the previous ones, because it won’t focus on sustainability.
The best weight loss books will tell you—as creatively as possible and with just enough twists to make them seem “unique”—that processed foods make us sicker and fatter, while whole foods help create leaner, healthier bodies. Such a change in diet (n) is necessary for results, but, like with every other change, it's the strategy of implementation that makes or breaks weight loss plans. To succeed, we must gently reroute the habitual eating patterns that cause weight gain.
These Meta-Analyses Say It All
A meta-analysis is a “study of studies.” Meta-analyses are some of the most useful and reliable pieces of scientific data. It seems that any single study can validate or invalidate almost any point of view, and the data from different studies can be contradictory, but if something holds true over almost every study in that field, then there’s a very good chance it’s a correct and true observation.
There have been some meta-analyses done on weight loss diets. They looked at different diets to find the most effective one, but there was a problem that made the “best diet” question a moot point. Both analyses found that people don’t stick with their diets long-term.
One said, “Almost half of the studies included in our meta-analysis had completion rates less than 70%.”14 You might think that less than 70% isn’t too bad, but it is actually awful when you consider that these are short-term studies. People were being counted on to provide data and insight into a big problem. They had extra accountability and motivation to stick to their diet, they only had to do it for a limited time, and they still dropped out. If so many people are failing in that scenario, how much harder is it for the person trying to change on their own with little external motivation and support?
In a commentary on another meta-analysis done on 53 studies involving 68,128 adults, Dr. Kevin Hall concluded, “What seems to be clear is that long-term diet adherence is abysmal, irrespective of whether low-fat or other diets, such as low-carbohydrate diets, are prescribed.”15 Even when people correctly avoid yo-yoing their calorie intake, they can’t seem to consistently eat well on nutrition-based diets. They’re failing to change their behavior.
Why do we trust the framework that's been failing us for decades as obesity continues to march on unchallenged? We’ve got the wrong guy! The diet formulas are constantly blamed and pitted against one another. Low-carb camps say low-fat dieting doesn’t work, and low-fat camps say Paleo is ineffective, while Paleo screams at low-calorie diets as the problem. We’re blaming the ball for passing through a shredded racket. Let’s first get a racket that can hit things, and then maybe we can worry about the ball.
The failure of the weight loss industry is not the fault of diets (n), it's the fault of dieting (v). Many of these diets will work well if you stick to them, but you can't just “do whatever it takes” to stick to them. We need a smarter application strategy that infiltrates our underlying habitual and biological systems like a ninja. That’s where we run into another problem: Conventional habit formation advice is also ineffective (we’ll discuss why in chapter two), so even if it were properly integrated into weight loss solutions (it’s not), it wouldn’t work well.
Where Do We Go from Here?
Is the lesson here not to attempt to lose weight? If you’re going to be dieting, then yes, you’re better off not doing that. If you've tried one diet, you've basically tried them all. But Mini Habits for Weight Loss is not a dieting book, so the discouraging data on dieting doesn’t apply to it. There is very little research on the impact of small, consistent, lasting changes for weight loss, because it’s not dieting. I did find a couple of promising ones, though.
One small study followed three groups, and the group implementing small changes lost significantly more weight than the control group and the traditional dieting group, but the follow-up was only three months. Their changes were sustained at three months, but following up for a longer time would have been helpful.16
A little-known but enlightening study showed a linear relationship between consistency in diet and successful weight loss and maintenance.17 Researchers looked at the National Weight Control Registry of people with successful long-term weight loss and found that “participants who reported a consistent diet across the week were 1.5 times more likely to maintain their weight within 5 pounds over the subsequent year than participants who dieted more strictly on weekdays.”
Consistency is not only the key to behavior change: it is evidence of behavior change. Those trying to force themselves to eat a certain way will often slip up and have “cheat days,” when they eat what they want to eat. Those who succeed change their underlying food preferences through the power of habit formation.
It's time for a new approach. It's time for Mini Habits. We’re going to apply the world’s most effective change strategy to one of the world’s biggest problems. This is the marriage we’ve needed all along. It is a fundamentally different approach to weight loss, not in its recommendation of what foods to eat (though I will discuss it), but in its strategy for changing your dietary and movement habits.
Since this will almost certainly be the only book I write on weight loss, I have no incentive to trick you with short-term success. There are no plans to follow up this book with Xtreme Smoothie Fat Blasting Slim Belly Ripper Detox Cleanse 2.0: Become Completely Weightless in Just 14 Days! (unless I take up writing parodies). My incentive is to give you a timeless solution that lasts a lifetime and enables you to change your body and brain at a natural pace.
Successful weight loss requires a new set of habits. Your current and past habits have created your current weight. A different set of habits will create a different result (ideally, some rate of weight loss).
Mini habits will help you build a powerful new habitual base for healthy living. I’m not going to guarantee you won’t gain weight back once you change with mini habits, because no person is immune to gaining weight at any time. Closely tied to that, no person is beyond reverting back to old habits, because unhealthy food still tastes pretty good, even after you develop your healthy spinach addiction. Weight loss strategies are like fortresses: none is invincible to setbacks and problems, but the mini habits fortress is strong, reliable, and resilient.
The One Requirement for Lasting Change
Lasting change requires only one thing: consistent action over time. A mini habit is designed to fit this requirement exactly, no more and no less. This makes it the simplest, easiest, and overall ultimate vehicle for behavior change. To show you its power, these are my real life results with mini habits (as of writing, all of them are still in effect more than two years after starting).
That’s what I got, which is exceptional relative to my past, and this is the laughable way I got it.
The most significant accomplishments of my life were achieved with three behaviors that require a cumulative time of less than five minutes to accomplish each day. These are mini habits. People have gotten even better results than I have with their mini habits, which doesn’t seem fair since I wrote the book. Kidding aside, I’m ecstatic to hear the success stories. Some people didn’t even wait for this book to come out before figuring out how to use mini habits to lose weight. Bravo!
How is it possible for something so small to become so significant? Compounding.
The Sneaky Power of Compounding
Imagine you have a choice between getting the sum of one penny that’s doubled for 31 days or a lump sum of $5 million. Shockingly, you’d be crazy to take the $5 million, because in 31 days, your penny will have doubled its way to over $10 million. (Hat tip to Darren Hardy’s The Compound Effect for the example.) This intriguing fact reveals the problem and the solution for all of life.
The solution for life is to focus on compounding small choices in the direction desired. The problem is that we don’t see this solution, because we are easily impressed with the highly visible things like $5 million, and naturally less intrigued by the (counterintuitively) more powerful small and compoundable changes.
Think about this in terms of gaining a pound every month versus losing a pound every month. After one year, you’d weigh 12 pounds more or less. And the difference between these two scenarios is 24 pounds. That’s a significant difference for a small change in weight from one month to the next; our weight can fluctuate more than one pound in a single day!
One pound gained or lost only represents linear growth. Because of momentum, emotions, and accrued experience, forward progress is often exponential. It will compound. To put it into real terms, how do you think it would feel to be 12 pounds lighter than you are right now? How would it impact the way you feel about yourself? How do you think it would affect your energy levels? How do you think it would change your motivation and willingness to go further? Depending on which direction you go, just one pound gained or lost per month will put you well ahead or well behind, physically and psychologically, after one year.
Your food and exercise decisions can create a greater difference than one pound gained or lost per month. The fact that one pound per month is enough to create such a massive difference means that every meal decision matters. The smallest choices make the biggest difference.
Don’t misinterpret this. Aiming for one pound lost a month is not the suggestion here. For one, it’s too vague a focus. Compounded results are great, but they must start somewhere specific. If you double a penny every day for 31 days, you get more than $10 million. If you double nothing for 31 days, you get nothing. That little penny isn’t just important, it’s everything.
Permanent Improvement
If you succeed with Mini Habits for Weight Loss, it will become a matter of simply living out your new identity, which automatically and naturally produces a healthier version of you.
This internal change is more important than fat loss. Wise people recognize that who we are matters more than what we look like. Nobody escapes the detrimental effects of aging, so if all you care about is looking good, time is already going to ruin your plan. I’m not saying you shouldn’t pursue the healthy body of your dreams—do it—I’m just saying that the outside-in approach is destined for failure.
The person who loses weight by superficial ploys like diet pills, surgery, or starvation may feel excited at early results, but they won’t feel overwhelmed with joy about how they got those results, and they’ll feel terrible when they inevitably regain the weight. When you orchestrate a real and lasting improvement in your life, you’ll be surprised that the outer change actually takes a back seat to the joy of inner growth, which alters who we are. Inner growth affects our identity. You may not believe me now, but that will ultimately matter more to you than what the scale ever said.
We’ll discuss how change works in the next chapter. It’s important to establish our philosophy of behavior change before we even get to weight loss and how that works. It doesn’t matter what your plan is if you can’t change your behavior, so let’s nail that down first.
2
Brain Change before Body Change
Get Motivated? Get Out of Here!
“Habit is stronger than reason.”
~ Georga Santayana
In this book, you won’t find…
The big “ah-ha!” factor of this book is one that other weight loss books lack: you’re going to get actionable strategies that mesh with your current lifestyle to help you achieve lasting change. I will cover the nutrition and weight impact of some foods, but if you firmly believe that a particular diet (n) is the best one for you, feel free to combine it with the strategies found in this book instead of “going on a diet.” (Ditch their suggested implementation plan and create a mini habit plan instead.) Beyond knowing the basic mechanisms behind weight gain and loss, losing weight comes down to whether or not you can permanently change your behavior.
Results in 30 Days or Less?
If you see “X pounds in X days” on a book, burn it immediately (or sneer at it if it’s digital). For the love of kale, please don’t ever aim for 7, 10, 21, or 30 days of change! The best use of a 30-day plan is if you have 30 days left to live. In the context of a life of about 28,000 days, 30 days’ worth of change is exactly as worthless as it looks.
I understand the theory that people will act differently for 30 days, and after that, they’ll have formed a habit or be motivated enough to keep the changes. But there is no scientific evidence that habits are formed in 30 or 21 days.18 A 2009 study found that participants took an average of 66 days to form a habit, with a wild range of 18 to 254 days.19 That tells us two things: the brain changes fairly slowly, but the exact speed at which it does for any given behavior is unpredictable. There’s a great chance a new behavior won’t be habitual by day 30.
Also, people like to make 30-day challenges difficult, since they only have to do it for a limited time. This makes habit formation even more unlikely. The above study found that the speed of habit formation is greatly influenced by the difficulty of the behavior. The brain will be much faster to adopt an easy habit of drinking one glass of water every morning (about 20 days according to the study) than to develop the challenging habit of practicing upside-down Kung Fu for two hours every day after dinner.
Legendary Chinese war general Sun Tzu once said, “Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then seek to win." Change is not about being able to fight yourself for 30 days; it’s about getting so strategic that you win before the fight begins. Applied to us, the key to losing weight is to change your brain before trying to change your body.
If your body is the result of your brain state, how does the brain change?
Your subconscious brain is the boss, because it directly drives about half of your behavior and is constantly influencing your conscious decisions. People always try to fight against it, and they lose. Our strategy is to change it using its own nature, not cultural ideas like, “You just gotta want it more, bro!”
What is the true nature of the brain? The brain is a slow-changing machine, and that’s a good thing. If your brain could completely change overnight, you would be unstable. Let’s just say that your norm is to wake up, read the paper with coffee and a bagel, walk your dog, and watch the news. This is your habitual routine. Then one night, you get a phone call at 3 AM and have to run outside in your underwear to check on your neighbors. What if your brain latched on to this new routine and you continued to run outside at 3 AM every night in your underwear? Nobody would want that, so it’s a good thing our brains require more repetition than that! Let’s accept and be thankful for the stability our slow-changing brains provide us.
The ideal brain change process is so gradual that you may not notice it! This is a good thing. The more noticeable a change—such as when you switch from burgers and fries to “only green juice”—the more your brain is going to try to shut it down. (Just to clarify, it’s fine to juice vegetables as additional nutrition to a regular diet. There may even be health benefits in juice fasting for a day or two, but it is absolutely not a sustainable weight loss solution.)
I’m going to let you in on a dark secret of humanity—or perhaps you already know it. Most people are terrible… let me finish… at reaching their goals. For example, New Year’s Resolutions have a reported 92% failure rate.20
Change attempts fail frequently, and when they do, others tend to assume it’s because the person was lazy or not motivated enough to follow through with the change. But most plans fail because they aren’t designed to fit the brain’s change process. It’s like saying, “Here’s a plan to stop bullets—simply catch them in your teeth!” (It will only work if you’re Superman.) The value of a solution is dependent on its implementability. The “greatest idea” is actually worthless if it can’t be executed (teleportation, for example).
Brain change must precede body change or the changes won’t last. Since the brain is changed by consistent action over time, the question is: How does one take action consistently? We can deduce the answer.
Willpower and motivation are the two mechanisms by which we consciously take action (i.e., actions not from habit). Motivation is the desire to act (our default choice). Willpower is the decision to act regardless of feelings. Nearly every self-help book in existence (weight loss books included) suggests generating as much motivation as possible and using willpower as a backup plan. It’s a bad idea to rely on motivation first.
The Undeserved Popularity of “Getting Motivated”
I bet you’ve heard of motivational speakers. Out of curiosity, how many discipline or willpower speakers have you heard of? The number of motivational books, websites, and podcasts dwarf any other self-help topic (except perhaps weight loss).21
Let me make one thing clear: The popularity of motivation is because of its perceived track record, not its actual one. For every motivational success story you read, there are many more failure stories. If a strategy has a 2% success rate, but the 98% are ignored, our perspective of that strategy’s effectiveness will be (and has been) extremely distorted. The failures don’t have stories written about them, but here’s one for you: I made very little progress in 10 years trying to “get motivated.”
Deceptive success rates don’t only happen on a person-by-person basis. People experience the same phenomenon on a micro level in their own lives. It’s on the days you feel motivated and then pursue your goals that you take notice and think, “Motivation is the key to action!”
It’s natural to pay attention to what works, so when you eat a healthy meal after feeling motivated to reach your weight loss goals, you’ll attribute the behavior (eating healthy food) to the motivation you felt just before it. It only makes sense to emulate what’s been successful in the past, right? Yes, but only if you consider the entirety of the data (not just one data point).
It’s dangerous to draw conclusions from individual events. For example, if you bet $5 on the number 20 in roulette and the ball settles into the 20 slot, you’ll win $175. But are you going to conclude that the ball always lands on 20? Are you going to conclude that the ball lands on 20 more often than on the other numbers? Do that and you’ll go broke in Vegas. In the same way, if you happen to “get motivated” one morning out of 20 mornings, or even 10 mornings out of 20 mornings, why would you assume the strategy is successful? It may be because you don’t know any other way, or because you put too much faith in your ability to “get motivated” at will.
Just to be clear, I am not anti-motivational. I feel motivated as I write this! Motivation is a wholly good thing that benefits us. I am simply calling it out as a poor basis for behavior change. Foundations must be reliable, and motivation is not reliable. That’s all. Why, then, do we think that motivation is reliable?
Familiarity, The Great Deceiver
Pulitzer Prize winner Daniel Kahneman says in Thinking, Fast and Slow, “A reliable way to make people believe in falsehoods is frequent repetition, because familiarity is not easily distinguished from truth.”22 Once a concept’s popularity ascends to a certain point, people will blindly assume its truth, and no amount of valid criticism can fully eradicate it. Such is the case with getting motivated as a behavior change strategy. (Everyone used to think Earth is flat, but that one was simpler to disprove.)
Motivated people who succeed tend to confuse the symptom for the cause and say, “My desire fueled me.” The truth? Success and good habits fuel desire far more often than the reverse.
Do We Want it Enough?
Mainstream motivational theory states that, in order to enact change, one must simply “want it more.” If you fail to reach a goal, it’s your fault for not wanting it enough. As the world is suffering from obesity and its related diseases, we must not want to change enough. It’s a pity that we’re not motivated enough to save our own lives and live better. But wait… the weight loss industry made $64 billion in 2014.23 When that much money is spent on something, it means public interest is through the thermosphere.
Sadly, in this very moment, millions if not billions of people are wondering what’s wrong with them. Nothing is wrong with them! These people have willingly suffered and paid money trying to lose weight, and they are still being told their desire for change isn’t strong enough!24 That’s so wrong it’s criminal. People have plenty of desire; they just need a smart strategy that doesn’t rely on doing the impossible.
To fully understand motivation, we need to distinguish its two different types.
The Two Types of Motivation
Look at this sentence: I’m motivated to quit smoking, and I’m motivated to smoke this cigarette right now.
These are not merely contradicting motivations; they are different types of motivation. Motivation to quit smoking is a general desire. Motivation to smoke a cigarette is a momentary desire.
Momentary motivation is far more complex than general motivation. Your in-the-moment desire to do or not do something will be influenced by multiple contextual and general desires. For example, your choice to eat a doughnut right now could be influenced by your motivation to…
Other factors include your stress level, internal dialogue, and emotional state. Consider your experience: What happens to your motivation to do positive things when you’re having a bad day? It decreases. On a good day, it increases. And have you experienced random motivation drops for seemingly no reason? Me too. It’s because emotion drives much of the momentary motivation equation. Momentary motivation is messy, complex, and unpredictable, because its variables are always changing.
Conversely, your general motivation to do things is remarkably simple and stable. While the momentary decision to eat a doughnut takes place inside a particular context, your general thoughts on consuming doughnuts are calculated outside of context. Your general motivation is your theoretical view. My general desire is to avoid eating doughnuts because they’re unhealthy. That said, if you offered me $5,000 to eat a doughnut, I’d eat two.
When Your Perfect Ideals Fall off a Bridge
Isolated and without context, we would always make choices based on our general desires. But our strong, perfect ideals must first cross a rickety bridge known as Context to make it to the other side that we call Reality, and they don’t always make it across.
When the doughnut is glazed so masterfully, you’re hungry, and your friends are enjoying doughnuts of their own, suddenly your general desire to avoid eating doughnuts seems unimportant. It didn’t make it across the bridge. Context can easily override our general desires, and this is the weakness of motivation-based strategies. They fail when “life happens.”
Your general motivations in life are tied to your values and goals. These are your underlying reasons for your desired lifestyle, and they rarely change. Here’s the problem: People tend to think, “My motivation (i.e., reason) not to eat cake will motivate me (i.e., give me the immediate desire) to not eat cake for dessert tonight.” That would work, except that your general motivation is not always strong enough to defeat the other motivational influences you can’t control. The first rule for living a good life is to focus on what you can control. As such, it’s best to separate these two concepts into something we can control (general motivation) and something we can’t fully control (momentary motivation).
When people talk about “getting and staying motivated,” they’re trying to control this wild mix of variables that are always changing. They think they can reliably cross the bridge of Context and bring their perfect ideals into real life. Depending on how you look at it, it’s either hilarious or sad that so many people believe this. When your dog dies, when you are sick and exhausted, when you’re tempted in just the right way, and when you’re “just not feeling it,” not only do you stand to lose the motivation battle, it might not even take place!
Isn’t it interesting that the whole “get motivated” theory presupposes that we’ll always be motivated to get motivated. What if we aren’t? Do we then try to get motivated to get motivated? There is an easier way to go about this, but before we get to it, it’s useful to know why we try to go through this process.
Why We Prefer Using Motivation to Willpower
This final point is important to understand: We like to use motivation to reach our goals, because being motivated to do something means you already want to do it. All things equal, doing what you want to do is preferable to forcing yourself to do things. When motivation is your guiding light, everything you do feels right (even when it isn’t).
Nobody will always be motivated to do the right things, and that means trouble if you only act when motivated. What if an Olympic athlete only trained when (s)he felt like it? What if people only did their taxes when the IRS made them feel warm inside? What if people only showered when they were excited about it? The athlete would lose, the tax evaders would be punished, and the unmotivated showerers would smell terrible. They would all lose. Relying on motivation to take action is playing to lose, and that’s why it’s not a part of the Mini Habits strategy.
People will (correctly) say that motivation is necessary to do anything, even to lift your finger. This is why we separated the two types of motivation. You need to have a reason to act. No debate there. That’s important. If you have no reason to do 17 jumping jacks right now, you won’t do it. This, however, does NOT mean that your reason to do something must be stronger than all of your other contextual motivations. If you have a good reason to do something but you don’t want to do it, you can still do it.
Momentary motivation is like turbo. It’s fun when it’s there, but don’t use it as your primary fuel source. If not motivation, then what? Willpower.
Let’s try an exercise from Mini Habits. If I ask you to touch your nose right now, you will be able to do it. Your momentary motivation to do it is probably weak, because the only reason to do it is that I asked you to and you might want to experiment. You know that no tangible benefit will come from doing it. It’s possibly annoying to consider doing something so trivial. And yet, if you decide to touch your nose, even if you are not motivated to do it, you still can.
You can act against your momentary motivation by using willpower. Willpower is a better starting point for action than motivation, because even if your Contextual bridge collapses and you’re unmotivated, you still have the tools to cross that bridge. Using willpower means being prepared for the Contextual bridge to collapse. But could you force yourself to touch your nose 100 times in a row right now? Or 1,000 times? How about 30,000 times? Probably not, and that is the limit of willpower.
An effective strategy for all changes (especially one as challenging as weight loss) must enable you to succeed not only in ideal circumstances, but also in the worst circumstances. Willpower can work even when motivation is partially or completely lacking, but if it is to be our main strategy, we must explore its weaknesses.
Roy F. Baumeister of Florida State University could be called the father of willpower. Baumeister pioneered many of the dozens of experiments done to date that have shown that when we use willpower to do one thing, we lose some strength to use it for other things. Like a muscle, willpower has been shown to fatigue with use, and get stronger with training. This ego depletion model has been the predominant willpower theory in the last few decades. Over 200 studies have been performed to test and validate it.
A popular and oft-cited 2010 meta-analysis on ego depletion summarized the findings: “Significant effect sizes were found for ego depletion on effort, perceived difficulty, negative affect, subjective fatigue, and blood glucose levels.”25 These five areas were found to lower one’s willpower strength in subsequent tasks, which makes them our biggest obstacles to consistent action with a willpower-first strategy. In Mini Habits, I discuss how each of these areas of weaknesses is mitigated or eliminated by the mini habits strategy.
Some researchers have questioned this ego depletion model, or the idea that willpower use is finite.26 But the argument of whether or not our willpower will last forever or “deplete” is irrelevant. Since a good behavior change strategy must be able to succeed in the worst circumstances, it’s best to design a strategy that works in low willpower situations.
Willpower Is Relative
Willpower is relative to actions. You can force yourself to touch your nose at any time, but how often can you force yourself to write a 450-page novel in one sitting? Against easy tasks, your willpower will seem sufficient if not strong. Against difficult tasks, your willpower will seem weak.
People tend to focus on the concept of “willpower reserves,” as if the amount of “willpower in the tank” determines whether they succeed or fail. Do you see the folly in this mindset? Your baseline willpower at any given time is much less important than your goal. While you may not be able to choose how much willpower you have, you can choose your goal, which determines your relative willpower strength.
You don’t need to worry about how willpower is depleted, if your willpower is depleted at any given time, or if it even can be. Instead, learn to succeed in all circumstances with mini habits. Mini habits work well in low motivation, low willpower, high motivation, and high willpower situations.
Mini Habits Maximize Success
The two most important scenarios for a human being are low willpower and high motivation situations. When your willpower is low, you want to avoid losing. When you’re motivated, you want to maximize the opportunity to move forward. A mini habit thrives in both scenarios.
Mini habits are “forced actions” so small that even a willpower-depleted individual can still complete them. Unlike motivation-driven systems that require you to be “pumped up” in order to take “massive action,” you can crush your mini habit goals on the worst day of your life (not just meet, crush). Think about how powerful that is. If you can still move forward on the worst day of your life, what can stop you? Even if an asteroid struck Earth, you’d continue to do your mini habits in the afterlife.
As for high motivation situations, a mini habit has no ceiling. You are encouraged to do more than your mini requirement (bonus reps). For example, if your mini habit is to meditate for one minute, you may continue to meditate for two hours if you wish.
Imagine being and feeling unstoppable when looking at a big change you want to make. It’s different from what most people experience, because most advice is based on rising to the level of your intimidating goals. Most advice tells you that you have to become great just to be at eye level with your goals. On the day you’re not feeling it, or on the day your pet parrot Picasso dies, your goals are going to tower over you in your down state, and you won’t even attempt to look them in the eye. With a mini habit, it’s different: you’re always succeeding, always the stronger one, and always moving forward. In no area is frequent success and encouragement more important than weight loss!
Don’t believe the books that tell you that you need to “want it more.” Isn’t it a bit insulting to tell a reader that they don’t want something enough when they’ve bought your book in hopes to change that very thing? I think it is, which is why I don’t doubt that you genuinely want to get healthier and look better. Many people desperately want to lose weight, and it’s not their amount of desire that holds them back, it’s their adoption of mainstream motivational strategies (and their prior experiences with them) that make them believe it can’t actually be done. It can be done. Mini habits, smart strategies, and a small sliver of willpower are all you need.
3
Weight Loss Speed
Beware the Counterattack
“Be careful about reading health books. You may die of a misprint.”
~ Mark Twain
Since you’re reading this book, I’m going to assume that you’d like to lose weight, but here’s an interesting idea for you to think about. What if your goal was to gain fat? Bear with me here, because this is going to change the way you think about weight loss.
I’m getting at the fundamentals of change, because to gain fat is a body change just as much as losing fat is a body change. Thus, these two processes, while opposite in goal, share the fundamental component of changing from a previously established norm. How do people typically gain fat and become overweight?
Do they pump their fist at 12:01 AM on January 1st and say, “This is it. I’m really going to do it. I will gain 35 pounds this year!”?
Do they post to Facebook saying, “Hey everyone. I’m really serious about it this time. My goal is to gain 10 pounds this week on a milkshake cleanse.”
Do they get inspired at 2 AM one night to consume more cheeseburgers, fries, and soda?
Do they swear to never leave the couch again?
All in all, do they stand on the proverbial mountain and declare the change that was about to happen?
Or does it just… happen? Gradually. Subtly. Sneakily. Pizza-ly.
People gain weight in the same way that people successfully lose weight: small and seemingly insignificant lifestyle choices accumulate over time into bigger changes. No matter what those “fast weight loss” books tell you, real change doesn’t happen from a huge and sudden shift in behavior. The accumulation and progression of small changes is how we all change over time (without always intending to). It’s how you’ve developed every bad habit you currently have, and though it’s often a powerful force to our detriment, we can harness this same power for our benefit.
According to a 2006 Duke University Journal Study, the subconscious part of the brain dictates about 45% of our behavior in the form of habits.27 As we covered, the subconscious mind is a routine-driven machine—it dislikes change and will resist it. This makes it the grim reaper of goal pursuits, because every goal pursuit is a change from your current position.
Beyond subconscious resistance, there is yet another layer to overcome—biological resistance. Weight loss experts refer to this as the body’s “fat set point.” The set point is the amount of fat the body currently holds and will try to maintain.
Mainstream weight loss strategies have us fight the fat set point, but not intelligently! The studies I mentioned earlier on calorie restriction and yo-yo dieting are a good example of worsening the fat set point by triggering the starvation response. The fat set point is so persistent that not even surgery can change it.
Surgical Fat Removal Doesn’t Work
Liposuction is the surgical removal of fat from the body, and it doesn’t work because of the fat set point. A study at the University of Colorado found that after one year, liposuction patients’ body fat was no different from the control group.28 Obesity researchers weren’t surprised by this, as it’s well known by now that our fat stores are controlled by the central nervous system.29
The most surprising thing is that liposuction remains popular. After breast augmentation and nose reshaping, liposuction was the third most popular cosmetic surgery procedure in the United States in 2014.30 Not only that, but it was the only procedure in the top five to have registered an increase over the previous year.
As for how the body regains fat after surgical removal, it’s likely as simple as increased food intake. A rat study (you want to hear more about rats? I knew it!) found that those that had fat tissue surgically removed ate more compared to the control group. “Over a wide range of body compositions, there was once again a clear inverse relationship between the induced change in adipose tissue mass and spontaneous chow intake.”31 Some may read this and think calorie counting could prevent the regain, but they’d be missing the point. This is yet another warning sign against aggressive plans like calorie restriction.
Dr. Salans, an obesity researcher at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, says, “I suspect that the body’s regulation of weight is so complex that if you intervene at this site, something else is going to happen to neutralize this intervention.”32
The Human Body Demands Balance
Let’s zoom out and take notice of a larger concept at work here. Balance. Here are just some of the ways the body fights for balance. Internalize the concept behind these facts and think about some of your previous extreme weight loss attempts in this context.
Our bodies are machines of balance. Everything we know about the body shows a clear biological pattern of homeostasis, or the tendency to self-stabilize. This makes weight loss an interesting proposition, because the goal is to radically change something that doesn’t want to change radically.
If you’ve gained fat, your body is fighting to keep it. Knowing this, is the smart approach to “shock” the body into a new way of living? Must we stop eating food completely for a while for the body to get the message? Of course not. This is like cornering a dangerous animal. If you do this to your body, you’re going to provoke its very best counterattack. It’s going to do whatever it can to get you back to your starting weight and may overcompensate to make you gain even more weight. It’s like when the bank incorrectly shuts down your accounts “for your protection.” It’s frustrating, but the body is just doing its job.
“Sure, I’ll try a cigarette,” said the chain smoker on the day that began a lifelong habit. “It’s only 50 cents more to add chips and a drink?” said the man who didn’t want to turn down a “good deal” and added 30 pounds of fat in the next two years as a result. If only we could use this technique to form good habits! We can.
Bad habits are easy to form because they are highly rewarding and easy to do. Good habits are difficult to form because the reward is delayed and we make them hard to do. The logical approach is to make bad habits harder to do and good habits easier to do.
Easy Does it
Have you ever gotten into a thermostat battle with someone? You’re hot, so you move the temperature down three degrees. Someone else gets cold, and they move it back up three degrees and then a couple extra. Clever thermostat veterans win by changing it one degree at a time to avoid shocking cold-sensitive housemates into an overreaction.
Small changes don’t trigger your body’s “countermeasures.” In Mini Habits, I discussed how small behavioral changes are subtle enough to avoid subconscious resistance (or at least lessen it considerably). Small dietary and fitness adjustments work the same way to avoid biological resistance. This is why mini habits—the kings of behavior change—are also the kings of weight loss.
Sneaky Does it
Fortunately or unfortunately, depending on your circumstances, your body is active tissue programmed to survive. After blatant calorie restriction, the body reacts as it should for survival—you more readily store fat from the food you eat.33
Losing weight is best approached as a covert operation. The change you want to reach is like a diamond in the center of a high security building. In this analogy, your body is the high security building, and fat is the diamond you wish to remove. Mainstream weight loss methods will tell you to run in the building with reckless abandon. And guess what? You’ll get the diamond quickly! But what’s this? You just set off 17 alarms, the building is in lockdown, the police have been notified, and a stressed-out security guard is pointing his gun at you. This is how your body responds to drastic weight loss measures.
You got the diamond (lost weight), but you’ll have to put (gain) it back before you leave the building.
This analogy is not extreme; it is exactly what happens when people try to change rapidly. The body has built-in homeostasis “alarms” to prevent change. It goes by the motto of “If it ain’t broke, don’t (you dare try to) fix it.” Your body says, “We’ve got a calorie deficit! Major calorie deficit! Send in the brownie lobbyists and set up a level four craving at noon!”
Your failure wasn’t in obtaining the diamond (losing weight/fat); it was in having no exit strategy (lasting removal). Do you see how this also describes the dieting industry? They emphasize the fastest possible results, with little consideration given to what happens afterwards. Some people believe they can quickly lose weight and then go back to their former lifestyle without gaining it back. I wish it were true, but studies show that it’s not. Others believe that a fast weight loss start will inspire them to do more, but, just like in long-distance races, extreme starts result in exhausted finishes.
Instead of running in recklessly to steal the diamond, a smarter thief would spend some time planning before entering the building. And what do you think the resulting strategy would be? The heist would be done at night. Slowly. Carefully. Surgically. Steadily. Sneakily. He’d move through the building while avoiding the sensors. Then, he’d claim the prize and escape. Nobody would know he was there.
If you can lose weight without triggering your body to overcorrect, the prize isn’t just a lower number on the scale. The prize is changing your behavior permanently to support a new weight level and healthier body. That’s worth more than any diamond.
When you use this approach, you also gain the benefits of compounding that we covered in the introduction. When you put it together, you have a reliable way to decrease your fat set point that can also compound into greater progress, more confidence, happiness, hope, and courage to continue forward. It’s not just the best way, it is THE way to approach weight loss. Let’s step out of theory now and get specific with the Mini Habits strategy.
Now that we’ve covered how the brain and body are best changed at their natural slow pace, I want to give you a condensed explanation of the mini habits strategy.
What Exactly Is a Mini Habit?
A mini habit is a “stupid small” behavior you do every day. I say “stupid small” because they sound absolutely ridiculous and generally take one minute or less to accomplish.
A mini habit doesn’t look very useful on paper. Instinct is to say, “But I can do more than that!” And of course, we usually can do more than that. But the idea is to drop the requirement so low that “usually” becomes “always.” When you can always do something, you’re unstoppable. When you can usually do something, it means you’re stoppable, and that isn’t good enough if you want lasting change. The best way to tell if your mini habit is too big is if you can’t do it on your worst day. If you can succeed on the worst day(s) of your life, you won’t fail.
In addition to doing this small behavior every day, you will also be encouraged to do what I call “bonus reps,” which comes from the one push-up mini habit (the first one I had). A bonus rep is an additional repetition of your mini habit. So if your mini habit is to dance to one song every day, you might choose to dance to two or three songs on some days when you feel especially groovy, or perhaps dance for a few more seconds after the song is over. If your mini habit is to eat a serving of fresh vegetables at lunch, maybe one day you’ll have two servings at lunch, or an additional serving at dinner. Bonus reps are anything extra, and there’s no amount too small or too large. My 50 words of writing per day mini habit has sometimes expanded to 100 words or exploded into 5,000 words. Both are bonuses. Both are great!
Bonus reps are always optional, never required. You are always permitted to do your mini habit and stop there because a mini habit must stay small. Even if you’ve done bonus reps for 57 days in a row, you can always stop at the mini habit. A low requirement and high ceiling is perfect for consistency plus unlimited upward potential.
The mini habit is the base of our strategy. It ensures that you’ll develop a new habit (that will benefit you for a lifetime). The bonus reps are an outlet for any excess motivation or grit that you may have on a given day. This system adapts to you on a daily basis.
Every other plan you’ll come across presents you with a flat, high target. For example, a traditional nutrition-based diet includes a list of foods you are allowed to eat and some that you aren’t. If you’re lucky, you will get a single cheat day per week. But what if you don’t need a cheat day? What if you need two? You have to adapt to it, rather than it to you.
The traditional structure of weight loss programs pressures you to rise to the challenge every day, and on the days you’re not able to do it, you will feel defeated and like a failure. Dieting probably has the highest quitting rate of any pursuit, which says a lot about it and little about the people who try it.
In traditional goal pursuit, the beginning marks the highest point of motivation. It is slowly drained as time goes on, and practically destroyed once the first failure occurs. The mini habits strategy is the opposite. It’s rooted in positivity and designed for almost certain success every day. When you succeed every day, your confidence, self-efficacy, and motivation won’t shrink over time; they will grow.
4
Everyone's Wrong
Weight Loss Is Not about Carbs, Fat, or Calories
“What you eat actually changes how you expend energy. Similarly, how you expend energy changes what (and how) you eat. To be even more nuanced, what you eat further impacts what you subsequently eat. As you increase (or decrease) in size, this impacts how you expend energy.”34
~ Peter Attia, MD
Now that we’ve talked about brain change and body change, it’s time to discuss nutrition. This is the science-y discussion about how weight loss works. In this chapter, we’ll be seeking to answer the question of “What’s the best way to lose weight?” Before we get into that, I must clarify something.
Observations Are Not Recommendations
I’m going to be talking about how weight loss works, and that means I’ll say or imply things such as “processed food causes weight gain.” Most people (and authors) will immediately assume that the statement “processed food causes weight gain” means the answer is to “forbid processed food.” This is not smart.
Strategy is our best weapon, and forbidding something is only one possible strategy of many to reach the goal of losing weight. Forbidding food is the dumbest strategy you can employ because it plays to our weakness (we’ll discuss why in depth later).
“Ultra-Processed” Foods
I’m going to refer to processed foods often in this chapter. Technically, all foods are processed on some level. Fruits and vegetables are often rinsed before sold, and even that is considered a form of processing. Animal meat is processed on wildly varying levels (a rotisserie chicken is far less processed than a hot dog). In this book, when I say “processed foods,” I’m really referring to ultra-processed foods, which are defined below by Carlos Monteiro, PhD, MD.
“Ultra-processing is used to make products from combinations of ingredients extracted from whole foods, usually with little or even no whole foods. Typically, series of processes are used, in the creation of the ingredients and also in the creation of the products, which also usually contain some or many preservatives and cosmetic additives. They are formulated to be hyper-palatable, of long duration, and are usually packaged ready to consume. They are very profitable, and aggressively marketed. They are the end product of a chain of processes.”
Food Comparisons
To make all of the upcoming comparisons and examples simple, I’m going to use 100 grams as the base amount of food.35 The weight of food is fascinating in how it relates to its calorie content. You’ll see why eating fruits and vegetables lead you to eating significantly fewer calories. The numbers are shocking.
“Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler.”
~ Albert Einstein
One of the greatest problems in the weight loss industry is oversimplified claims. The following claims may be true in certain circumstances, but not as blanket statements:
These popular explanations for human weight gain and loss are simple. Unfortunately, they violate Einstein’s rule above because they are simpler explanations than necessary. The biological mechanisms of weight are extraordinarily complex, and while they can be simplified to an applicable degree, these are (way) too simple to be accurate.
You can only come up with simple, true, and effective solutions if you thoroughly understand the problem, which is why this is a book and not a one liner—“Hey, just take small steps to weight loss!” Great depth of research and analysis went into the Mini Habits for Weight Loss strategy.
The Process of Getting to Effective and Simple Solutions
When we have a basic, but not masterful, understanding of a challenge, we come up with complicated solutions, as beautifully captured in this quote:
“I would have written a shorter letter, but I did not have the time.”
~ Blaise Pascal
Simple, concise, and effective solutions take the most time and effort to create. Computers are a great example—one computer used to take up an entire room! Computer programming started on physical “punch cards.” In order to tell the room-sized computer what to do, you’d mark the cards in particular spots and make a deck to feed into the computer. Our computing solution was cumbersome and complicated because we hadn’t yet mastered the technology.
As our understanding of technology has improved, so have computers. They are many multitudes smaller, more powerful, more intuitive, and easier to use and understand. The masterful depth of understanding we’ve gained for this technology has made computers easier to use.
As understanding improves, solutions get closer to Einstein’s "simple as possible" ideal. But if understanding is wrong altogether, people will create solutions that seem to be simple and correct, but they’re often simpler than necessary and therefore incorrect, and that’s what we have in the weight loss industry. Obesity rates have gotten worse despite the research and money we’ve thrown at it, which suggests that we haven’t improved our understanding of the problem.
“Carbs make us fat”
If carbs make us fat, then why was a Harvard professor able to lose 27 pounds on a diet of carb-heavy processed food for two months (famously called “The Twinkie Diet”)? Why do so many cultures remain lean with high-carb diets? It doesn’t take much to discredit this idea, because carbohydrates have been eaten for thousands of years without associated weight issues.
And yet, low-carb diets appear to be fairly successful for weight loss in the short term (when adhered to). Do carbs make us fat or not? That’s the wrong question, because the concept of “carbs make us fat” is simpler than necessary.
“Calories in, Calories out”
If counting calories is the answer, why does traditional calorie counting math suggest we should all weigh over 900 pounds by now?36 What about the proven role of hormones to moderate food intake over the long term? What about the “fat set point,” which is governed by the central nervous system, not by how many 100-calorie snack packs you eat?
And of course, if only calories matter, why do many studies (that we discussed in the introduction) provide compelling evidence that restricting calories now makes us gain even more weight later? Calorie restriction has been shown to drop your metabolism and make your body prone to store fat.
The amount of calories we consume obviously matters some and plays a role in weight management. But do calorie surpluses make us fat and calorie deficits make us thin? That’s the wrong question, because the concept of “calories in, calories out” is simpler than necessary.
“Fat Makes Us Fat”
If fat makes us fat, then why does coconut oil (as fatty as a fat can be, and mostly saturated!) appear to reduce abdominal fat and aid weight loss efforts?37 Why do many high-fat diets lead to weight loss? If fat is the reason behind weight loss, then high-fat diets should make weight loss impossible, but they seem to do the opposite in many cases.
And yet, fat is generally less satiating, contains more calories per gram, and can be eaten in higher quantities than carbs or protein. Does fat make us fat or not? That’s the wrong question, because the concept of “fat makes us fat” is simpler than necessary.
These explanations don’t account for the big picture. There are many ways to lose weight in the short term, meaning even the worst ideas (see Twinkie diet) can be “validated.” The Twinkie diet didn’t prove that only calories matter: it showed that you can probably lose weight in two months if you don’t eat enough food. We already knew that. Sustainability matters unless you only care about weight loss in the summer.
Non-Calorie Weight Loss Factors
The dietary factors that regulate weight include: food nutrition, calorie density, insulin resistance, leptin resistance, inflammation, genetic disposition to weight gain, food satiety, and food satisfaction (i.e., the hedonic reward system). This doesn’t mean the solutions are complex—don’t forget this is a book about doing easy mini habits—it only means that calorie counting is wrong because it says that only calories matter. The amount of calories we eat does matter, but it’s not all that matters and it does not matter most.
The first law of thermodynamics states that energy can transfer to a different form, but it cannot be created or destroyed. Applied to our bodies, if you take in more energy than you expel, then you will weigh more. This is obvious, like saying that a room full of puppies has fewer puppies in it if some puppies leave the room. When it comes to the weight battle, the key question is what strategy makes your fat “leave the room” for good.
The obvious solution so many people try is to eat fewer calories and burn more to create a deficit. This works in the short term, but feeling hungry all the time and wrecking your metabolism isn’t a permanent solution, is it? Even if you were willing to remain hungry all of the time to be thinner, it would be a constant temptation and frustration; only willpower superheroes win that war.
Besides, calorie restriction has far worse consequences than mere hunger. In the introduction, we covered studies showing that extended calorie restriction caused an alarming propensity for weight gain in rats and humans. (If you know any rats, please let them know about these studies.) In the Minnesota Starvation Experiment, one of the primary observations was that most of the men became depressed and emotionally distressed from eating too few calories.38 The body isn’t meant to change this way, and it reacts accordingly. Our goal isn’t to stop eating so much food (calorie counting); it’s to figure out why we eat too much food—on a biological and emotional level—and how to reverse that.
The Truth about Weight Loss
Food can be separated into three groups: whole foods, ultra-processed foods, and everything in-between. The simple as possible (but not simpler than necessary) truth about weight loss is that ultra-processed foods are the primary reason why we gain weight and fail to lose it.
Ultra-processed foods can be further broken down into carbs, fats, or calories, but at that point, we run into problems. It’s not any one of those factors that make processed foods weight-gaining—it’s all of them, plus a lack of nutrition, inflammatory ingredients, and poor satiety. Thus, we can’t go any simpler than “ultra-processed foods cause weight gain” and “unprocessed whole foods aid weight loss.” When you look at the calories or macronutrients of processed food and draw overarching conclusions (as many have done), you incorrectly include many healthy, weight-friendly foods that happen to be high in fat, calories, or carbs.
Let’s talk about macronutrients, and then calories.
Many weight loss discussions today revolve around macronutrients (carbs, fat, and protein). For example, The American Heart Association has been recommending a low-fat diet for many years. This is terrible. Here’s how it started.
In the middle of the 20th century, scientists were in a frenzy to find the reason for the rapid increase of obesity and heart disease rates in the USA. Then, in 1955, United States President Dwight Eisenhower suffered a left anterior myocardial infarction (i.e., a heart attack). This amplified that frenzy.
Nutritionist Ancel Keys led us to the door of dietary fat as the culprit of the problem, because he studied seven countries’ dietary habits and heart disease statistics. His data showed a trend of fat consumption correlating with heart disease. Some say that he only picked the countries which supported his hypothesis, and left out countries like Norway, where the diet is high in fat but heart disease is low, or Chile, where the diet is low in fat but heart disease is high.
Nevertheless, the low-fat revolution was born. The food industry loved it because they had a brilliant new marketing angle: low-fat foods. They had just one problem: fat makes food taste better. In order to offset the poorer taste of low-fat foods, they added more sugar. They solved the taste problem, and made everyone fatter in the process. In recent years, people have warmed up to the idea that fat isn’t all bad, and sugar (and carbohydrates in general) have been under intense scrutiny from various experts and new diets.
Too few recognize the broader issue of focusing on macronutrients. Many have gone from demonizing fats to demonizing carbohydrates. We now have one battle of fats vs. carbs and a separate battle of macronutrients vs. calories. These are both the wrong battles!
Between fats and carbs, which one is the cause of weight gain and the preventer of weight loss? Neither. There are good and bad fats for weight loss, and there are good and bad carbs for weight loss.
Macronutrients are not the problem or the solution. That philosophy equates a boiled potato to a French fry to a pile of sugar to brown rice because “they’re carbs.” It equates coconut oil to lard to trans fat to saturated fat to unsaturated fat to soybean oil to fish oil because “they’re fats.” It’s nonsense.
I’m Not a Conspiracy Theorist, but…
What would be the result be—and for the record, I say this semi-jokingly and to provoke some thoughts—if the processed food industry could manipulate the obesity argument to change from healthy vs. unhealthy food to a macronutrient or calorie debate?
The processed food industry is cunning. If they are somehow behind this macronutrient focus, they are not just cunning, they’re (evil) geniuses. The way they design and meticulously test food to be addictive in texture, flavor, and taste is impressive, but to manipulate how we see weight loss to sustain robust sales would be a they-should-make-a-movie-out-of-this level of corrupt brilliance.
As with calorie counting, a focus on macronutrients changes “processed food” to just food. It simplifies food into carbs, fat, and protein, and all foods, processed and unprocessed, contain those. Basically, when macronutrients are the focus, there’s no distinction between processed and unprocessed foods.
If the only difference between an avocado and a fat-free cupcake is that they have different macronutrient profiles, we can eat whichever one fits our diet better. Or better yet, since cupcakes are so delightful, we could choose what specialized type of cupcake we want without the consequences of whatever macronutrient we believe is evil at the time. Food scientists could create low-fat cupcakes, sugar-free cupcakes, low-sodium cupcakes, and gluten-free cupcakes, and, by appealing to so many different macronutrient-based diets, it would translate into more products, more sales, and more revenue. (And yes, all of those cupcake varieties actually exist.)
What’s the only motivator more powerful than desire? Fear. People’s fear of fat would lead them to select fat-free yogurt (that’s loaded with sugar). If it’s carbs they fear, they’d buy artificially sweetened desserts instead of “scary” whole fruit with natural fructose. The only thing more lucrative than a person eating a regular cupcake for pleasure is a person eating a specialized type of cupcake out of fear.
A widespread focus on macronutrients combined with modified foods is the ultimate fear weapon to provoke sales in more food niches. Since processed food is created in labs and produced in factories, it can be manipulated to have any macronutrient profile the scientists desire. Take out the fat? No problem. Take out the sugar? Easy. Take out the sodium? Done. Natural food, on the other hand, can’t morph like that. A blueberry, one of the most effective weight loss foods in the world, will always contain some sugar (fructose).
Is it just a coincidence that the prevailing theories give processed food such a significant advantage over natural foods? It’s possibly coincidence, but look at the data on obesity. You will see in numerous studies that processed food’s fingerprints are all over the obesity crime scene, with millions dead and billions currently overweight with associated health problems. It makes you wonder why else we’d still be looking at macronutrients. Even though the meteoric rise of processed food has coincided with the meteoric rise in obesity worldwide (like a pair of synchronized swimmers), too many people are still focused on “fats and carbs.”
Consider this: fats and carbs have both been eaten as long as food has existed. (That’s a long time.) Common sense has to play a role in the debate about what’s really causing obesity. Obesity didn’t skyrocket when carbs and fat were introduced; it skyrocketed when these new kinds of ultra-processed carbs and fat were introduced.
Asian cultures have traditionally eaten a very high carbohydrate diet (with lots of white, carbtastic rice), and they’ve remained fit and healthy overall. White rice is nutritionally inferior to brown rice, but it is still a one-ingredient food. Scandinavian countries have low death rates and relatively low obesity rates, and eat a high fat diet. It’s not because they eat fat or carbs; it’s because the fat and carbs they eat most often are better quality than countries with widespread obesity.
Speaking of quality, let’s talk about calories, where quantity is a common, but incorrect focal point.
Every calorie you consume has a unique hormonal and metabolic impact in your body. Two foods of the same caloric value are different in biological satisfaction, perceived satisfaction, satiety, insulin response, nutrient content (which affects the health and function of our organs), and energy distribution, all of which can impact your behavior and weight in the short and long term. With the “calories in, calories out” (CICO) way of thinking, these factors are considered irrelevant, even though they will affect your food decisions, including how many calories you feel compelled to eat.
To be clear, overeating the right foods could potentially cause weight gain—it’s possible—but it’s challenging to do because of their typically high satiety-to-calorie ratio, nutritional value, and body-healing compounds. Also, let’s not only deal in extremes. The goal isn’t to overstuff ourselves while eating the right foods. Hunger levels span from hungry to satiated to full to “belt-snapping.” The goal is smooth and consistent satiety, not bouncing from extreme calorie restriction to bingeing (yo-yo dieting). If we eat good food to satiety, we can lose weight, feel satisfied, and not have to deal with the issues that arise from undereating.
The Mango Binge
One night, I ate an entire 10 ounce (284g) bag of sliced frozen mangoes. It was a lot of fruit, and it was delicious. I thought, “I really overdid it,” until I looked at the bag and saw I had eaten only 200 calories! A single 52.7g Snickers bar contains 250 calories. The bag of mangoes is more than five times heavier than the Snicker’s bar, and yet the bar still has 25% more calories!
You can’t just blame the calorie difference on the higher fat content in the Snicker’s bar, either. Avocados get 82% of their calories from fat, and yet a 150g serving of avocado only amounts to 240 calories, which makes it three times heavier, almost all fat, and still fewer calories than a Snicker’s bar. The difference is due to calorie density and water content. Psychologically, it might feel more indulgent to eat an entire 10 ounce bag of mangoes than a single candy bar, but it’s fewer calories and more nutrients.
Aside from the hassle of counting calories to make sure you starve yourself precisely, it’s unnecessary. Whole foods will always possess the greatest satiety-to-calorie ratio, meaning there’s no need to count calories if you eat the right foods. (If you think zero-calorie “diet foods” possess the greatest satiety-to-calorie ratio, you aren’t considering their medium- and long-term effects on appetite.)
Calorie counting has become the most popular way to pretend unhealthy eating is a viable path to weight loss. They say you can eat junk food as long as it’s below your calorie requirement. Since processed food is typically high calorie and not satiating, people who count calories as a means to justify a poor diet may end up semi-starved at the end of the day, and semi-starvation diets end in weight gain.
Calorie counting is like landing a cheap shot on a bigger and stronger fighter. You may catch him off guard and stun him for a moment, but once he regains his composure and figures out what's going on, you're toast.
Tracking how much food you eat, mindfulness, and eating in moderation are redeeming aspects of calorie counting, but the associated notion of all calories being equal is so inaccurate and devastating to progress that we need to throw the whole concept away. You can practice eating in moderation without counting calories. Satiety is nature’s way of counting calories for you.
Satiety is the feeling of being satisfied; in laymen’s terms, it’s not being hungry and having little to no desire to eat food.
Satiety collapses the calorie-counting argument by itself, because if calorie counting were the answer, the number of calories we ate would directly correlate to how full and satiated we felt. But that’s not the case. Some foods actually stoke our hunger while others satiate us. Calorie counting fails because it doesn’t consider satiety, and if you’re chronically not satiated and have access to food, you’ll make up the calorie deficit eventually (I’d put money on it)!
One could argue that satiety is most important in weight loss, because if you eat food that leads to weight loss and you’re completely satisfied on a biological level, you have a good chance to win the fight in the long term. There are other factors that affect our food consumption, but the first, most basic goal to get right is satiety. How can we feel full and satisfied with what we eat AND lose weight? Is that even possible? Yes, and you’ll see why with a few examples.
Since it’s difficult to measure satiety directly and technically, we can use the mass of food as a starting point, since part of satiety is dictated by how much space food takes up in your stomach. This is the concept behind bariatric surgery, which makes your stomach much smaller so that you feel full faster and don’t eat as much food. A safer alternative to surgically making your stomach smaller is to eat food that fills you up on fewer calories. Just for fun, let’s compare some foods’ calorie content to their mass. This will give you an idea of how much more satiating natural foods are.
Count These Calories
Half of a standard 8 oz bag of chips weighs about 100g and contains 536 calories. While that’s a lot of chips, it’s not difficult to eat that many in one sitting. Despite their high calorie content, chips do a poor job of making you feel full, and studies suggest that such high-fat, high-carb, high-energy processed foods may even trigger us to eat more food.39
Instead of that 100g half-bag of chips, you could eat 224g of chicken, which is highly satiating and more than twice as much food as the chips. You could try to eat 483g of brown rice (more than one pound). Or how about broccoli? Oh, I don’t think you’re ready for broccoli. If you thought chicken and rice were extreme compared to chips, this is going to stun you.
Instead of half a bag of chips, you could eat 1,000g (2.2 pounds) of broccoli for the same number of calories. I’m kidding. It’s not 1,000g of broccoli, but not because it’s too high. It’s too low! That massive amount of broccoli—more than ten times the weight of the chips—is still not even close to the calorie content in half a bag of chips; 1,000g of broccoli would only set you back 340 calories! To eat enough broccoli to equal the number of calories in half a bag of chips, you’d have to eat 1,576g of it. That’s right, 3.5 pounds of broccoli is equivalent in calories to half a bag of chips. Good luck trying to eat that much broccoli in five days, let alone one session.
What about strawberries? To equal the amount of calories in half a bag of chips, you’d have to eat 3.6 pounds of strawberries (1,624 grams). That means for a full bag of chips or a typical fast food meal,40 the equivalent calorie value would be 7.2 pounds of strawberries. I’m not making this up. This information is available on the USDA website for anyone to see.
But it’s the sugar in strawberries that’s problematic, right? Eh, not really, as 3.6 pounds of strawberries only contains 79.6 grams of sugar. That’s much less than one 32 oz soda, and you’d have to eat 3.6 pounds of them to consume that much sugar.
CICO teaches you to think, “Oh, this small bag of chips is only 160 calories.” It’s a flawed perspective, because it throws processed food into the discussion as a viable option for weight loss, when it is the primary cause of the global obesity epidemic. When it comes to bang for your calorie buck, you won’t beat natural foods (and we’ll talk about low-calorie processed foods soon).
Many would agree that the single worst part of dieting and calorie counting is hunger. But if you eat the right foods, you can easily eat fewer calories without feeling hungry. A 2016 study found “the more food is processed, the higher the glycemic response and the lower its satiety potential.”41
For breakfast, I’ll sometimes eat three hard-boiled eggs (150g) and drink water. It’s quite filling for a small breakfast eater like me. At 78 calories per egg, I don’t exceed 250 calories at breakfast. A 2008 study found that an egg breakfast enhanced weight loss, with a 61% greater reduction in BMI (Body Mass Index) than a group that ate bagels for breakfast.42
We don’t need studies to tell us that eggs are satiating per calorie; we can also deduce that from the fact that they are a single ingredient, minimally processed food.
The Satiety Deception
We deceive ourselves when we compare the size of processed food and whole foods and conclude that “whole foods aren’t as filling.” This is exactly the opposite of the truth. Whole foods are many times more filling than processed foods per calorie.
“I’d eat salads, but I’m still hungry afterwards.” I’m sure you’ve heard or said this statement before. Here’s the problem: that salad you just ate is probably about 20% of the calories of your typical meal. That’s like saying, “I’d eat one taco instead of three tacos, but it’s not as filling.” If you’re hungry, you didn’t eat enough. Eat more salad or other food if you’re still hungry.
“Stuffing yourself” on healthy food still results in a low-calorie meal. A study found the average restaurant meal contained 1,327 calories.43 Let’s see what kind of healthy meal we could create with that many calories.
Half a pound of chicken (227g): 542 calories
One pound of boiled potatoes (454g): 395 calories
Two pounds of spinach (907g): 209 calories
Three pounds of green leaf lettuce (1,360g): 204 calories
Total from 6.5 pounds of food (2,948g): 1,350 calories
Okay, so we went slightly over the average calorie content of a restaurant meal. Oh, but this is 6.5 pounds of food. You don’t need to fear overeating or being hungry if you’re eating truly healthy foods. I even included some (relatively) high-calorie foods like chicken and potatoes, but these foods make up for it in satiety. Potatoes ranked as the most satiating food in the satiety index.44
Don’t misinterpret this data. Almost all natural foods have a significantly higher satiety-per-calorie ratio over processed foods, which naturally leads to fewer calories eaten, but that’s not the full story. We’re not trading “only calories matter” for “only satiety-per-calorie matters.” Satiety-per-calorie matters more than just calories, but high-fat, high-calorie natural foods can still be fantastic for weight loss for other reasons.
Only two tablespoons of olive oil (27g) is a whopping 238 calories (a calorie counter’s nightmare). In a study of 28 women, 80% lost more than five pounds on an olive-oil enriched diet, compared to only 31% on a low-fat diet.45 How could that be? Let’s discuss the other factors that make unprocessed food great for weight loss.
Unprocessed, natural, real food is essential for weight loss, and I know you’ve heard that before, but I’m going to explain some of the biological reasons why that is. These factors affect weight regulation, and they have nothing to do with calorie content.
Inflammation
Inflammation is not a bad thing that happens to us. It’s our body’s response to something bad that has already happened, such as infection or injury. It’s the body’s way of fighting invaders or healing damaged tissue. When you sprain your ankle (and I’ve sprained each of mine several times playing basketball), blood flow to the ankle increases as white blood cells and other immune cells rush in to repair the damage, causing it to swell. Auto-immune problems (such as allergies) cause inflammation because the body thinks it needs to attack something that need not be attacked. It’s like punching yourself in the face, but inside your body.
Obesity is an inflammatory disease.46 This is basic scientific observation: Overweight people consistently show higher levels of systemic inflammation.47 “This may explain the increased risk of diabetes, heart disease, and many other chronic diseases in the obese.”48
Does inflammation cause obesity or the other way around? Inflammation and obesity fuel each other, so it’s not a question of which comes first; it’s a question of how to break the cycle.
Inflammation sustains the cycle. It interferes with leptin signals (the hormone secreted by fat cells to signal fullness to the brain), which lessens the satiety response from eating. In most overweight and obese people, leptin levels in the blood remain high, and yet the “I’m full” message doesn’t get through. This is called leptin resistance, and it has been a key focal point for obesity researchers in the last 10-20 years. Scientists have found that “plasma levels of leptin and inflammatory markers are correlated,”49 and “leptin production is acutely increased during infection and inflammation.”50
If inflammation directly and/or indirectly impairs leptin sensitivity (which appears to be the case), it may be a major cause of obesity. If an individual doesn’t know when to stop eating, that’s a problem.
This is a big strike against processed foods, which contain inflammatory ingredients in the form of added flavors, colors, fats, emulsifiers, sweeteners, and preservatives.
A 2015 study found that emulsifiers are linked to obesity and gut disease by altering gut bacteria and causing inflammation in mice.51 Trans fats have been linked to systemic inflammation in women.52 Food coloring studies have shown that they’re toxic to animals.53 About a dozen food coloring chemical concoctions have already been banned by the FDA because of their toxicity (it makes you wonder if the current ones are really okay). Omega 6 fatty acids most commonly exist as various vegetable oils (such as soybean oil) in processed foods, and too many omega 6 fatty acids in relation to omega 3 fatty acids is linked to inflammation (and a host of diseases).54
Monosodium glutamate (MSG), a flavor enhancer commonly found in chips, crackers, and restaurant food, causes significant inflammation in rats.55
The excessive amount of sugar in processed foods causes inflammation, too. Nutritionist Julie Daniluk explained to CNN, “High amounts of sugar in the diet increase advanced glycation end-products, or AGEs, a protein bound to a glucose molecule, resulting in damaged, cross-linked proteins. As the body tries to break these AGEs apart, immune cells secrete inflammatory messengers called cytokines.”56
The same goes for refined carbohydrates like white bread, pizza, burger buns, and most cereals, which are rapidly turned to glucose and sent into the bloodstream. The problem with refined grains is once again the processing, which basically “takes the life out” of the food. It strips out the nutrients and breaks down the food, making it more like an injection of glucose than something you need to digest.
In a single processed food, there are likely to be multiple inflammation-causing ingredients. Don’t become numb to buzzwords such as MSG or trans fats just because “health nuts” talk about them. There is a lot of evidence that these substances are actually toxic to us. The chronic inflammation processed foods cause might not knock us on our backs instantly, but it will covertly make us fat, sick, and unhealthy. It’s a double whammy, too, because the unprocessed fruits and vegetables we could be eating instead are full of anti-inflammatory compounds.
When you choose to eat that candy bar with artificial flavors, colors, and emulsifiers instead of a delicious mango, not only have you consumed several inflammatory ingredients, you missed out on powerful anti-inflammatory compounds.
Vitamins, Minerals, and Flavonoids
Natural, whole foods are full of bioavailable micronutrients that enable the entire body to work better. The more food is processed, the more such micronutrients are destroyed.
Can’t you just take a multivitamin? That could help replace some of the nutrients missing from a diet rich in fruits and vegetables, but the nutrients in a multivitamin have varying levels of bioavailability (how well your body is able to absorb and use a substance).
Many vitamins you buy at the store are synthetically made, rather than derived from food. That’s not automatically bad, but it does raise additional questions about their quality and suitability. Compare an artificial “orange drink” fortified with vitamin C to a vitamin C tablet to eating an orange. Even if, for argument’s sake, you manage to absorb the vitamin C from the drink or tablet, you’re still missing out on the flavonoids, enzymes, and minerals you’d get from a real orange. You’re also missing the synergy!
Registered dietician Jackie Elnahar says, “When you remove a vitamin part from the whole food form, you get fractionated pieces of the whole, but that has consequences. Nature intended for you to consume food in WHOLE form, because all the vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and enzymes together work synergistically to give your body the nutrition it requires for optimal health. Your body only absorbs a small percentage of an isolated form of a vitamin and/or mineral, and it utilizes even less, so the bioavailability is greatly affected. You get the best bioavailability in whole food form.”57
Water Content
Most fruits and vegetables consist of over 80% water, and many of them are more than 90% water (cucumbers, tomatoes, watermelon, strawberries, broccoli, lettuce, etc.)! Because of their water content, fruits and vegetables are voluminous, filling, and low calorie.
In contrast, many processed foods have the opposite profile of a fruit or vegetable, some being less than 10% water. Less water content in food means it is less filling and less hydrating. If your goal is to consume more calories and gain weight, then processed food is the answer. Otherwise, whole foods are the way to lose weight.
In a nationwide analysis of Sweden that covered 50 years (1960-2010), their consumption of unprocessed foods (fruits, vegetables, etc.) decreased 2%, and their consumption of “ultra-processed” food increased by 142%. One hundred and forty-two percent. In particular, soda (315% increase) and crisps/candies (367% increase) became much more popular. Sweden’s obesity rate from 1980 to 2010 more than doubled, from 5% to 11%.58 Are you surprised? I didn’t mention fats, carbs, or calories. I just told you they ate a higher percentage of processed foods.
I know that “correlation is not causation,” because two completely unrelated variables can correlate. The birth rate of turkeys may coincide perfectly with the number of milkshakes consumed in Arizona, but that doesn’t mean one is causing the other. When a particular diet correlates with a change in weight, however, that’s a different story, because we know diet affects weight. Sweden’s increased consumption of processed food is indeed a major cause of rising obesity rates in their country. You could say it’s the calories from these foods, because processed food is very calorie-dense. You could say it’s the high-carb and/or high-fat profile of these foods, which have each been linked to overeating. But why overcomplicate such a clear and simple truth? It’s processed foods.
When you say it’s calories, it allows crafty corporations to create low-calorie ultra-processed foods that disrupt our hormones and trigger cravings. When you say it’s fat, well, we’ve already tried that one, and the low-fat, processed-food revolution made everyone even fatter. When you say it’s carbs, this eliminates most of the problematic processed foods, but it also eliminates a lot of great whole foods, and puts some awful, weight-gaining foods with artificial sweeteners on the highest pedestal. But when you say it’s ultra-processed foods, you target all of the stuff that’s made us fat over the last century, while sparing healthy food that we ate before obesity rates became extreme.
Not only is our macronutrient obsession too broad to be useful, but it’s highly restrictive of the wrong foods and it’s difficult to maintain. I have no “healthy granola bar” to sell you, so I have no reason to sugar-coat the truth, which is that there are almost no healthy granola bars.
The Role of Genetics
The reason some people have a diet high in processed foods and remain thin is genetics, just like those who eat a healthy diet and remain overweight. These people are a small portion of the population.
Seventy percent of Americans are overweight, but the American diet suggests that genetics play a small role. A nationally-representative cross-sectional study in the United States published in March 2016 found that “ultra-processed foods comprised 57.9% of the USA’s total energy intake.”59 According to this data, I’d guess that 20% of Americans are actually genetically predisposed to staying thin, and the rest of us who are eating weight-gaining foods are gaining weight as one would expect.
Data like the Swedish analysis, the fact that obesity follows the Western diet around like a puppy, and the constant correlation between processed food consumption and obesity make it hard not to believe that processed food isn’t behind it all. Saying anything other than “it’s processed food” gives food corporations enough wiggle room to design their food to be part of a “healthy diet.” It’s time to stop the madness.
The determining factor of food quality is the degree to which it is processed. Avocados are 82% fat and don’t make you fat. Fruit has sugar and doesn’t make you fat. You can make an avocado more fattening by making it into guacamole with additives like salt and sugar, but don’t blame the avocado. You can order a berry smoothie from a chain restaurant with added sugar or syrup, but don’t blame the berries. You can drench a healthy salad in sugary soybean oil dressing, but don’t blame the lettuce.
The reason we’ve targeted fats and carbs is because there are some terrible ones out there that do make us fat. The ones to be avoided exist exclusively in processed foods.
Obesity rates are still climbing—60and we have more “healthy options” in processed food. Just look at the shelves. We have organic processed food in rustic, earth-toned packaging. We have naturally sweetened soda. In other words, we can choose “healthier” ways to gain weight. Hooray?
If it’s so obvious that processed foods are hurting so many people, why won’t companies just shift to marketing and selling whole foods? Money. Corporations exist to make a profit, and if they can make food that is attractive, delicious, addictive, cheap to manufacture, and in high demand, why wouldn’t they? The United States is the worldwide capital of processed food because we’re so commerce-driven. As a general rule, the more processed a food is, the more profitable it is.
Subsidized Crops Increase Profitability
The government supplements the income of farmers who grow certain crops. This ramps up the supply of these crops and drives down the price. Farmers have a greater financial incentive to produce a subsidized crop than a non-subsidized one.
In the United States, three of the main subsidized crops are corn, soybeans, and wheat. Not coincidentally, it’s nearly impossible to find processed food that doesn’t contain one of these ingredients. Almost every ultra-processed food contains soy, corn, and/or wheat ingredients. Did you know that hundreds of common ingredients are derived from corn, soy, and wheat? The documentary King Corn explores the role of corn in the United States, and how it is in almost everything we eat. If we just ate corn on the cob, maybe we’d be fine, but corn-derived ingredients affect your body differently than real corn.
Did You Know That Soybean Oil Has Taken Over?
In the 1940s, soybean oil was “considered neither a good industrial paint oil nor a good edible oil,”61 and now it’s everywhere. Of all oils consumed by Americans, 80% is soybean oil—80% of all oil consumed in the United States!
Do you know anyone who cooks at home with soybean oil? Me neither. But if you look at the ingredients of any processed food, you’re sure to find soybean oil. At an organic grocery store, I could not find salad dressing made without soybean oil, so I had to buy olive oil and vinegar separately to use as dressing.
Many other vegetables oils were introduced in the 1900s, but since soybeans are a subsidized crop, soybean oil has become the go-to oil for processed foods.
Added Sugar Is Obesity’s Best Friend, and it’s Here to Stay
There’s another important crop that’s subsidized in the United States. Sugar cane.
Professor Barry Popkin says that added sugar is in 75% of food and drink that you’ll find in today’s grocery store. I shop at a massive organic food store that’s supposed to be full of healthy food, and I am extremely limited if I want to avoid added sweetener products. Sugar and its variants are added to salad dressing, bread, ketchup, frozen meals, granola, cereal, and more. If you want a challenge, try to find cereal or granola without added sweetener. It’s not easy. Better yet, try to find bread without added sweetener. That is surprisingly difficult.
If 75% of food in stores already contains added sugar, much of which is in the form of corn-derived, high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS), that means many billions of dollars are at stake, and powerful companies have a vested interest in protecting their sugar-based products, even if it means the demise of the health of modern society. No company will ever sacrifice themselves for humanity. That’s not what for-profit companies are built to do.
Many of the world’s societies are now trained to prefer sugary ultra-processed foods, and social dynamics are such that we care more about whether others are eating it than what the food will do to us. We also tend to assume that if everyone else is eating it, it must be fine. Unfortunately, “everyone else” has become overweight and disease prone! To be exact, 1.9 billion adults in 2014—almost one third of the entire world—were overweight. In the United States, almost 70% of people are overweight or obese. This has tipped the social influence scales in the wrong direction, because a society of overweight people will generally act the same way that made them overweight.
Look around you, and you’ll see a general attitude of indulgence and near-worship of processed food. If one of my friends posts a picture of processed comfort food, the reactions are always positive. These foods have retained a remarkable amount of goodwill, considering the amount of damage they’ve caused to the human race.
If you follow the money, it’s no wonder why processed food is so heavily marketed. If you follow the money, it’s no wonder why soy, corn, and wheat are in so many foods. If you follow the money, it’s no wonder why sugar is in 75% of all foods you’ll find in a grocery store.
Business decisions are primarily driven by money. That’s why food has become increasingly unhealthy but profitable. That’s why we grow a disproportionate amount of certain crops. That’s why obesity rates are rising and likely will continue to rise. This is not a conspiracy theory. It’s plainly obvious that companies are loyal to their shareholders rather than the health of modern civilization. And let’s not forget that humans enjoy these foods that harm our health.
We still have the ability to change. We can still choose the food we eat, and our choices will shape the future of food over time. The most important dietary choice you make is likely your consumption of added sweeteners. They’re terrible for our weight and health, and they’re in most food.
Refined sugar intake is associated with greater risk for obesity, gout, diabetes, and heart disease (to name a few).62 It’s even been associated with damage to the brain.63 When sugar consumption is reduced, improvements to metabolic health are apparent,64 which is important because obesity is primarily a metabolic problem. This is why reducing sugar intake is the frontline battle of weight loss (and why low-carb diets are generally most effective in the short term).
Half of Americans drink sugary drinks daily. They comprise about 10% of total calorie intake in the United States—65this is a major contributing cause of obesity. Did you know the serving size of sodas has more than tripled since the 1950s?
The Evolution of Soda Container Size (According to Harvard)66
Before the 1950s: 6.5 ounces
1960: 12 ounces
1990s: 20 ounces
Those are just the standard sizes. Movie and fast food cups today can be as large as 64 ounces (for soda, that is 192 grams of sugar). In the early 1980s, most soft drinks went through another unfortunate change—from being sweetened with sugar to high-fructose corn syrup. As bad as added sugar is for our health and weight, this lab creation appears to be even worse, especially when it comes to our weight.
High-Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS)
Princeton researchers ran some experiments on rats with HFCS and sucrose. Here’s what they found:
Our body has to work harder to break down natural foods for digestion. Think of it like internal exercise. It burns more calories, while giving our systems time to absorb the nutrients properly. Sugar is more easily absorbed than most food, but it is incrementally more challenging to absorb than high-fructose corn syrup.
Artificial Sweeteners
Artificial sweeteners are not the answer, either. Their impact on health is not fully understood, with some studies seeing no ill effects and others linking them to diseases as serious as cancer. If you only want to believe the ones that say they’re safe, that’s your choice. But you should know that their propensity to wreck our metabolism is more of a known quantity.
A study found that artificially sweetened beverages massively increased people’s risk for type 2 diabetes (even more so than sugar-sweetened beverages).68 The same effect was not seen in 100% fruit juice (mind you, fruit juice is still a weight-gaining drink). Another study found they were associated with an increased risk of metabolic syndrome.69 And the most troubling of all was a study that found artificial sweeteners induced glucose intolerance by altering gut bacteria.70 Yikes!
Why would artificially sweetened products cause metabolic problems? They seem to confuse our internal reward system. Food is rewarding biologically at two levels called sensory and postingestive. First, when pleasant-tasting food hits the tongue, our taste buds tell the brain, “Hey! Sweetness!”, and we get a sensory reward. Then, after we ingest food, the metabolic and nutritive properties of the food provide us with a second reward of biological satisfaction.71 This reward system helps us to regulate our food intake, because our desire for food rewards decreases after consumption (it’s supposed to, anyway). Artificial sweeteners, however, provide a weaker initial reward than sugar at taste and almost completely bypass the postingestive reward system (because they’re not food).
We trick the body when we consume artificial sweeteners, but not in the way we want. There’s no way to trick your secondary reward system, which is based on the energy impact of food.
Drinking zero-calorie sweetened beverages seems too good to be true because it is. It’s trying to get the pleasure from sweetness without the caloric consequences. It’s a brilliant idea, honestly, but our bodies know it’s not sugar when it can’t be digested and used for energy. When we want something (sugar), and we’re teased with the idea of it (zero calorie sweetener), we will only want it more.
In case you were curious, rats are the same way: “When a flavor was arbitrarily associated with high or low caloric content, rats ate more chow following a pre-meal with the flavor predictive of low caloric content.72 These studies pose a hypothesis: Inconsistent coupling between sweet taste and caloric content can lead to compensatory overeating and positive energy balance.”73
No Reward? No Deal
Artificial sweeteners are not rewarding biologically, and that’s a problem. The concept of substitution is valuable for behavior change, but the new behavior needs to offer a similar reward, since rewards powerfully guide our behaviors. Artificial sweeteners work as a taste substitute for sugar and they are calorie free, but their weak activation of only one of the two food reward pathways is actually harmful for someone trying to reduce their intake of sweet foods.
“Lack of complete satisfaction, likely because of the failure to activate the postingestive component, further fuels the food seeking behavior. Reduction in reward response may contribute to obesity.”74
Artificial sweeteners are not just a little bit sweeter than sugar; they are hundreds of times sweeter than sugar. Think about that. If something tastes much sweeter than sugar, it creates an even higher expectation for a significant reward. When it’s finally processed, and provides you with almost no reward, what effect will that have? Disappointment and frustration. Even if you don’t consciously feel that way, rest assured, your body will. When your body feels deprived of a reward, it will subtly (or not so subtly) find a way to get it later with cravings and “just this once” exceptions; it will use any trick it can to get you to indulge later.
By only partially activating the reward pathway (not to satisfaction), artificial sweeteners merely tease us. Teasing increases desire. “Artificial sweeteners, precisely because they are sweet, encourage sugar craving and sugar dependence. Repeated exposure trains flavor preference.”75
That last sentence is crucial to everything in this book. Repeated exposure trains flavor preference.76 Our food habits are not much different from any of our other habits. Those who frequently consume artificially sweetened goods are training themselves to be sugar addicts, and sugar addicts gain weight.
There was a nine-year observational study done on artificially sweetened beverage consumption and rates of overweight and obesity. Based on what we’ve discussed, can you guess what they found? “A significant positive dose-response relationship emerged between baseline ASB (artificially sweetened beverage) consumption and all outcome measures, adjusted for baseline BMI and demographic/behavioral characteristics.”77
The outcome measures they speak of were overweight and obesity, meaning that those who consumed the most artificially sweetened beverages gained the most weight. To most, this result would seem a mystery, but you and I now know that those who consume artificial sweeteners tease themselves until indulgence.
Other Sweeteners
Stevia is probably healthier than artificial sweeteners, since it’s naturally derived. It is very sweet and very low calorie and appears to have fewer long-term health concerns than artificial sweeteners. The problem is that it too fails to activate the full reward pathway in the brain, which will cause the same issues as artificial sweeteners. This is a behavioral issue as much as it is a health issue—consuming sugar substitutes will increase your desire for sugar.
Sugar alcohols like xylitol, maltitol, sorbitol, and erythritol are lower in calories than sugar and contain similar sweetness. They are found naturally in some foods, but are often extracted and used in various processed foods. They are generally one of the best choices if you are adamant about using a sugar substitute, but beware, as they can cause gastrointestinal distress.
On Amazon, a 5-pound bag of Haribo gummy bears sweetened with maltitol received a number of hilarious reviews that went viral (if you need a hearty laugh, look no further than these reviews). It appears some people underestimated the laxative power of maltitol and paid the price. One reviewer called it, “The Gummy Bear Cleanse.” Be careful out there!
The best tolerated sugar alcohols are erythritol and xylitol, but you should know that xylitol is toxic to dogs.78
All in all, if you want something sweet, eat fruit first and real sugar second. Otherwise, you’re taking a needless risk that could actually make you gain more weight. Additionally, real sugar doesn’t give you the false sense of security that artificial sweeteners do.
If sugar is poor for our health but unprocessed foods are good for our health, where does that put fruit and unprocessed food relatively high in fructose?
The low-carbohydrate theory has made some people avoid fruit, and this is a big mistake. Many fruits and many vegetables are high in carbohydrates, and they’ve changed somewhat in the modern world because of selective breeding and agriscience, but not in a way that could possibly explain skyrocketing weight gain worldwide.
The studies I’ve seen on fruit are unanimous. Fruit is a weight-loss food. Anyone who says otherwise will cite two theories—the calorie content of fruit or the fructose/carb profile of fruit. These theories are not facts, especially because there is a lot of data—much of which I reference in this book—that debunks them.
A 2009 study of 77 overweight and obese people found that fruit consumption was associated with weight loss, not weight gain: “The relation between fruit consumption and body weight remained significant after controlling for age, gender, physical activity level, and daily macronutrient consumption. Further, increases in fruit consumption were associated with subsequent weight loss, controlling for the same covariates.”79 This says that fruit consumption created weight loss (which contradicts the fructose/carb theory), and that further increases in consumption lead to further weight loss (which contradicts the calorie theory). This is not theory; it’s an observation of what happens when people eat fruit. But that was only 77 people, so let’s look at some others.
The Verdict on Long-Term Fruit Consumption
Short-term thinking in the weight loss industry has placed too much weight (my puns are always intended) on short-term weight loss studies. Here are a couple of very long-term weight loss studies that deserve our attention.
In a 25-year study from 1986 to 2011 that included over 124,000 people, it was found that increased flavonoid consumption (primarily from fruit) led to weight loss, even “after adjustment for simultaneous changes in other lifestyle factors including other aspects of diet, smoking status, and physical activity.”80
They found that the consumption of anthocyanins (a type of flavonoid) predicted the greatest weight loss. The main sources of anthocyanins in the study (and for most people who consume them) were blueberries and strawberries.
Flavonoid content might explain why people lose weight from increased fruit consumption. Studies on fructose look at its consumption in forms outside of fruit, such as in processed foods that contain high-fructose corn syrup. It’s incorrect to then say that all foods with fructose are weight-gaining, just as it would be incorrect to assume that all foods with flavonoids are weight-reducing. If we added flavonoids to processed food, for example, the food would likely still be weight-gaining overall.
Harvard analyzed three cohort studies totaling more than 133,000 people over 24 years. They found that increased intake of non-starchy vegetables was associated with weight loss. Can you guess what was associated with even greater weight loss? Fruit consumption.81
Importantly, these associations are not guaranteed proof that fruit causes weight loss, as correlation is not causation. It’s very likely to be the case, however, as fruit has so many weight loss-friendly features, dietary choices are known to cause weight gain or loss, and it is one of the “ancient” foods people ate long before the obesity crisis. The association of fruit consumption and weighing less is consistent across multiple long-term studies. Data like this is only surprising if you’ve been deceived into thinking that 100-calorie snack packs are the key to weight loss, or that “all carbs are fattening.” Fruit has been demonized in many fad diets, yet it is consistently associated with the most weight loss among all food groups in long-term studies.
Seeing Is Believing
Imagine listening to someone lecture convincingly about why it’s impossible for a hummingbird to fly. The lecturer explains in great scientific detail how the wings are too small to support the weight of its body. But just behind his head, you see a hummingbird flying. It’s hovering in the same spot, flying backwards occasionally just to show off. Do you still believe the lecturer? The question we should be asking is not “Does fruit cause weight gain or weight loss?” Rather, we need to be asking “Why are we seeing that people lose weight as they eat more fruit?” The lecturer should do the same, and ask why he’s seeing a hummingbird fly instead of lecturing others on why it shouldn’t be able to fly.
To understand why a food relatively high in fructose isn’t bad for our waistlines but good for them, we must look at the whole of fruit, not just its fructose content. What about its high water and fiber content? What about its bioavailable vitamins and minerals? What about its digestive enzymes? What about its superior anti-inflammatory effect compared to almost all foods, including many vegetables? What about the flavonoids? You can’t forget the flavonoids! Calorie counters and anti-carbers suggest that these things don’t matter because they’ve oversimplified food into macronutrient content. It may be simple to observe that people lose weight when eating fruit, but this simple and statistically relevant observation remains supreme in light of a food we don’t completely understand. Here are a few reasons why fruit is a champion of weight loss.
1. Fruit tastes (really) good
This is not a joke. It’s important! Fruit is a healthy and viable alternative for many of the sweet weight-gaining foods that people currently eat. Let’s be real. You’re not going to be able to replace your ice-cream gorging habit by stuffing your face with kale. But have you ever tasted mango? It’s my favorite fruit. Its flavor and sweetness are completely satisfying. Have you ever eaten a frozen banana? It tastes like ice-cream. Try it.
Do you think it’s coincidence that overweight people eat less fruit? “Overweight children (95th percentile) and obese adults (both genders) consumed significantly less fruit than healthy weight counterparts.”82 They’re probably getting their sugar from processed foods.
Our tongues are equipped with taste buds to fully appreciate nature’s sweetness. If we buy into the idea that fruit makes us fatter, despite science suggesting it makes us thinner, you can bet that we’re going to seek out sweetness elsewhere (likely in the form of artificially sweetened or added-sugar processed foods, which actually do cause us to gain weight). Fruit is a vital outlet for your sweet tooth—when you crave something sweet, fruit is there to save the day!
2. Fruit contains enzymes, flavonoids, vitamins, and minerals
Fruit is one of the best sources for digestive enzymes. Proper digestion and assimilation of nutrients will reduce bloating and make you feel more satisfied and energetic. Two of my favorite fruits, pineapple and kiwifruit, contain potent enzymes called proteases that help you break down and digest protein. On a recent cruise, fresh pineapple was available at the buffet, and I ate it after every meal; I was amazed at the positive difference in my digestion and my complete lack of acid reflux for the entire trip.
Flavonoids appear to be underrated and not fully understood substances that make fruits several magnitudes healthier than their macronutrient profile makes them appear. Fruits are also loaded with bioavailable vitamins and minerals—our bodies need these micronutrients to function properly, and that includes weight management.
3. Unprocessed sugar in whole foods is better than chemicals, extractions, or added sugar
If you’re aiming for a low-sugar diet, you might be tempted to skip fruit. Unless you medically can’t have it, don’t skip it. Fruit tends to be lower in sugar compared to processed foods. A 20-ounce soda contains more sugar than one banana, one apple, one orange, and one kiwi combined.
As for artificial sweeteners, they have zero calories because they aren’t food. Cannonballs are zero calories and very filling. Why not eat one of those? Both added sugar and artificial sweeteners increase your risk for type 2 diabetes.83 Shouldn’t you at least avoid fruit just to lower your chance for diabetes? Of course not! A study found that “greater consumption of specific whole fruits, particularly blueberries, grapes, and apples, is significantly associated with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes, whereas greater consumption of fruit juice is associated with a higher risk.”84
4. Fruit is sweet, but it still lowers blood sugar
It’s counterintuitive that a food high in fructose could possibly lower blood sugar, but again, let’s look at the data, not the theories. A study done in Mexico tested a low-fructose diet (less than 20g daily) against a moderate natural-fructose diet (50-70g daily). Both groups saw improvements to blood sugar, insulin resistance, cholesterol, and blood pressure. The biggest difference between the two groups was weight loss, as the natural-fructose group lost 50% more weight (4.2kg compared to 2.8kg). Cutting out all or most fructose in your diet will bring you some results; they just won’t be as great if you also remove fruit.
5. Fruit has a fantastic satiety-to-calorie ratio
Remember when I told you I ate an entire bag of frozen mangoes? That 10-ounce (284g) bag of frozen sliced mangoes was only 200 calories, while a 52.7g Snicker’s bar is 250 calories. The mangoes take up five times as much space in your stomach and provide far more micronutrients despite having fewer calories.
Our bodies are about 60-70% water.85 In a way, eating more fruit is like drinking more water. In addition to its high water content, fruit is high in fiber, making it a very satiating food for relatively few calories.
WARNING: Fruit juice is not the same as whole fruit!
Fruit juice may contain some of the vitamins and minerals as the fruit it comes from, but it lacks the satiety that whole fruit provides. Whole fruit consumed before meals reduced caloric intake (of lunch) by 15% in a study. That’s fantastic, but, interestingly enough, they found that “adding naturally occurring levels of fiber to [fruit] juice did not enhance satiety.”86 Even when you add the fiber back, fruit juice doesn’t measure up to the natural satiety of whole fruit. (Apple sauce didn’t have the same satiety effect either.)
Whole fruit regulates how much you eat and how your body absorbs the fructose. Fruit juice, even 100% fruit juice, makes you gain weight. It makes sense when you think about it. Studies find that fructose is weight-gaining, and squeezing the juice out of fruit isolates the fructose and loses everything contained in the pulp. The better alternative to fruit juice is fruit-infused water, which we’ll talk about in the application chapter.
Now that we’ve discussed what sorts of foods are good and bad for weight loss, it’s time to take a look at your current dietary habits. Some people are under the impression that they have already tried the “eat healthy foods” plan and failed, when in reality they’ve never tried. If your idea of healthy eating is off the mark, you’ll gain weight, as you think you’re doing the right thing.
“Healthy food” is far narrower than most people believe it to be. Healthy weight loss foods do NOT include things like low-fat flavored yogurt, organic granola bars, sugar-free anything, organic tortilla chips, organic candy, low-calorie diet foods, 100% fruit juice, organic or conventional processed foods, basically anything with added sugar (which is 75% of food in grocery stores), or salads drenched in high-fructose corn syrup and soybean oil dressing.
Here’s the concerning data: In a Consumer Reports survey of 1,234 people, 89.7% of American respondents thought they consumed a diet that’s at least “somewhat healthy.”87 And yet, 43% of these same people reported consuming at least one soda, Frappuccino, or bubble tea per day. If you consume any of those once per day, you almost certainly don’t have a “somewhat healthy” diet.
Someone can drink one soda a day and think they’re being healthy just because they have a friend who drinks three per day. Tell your pancreas not to worry about all the insulin it’s pumping out, because Jimmy’s pancreas has to do it three times a day. Or, in the case of artificial sweeteners, tell your dopaminergic pathways not to be too upset at the lack of reward, because Jimmy’s reward system is even more screwed up.
Look in your kitchen. Are your counter and fridge/freezer stocked with fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables? If not, are they usually? If not, you probably don’t have a healthy diet.
If almost 90% of Americans believe they eat a healthy diet, then we’ve got a serious denial problem. The aforementioned nationally representative cross-sectional study in the United States published in March 2016 found that “ultra-processed foods comprised 57.9% of total energy intake.”88 These are foods that would ideally comprise 0% of a human diet, and yet they’re consumed the most.
The (un)healthiness of food is almost completely based on how processed it is. Generally speaking, the more processed a food is, the more calorie dense, the less nutritional value, and the less satiating per calorie it is. There are nuances about which unprocessed foods are best for weight loss, but your progress won’t be made or lost by eating peaches instead of grapes. It will be made or lost by how much real food you eat compared to how much processed food you eat. Processed food creates weight gain. Minimally processed food greatly assists with weight loss if you’re overweight, or it can maintain your healthy weight if you aren’t.
Dead Food
A plant leaf contains compounds such as chlorophyll and antioxidants that keep it healthy and alive. When you eat the plant, these living compounds are still active, and they will have similar life-promoting effects inside of your body. Have you ever tried to save an avocado for later and saw that it turned brown soon after? That’s oxidation. Oxidation kills and impairs cellular function. Fat oxidation is the term for fat cells being destroyed for energy. Oxidation is good for fat, but not for most of the other cells in our body!
Processed food is dead. Processing kills the most beneficial parts of food. For example, cereal is seen by many as “healthy” because it has a long list of added vitamins, but it has almost none of the beneficial compounds of a living food.
The Food Scale
With the exception of vegetables, people argue about how basically every other food affects weight. It’s useful to know when to look at the big picture and when to look at the details, and this is a case where we need to look at the big picture. Worldwide obesity rates have climbed rapidly as we’ve created and consumed food from the lab more than from the farm. When ultra-processed food consumption spiked, calorie consumption spiked, and obesity rates spiked.
Most weight loss authors believe they have to come up with a definitive stance on every food, but this is totally unnecessary for weight loss. If you get the basics right, eat simple and real food, and stop eating large amounts of the obvious weight-gaining foods, you’ll succeed.
Don’t worry about eating or not eating debatable foods like potatoes, meat, whole wheat, and dairy. These foods have been eaten for centuries without associated weight problems. It’s possible that any of these foods may tilt the scales in the wrong direction ever so slightly, but eating cooked potatoes will not ruin your weight loss efforts the way that frequent soda or croissant consumption will. Once you’ve established a clear pattern of eating healthy foods, then perhaps you can nitpick about things like dairy or whole grain bread. Dieting culture makes people worry about whole grain bread when they eat fast food every day. When you’re eating mostly fresh fruits and vegetables, you’ve mastered the basics of healthy eating. Then you can move on to whether or not you should eat debatable foods. Until that happens, your job is to pursue good foods and not worry about anything else you eat. It bears repeating that the correct perspective to obtain a healthy diet is toward healthy food, not away from unhealthy food.
Please don’t use the following list for dieting. This is just to give you an idea of where foods stand on the weight loss spectrum. It’s important to know what foods are weight loss-friendly, but it’s more important not to (try to) change your diet all at once. This list is not comprehensive. Try to understand the concepts underlying these foods.
1. Super-Healthy Foods: Weight Loss-Friendly as a Staple
After you read the others, come back up and read this list again, because this is the list that matters. It’s not about what to avoid, it’s about what to pursue. This seems like a short list until you consider that it says ALL fruits and (basically) ALL vegetables. There are 4,000 varieties of tomato, and that’s just one fruit. There are thousands upon thousands of fruits and vegetables with different tastes, textures, and uses.
Generally speaking, if you eat a minimally processed fruit or vegetable, it will not contain a harmful amount of salt, sugar, calories, or fat. Avocados, for example, are 82% fat, but they are not obesogenic and offer terrific satiety: “A randomized single blinded, crossover postprandial study of 26 healthy overweight adults suggested that one-half an avocado consumed at lunch significantly reduced self-reported hunger and desire to eat, and increased satiation as compared to the control meal.“89
Coconut oil is excellent for weight loss as it’s very high in medium chain triglycerides (MCTs), which are quickly absorbed and used for energy (rather than stored as fat). There’s no need to cook with anything else besides coconut oil, olive oil, or butter. Coconut oil and olive oil are versatile, delicious, and healthy. Olive oil is also great for cold uses like dip or dressing.
In a clever “real world” experiment, Professor Grootveld analyzed leftover oils after volunteers had cooked with them. He found that “sunflower oil and corn oil produced aldehydes at levels 20 times higher than recommended by the World Health Organization. Olive oil and rapeseed oil produced far fewer aldehydes, as did butter and goose fat.”90 Aldehydes are oxidized alcohols that are toxic to us and linked to many diseases. Among all oils, coconut oil produces the least amount of aldehydes when heated for cooking.91
Note: Green (vegetable-only) juices and smoothies are nutrition powerhouses. They are a good addition to one’s diet for their anti-inflammatory and nutrient-absorption benefits. The key word there is addition. Don’t starve yourself and force green juice down your throat. That’s trendy, but not sustainable.
2. Moderately Healthy Foods: Weight Loss-Friendly in Moderation
Whole grains: Grains such as brown rice, whole wheat pasta, quinoa, barley, millet, oats, and so on are healthy (this doesn’t include crackers or most breads, which generally contain multiple processed ingredients).
Minimally processed meat: I know. It’s popular these days to blame meat, but we’ve been omnivores a very long time without weight problems. Plus, I think it’s difficult to sustain yourself on a vegetarian or vegan diet. That said, if you prefer eating vegetarian or vegan, you could do much worse!
3. Debatable Foods
Many whole grain breads contain additional ingredients, so if you’re going to pick one go-to source for wheat, choose whole grain pasta (one ingredient). Some people have an allergy to wheat, but if that’s you, you don’t need me to tell you not to eat it. Since pasta sauce almost always contains added sugar, I like to use olive oil, pesto, and cheese for flavor. It’s healthy and delicious! You can also make your own pasta sauce pretty easily.
Full-fat dairy: Dairy is a high-calorie category of food, but its calories are high-quality and satiating. One study found that while on a calorie restriction diet, those who included dairy in their diet lost 70% more weight (and those who included calcium lost 26% more weight).92 If you enjoy dairy, consume it moderately, but still aim for the super-healthy foods as your go-to staples, and you’ll do well.
Whether to consume full-fat or non-fat dairy is not debatable. For milk, sour cream, butter, or yogurt, and other dairy foods, go full-fat.
I couldn’t find any studies that found low-fat milk to be superior to whole milk in any way, probably because it’s worse in every way. Oregon State Agricultural College published a bulletin in 1930 titled “Fattening Pigs for Market.” Take a look at this interesting quote I plucked from the bulletin: “Skim milk. This is not only the very best supplement for growing pigs, but is of almost equal value for fattening purposes.”97 It seems that, in many ways, our knowledge of weight management has regressed. We used to correctly feed pigs skim milk to fatten them, and now we drink it ourselves as a “weight loss drink.”
Such data makes complete sense in light of everything we’ve discussed, and it surprises calorie counters and “fat is bad” pitchforkers, who base their conclusions on ONE facet of complex foods. Read the following sentence, look at the studies again, and internalize what this means: Full-fat milk contains almost double the calories of non-fat milk for the same serving size.
Are you going to trust the prevailing theories (that have allowed obesity to skyrocket)? Or will you consider what theories best explain observational science? Here’s an explanation about dairy that actually fits the data, which clearly says full-fat milk is better than non-fat milk for weight loss: Whole milk is less tampered with, a whole and natural food. Skim milk is a more processed version of whole milk. While that’s not a particularly strong argument, since it requires you to first accept the “processed is worse” idea, this is: If you drink skim milk, you will be less satiated and satisfied than if you drink whole milk. You will likely be less satiated per calorie with non-fat or low-fat milk. Four ounces of whole milk could be more satisfying and filling than 8 ounces of skim milk. If we put milk consumption in a vacuum, then, sure, skim milk has fewer calories and would mean less weight gain. But the food we eat now affects the type and quantity of food we’ll eat later. In addition, the fat in milk slows the digestion of its sugars.
Your body is not going to think, “Oh, it’s the same amount of milk, but half the calories!” Skim milk only fools the person who drinks it (not their body). The human body cannot be tricked into weight loss. Enjoy your dairy as full fat if you want to lose weight. You don’t have to take my word for it or buy my proposed theories on milk. Just look at the data. Of course, raw milk is far better than store-bought milk because it’s not processed with pasteurization (heated to high temperatures to kill everything) and homogenization (spun rapidly to remove cream separation). Raw milk is alive. It contains beneficial enzymes that are otherwise destroyed in pasteurization, but it’s not always easy to access. It’s actually illegal in the USA to sell raw milk for personal consumption. “Pets” can drink it though. Raw milk has some risk for bacterial contamination such as salmonella and listeria, so consume it at your own risk.
Protein powder: If you’re going to have protein shakes, it’s best to have them in the morning for breakfast, and it’s best to get some with limited added ingredients (I use Promix and Solgar). I prefer whey protein over others for its complete protein profile. It is a processed food, but it’s one of the better ones if you choose one with the right ingredients. Protein is highly satiating and great for building or maintaining muscle mass. As such, a good protein powder can be helpful for redistributing weight from fat to muscle, especially if you’re exercising. What’s better than a protein shake in the morning? Whole fruits, vegetables, eggs, minimally processed meat, or yogurt.
Soup: It’s usually a good choice (high water content), but it greatly depends on how it’s made and what it contains!
Super-starchy vegetables: Potatoes, peas, and corn are only listed here because they were associated with weight gain in the 24-year study mentioned earlier. Potatoes in particular are demonized by many, but they look great on paper. They’re the world’s most satiating food, and they are packed with antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals. Potatoes have been a staple food in many countries throughout history. Obesity and overweight to the present extent are a modern phenomenon with a modern cause. That’s not to say that you won’t gain some weight if you stuff yourself with potatoes—the research is mixed—but it does mean you can eat potatoes without worry. If you love potatoes, as many do, you could do much worse.
White rice: It’s not the worst food you can eat and it’s leagues better than ultra-processed food. Additionally, many cultures have stayed thin and healthy on a diet heavy in white rice. That said, if you can switch to brown rice, do it! White rice is processed to eliminate the germ and bran of brown rice, which means you get less fiber and (far) fewer nutrients. If you have to choose between white rice and white bread, white rice wins in a landslide because white bread is processed to an extreme (often with dozens of ingredients). White rice is just a one-ingredient food, which is a big plus. That being said, if you get white rice in a restaurant, don’t count on it being only one ingredient. It’s often cooked with oil and added sodium.
4. Semi-Unhealthy Foods: Might Cause Weight Gain
Low-fat or no-fat dairy: Beneficial fats are taken out, making it less satiating than full-fat dairy, and unlike full-fat dairy, it’s also mostly associated with weight gain in studies. Remember, they used skim milk in the 1930s to fatten pigs.
Fruit smoothies: If you get a fruit smoothie at a chain, it will almost definitely contain added sugar and/or consist of fruit-flavored syrup instead of actual fruit. Even if you make the smoothie at home with real fruit, you’re missing out on the true fiber content of the fruit, as studies have found that blending the fruit changes how the fiber is digested. This makes it closer to fruit juice, which is a definite weight-gaining drink!
5. Super-Unhealthy Foods: Weight-Gaining
Ultra-processed foods: chips, crackers, cookies, pies, cakes, ice-cream, pancakes, waffles, white pasta, pizza, white bread, fruit juice (yes, even 100% juice), soda, lattes, and candy. If reading that list made you salivate, don’t worry, because healthy food can make you salivate too!
Anything fried, and most things cooked in vegetable oil: Soybean oil and most other vegetable oils are big contributors to weight gain and they are extremely difficult to avoid in the United States.
Faux healthy foods: These include organic granola bars (added sugar), organic dried fruit (usually has added sugar and it’s missing important water content), flavored yogurt (always has added sweetener), organic cereal (highly processed with added sugar).
Most commonly available sauces and dressings: Since most sauces are high in soybean oil, sugar, and/or salt, they’re big weight-gainers. Almost every commercial salad dressing I’ve seen uses soybean oil.
Significantly processed meat: Meats like bologna, hot dogs, and so on are processed to the point that it becomes challenging to still call them “meat.”
Side note: I avoid canned food, because most cans contain the synthetic compound known as BPA, which is not only associated with obesity98 but also insulin resistance99 and cancer.100 Dr. Ana Soto said, “If we take the results in animal models together, I think we have enough evidence to conclude that BPA increases the risk for breast and prostate cancer in humans.”101 The BPA in can liners does leach into the food. A Harvard study found that daily canned soup consumption raised participants’ urine levels of BPA by 1,221% compared to those who ate fresh soup.102 You can’t argue with that. Thankfully, more companies are moving to BPA-free cans. I recommend fresh food, frozen food, glass jar food, or if cans are a must, try to find BPA-free canned food. If canned food is the only way you’ll eat vegetables and you don’t have access to BPA-free canned food, I think it’s still worth it to eat vegetables in whatever way you can.
Healthy Drinking
One of the most effective weight loss methods is so obvious we all missed it. Drink water! It is zero calories and helps regulate appetite (diet drinks are zero calories too, but they hurt your metabolism as water improves it).
If you habitually drink anything but water, be suspicious of what it does to your waistline. Soda, fruit juice, alcohol, and any other drink with added sugar (including coffee and tea) work against your goal to lose fat. Milk is a question mark.
A study divided 48 people into two groups. Both groups consumed a low-calorie diet, but one group drank two 8-ounce cups of water before meals. At the end of 12 weeks, the water-drinking group lost 15.5 pounds, compared to the other group’s 11 pounds.103 The folly of calorie restriction and the short duration of the study aside, the water-drinking group was the clear winner. Calorie restriction diets cause our bodies to try to store more fat in the long term, but drinking more water might just do the opposite. A study of seven men and seven women found that drinking 500 ml of water (16.9 oz bottle) increased their metabolic rate by 30% in 40 minutes.104 Increased metabolism is a very good sign, even if it’s only observed in the short term. The key issue with low-calorie diets is that metabolism plummets. Even if a food made people gain weight in the short term, but increased their metabolism in the long term, it would still be excellent for weight loss, and far superior to methodologies that bring short-term weight loss and long-term metabolic devastation and weight gain. This is theoretical discussion, of course, as drinking water helps our health and weight management now and later.
There is one other special drink that deserves mentioning. Other than water, green tea could be argued as the ultimate weight loss drink for its unique antioxidant content. Studies show green tea specifically helps burn visceral fat in the abdominal area.105 This is the area where people generally prefer to lose fat, and it’s also the most harmful fat on the body. Green tea’s fat-burning effect is largely due to high amounts of an antioxidant called catechin. From my research, this antioxidant is also found in other foods like cocoa, blackberries, and red wine, but green tea has the highest amount of catechins of any food.
What about coffee and tea? Caffeine can be beneficial in small doses for raising metabolism temporarily. In fact, as one of the most common ingredients in pre-workout supplements, caffeine is probably best used to enhance your workout. Of course, if you “need” caffeine to have energy, then that’s not ideal. I don’t drink coffee, because I’ve seen too many people become dependent on it for energy.
In regards to health and weight, the biggest issue with coffee and tea is the added sweeteners. If you have to choose one, honey, raw brown sugar, and stevia appear to be the lesser of the evils (I would choose honey). One thing is for certain—regular coffee and tea are much better than sugary lattes and other “signature” drinks at coffee shops. If it’s between a cup of coffee and a caramel latte, the coffee wins in a landslide.
I can tell you one thing: If you’re able to disassociate drinking beverages and sweetness, you’re way ahead of the game. This all comes down to conditioning. To the person who drinks soda daily, water tastes bland. To the person who drinks water daily, sodas and lattes taste too sweet.
Liquids satisfy our thirst, and there is inherent satisfaction in that. The base of all drinks is water, which means that drinking water can become a habit and beverage that you enjoy, even if you’re not particularly fond of it now. We can learn to enjoy the things that satisfy our needs.
Alcohol
When it comes to alcohol, wine is the winner for health and weight loss. Regular wine consumption is associated with lower mortality than in non-drinkers and drinkers of other alcohol types.106 Its intake has a “J-shaped” relationship with death—it’s a healthy drink in moderation that becomes unhealthy if you overindulge.
There’s no hard evidence that wine or alcohol of any kind is a “weight loss drink.” A 13-year Harvard study with 19,200 women found that those who consumed alcohol gained less weight than non-drinkers, but they still gained weight (red wine had the best inverse association with overweight and obesity).107
Red wine does contain the antioxidant resveratrol, which has been shown to be excellent for both health and weight management. But you can get this antioxidant in much higher quantities from eating fruits like blueberries, grapes, strawberries, raspberries, and apples.108 For alcohol, the best choice is red wine (drink it by the glass, not the bottle).
We’ve talked a lot about food, but what about exercise? Does it really help us lose weight?
The books that tell you exercise isn’t necessary for weight loss make four mistakes.
The weight loss effect of exercising has ironically become a debated point. Short-term studies show that most diets work and exercise doesn’t help with weight loss, but long-term studies show that most diets don’t work and that exercise is one of the key factors in successful and lasting weight loss. So we have a choice—do we emphasize short-term studies or long-term studies? Long-term studies show real, lasting change. Short-term studies might show that the “The Gummy Bear Cleanse” is the most effective weight loss method. One reviewer claimed to lose four pounds in only one day. Now that’s a result!
If you base your conclusions on short-term studies of a year or less, you’re going to favor short-term strategies that almost always fail in the long term. Why is anyone surprised when a 10-day weight loss plan doesn’t bring lasting results? It’s 10 days! Like a submarine’s inability to fly, it’s not designed for that.
Exercise Is Not About “Burning Calories”
Short-term studies show that exercise is an ineffective method of weight loss.109 This is partly true, in that the amount of calories you burn exercising will have, at best, a slight impact on your weight in the near future. Also, when you exercise, your appetite typically increases, which leads to eating more food, making the total caloric deficit less significant than one might think. But again, this is narrow-mindedly looking at calories only. There’s more at play here, and the science shows that.
A meta-analysis found that “Weight loss is similar in the short term for diet-only and combined BWMPs (behavioral weight management programs) but in the longer term weight loss is increased when diet and physical activity are combined.”110 The National Weight Control Registry studies people who have achieved lasting weight loss. They say of members who lose weight and keep it off for years, “90% exercise, on average, about 1 hour per day.”111
Let’s look really long-term on this one. A 20-year study found that exercise was associated with decreased weight gain and a smaller waist in men and (especially) women.112 How exercise specifically improves long-term weight loss isn’t 100% understood, but it’s been shown to help. A good guess? Obesity is basically a body out of balance, and exercise improves nearly every bodily function, so it may help to rebalance how the body intakes and uses energy (metabolism).
There’s some evidence that exercise aids weight loss by optimizing your body’s hormones. Studies have found that regular exercise is associated with lower insulin resistance and higher insulin sensitivity in people (both of which are positive metabolic attributes for health and weight).113
Fat Loss Beats Weight Loss
Even if you aren’t losing weight while exercising, you still could be losing fat. “The findings from four nonrandomized or controlled studies report that exercise with or without weight loss is associated with reductions in both visceral and subcutaneous fat.”114 This is critical, because reduction in fat is the true goal, and if you stay at the same weight but have traded fat for increased muscle, you’re going to look and feel better.
Exercise is not about “burning calories.” It’s about the metabolic, anti-inflammatory, and circulatory benefits. When you view it as such, quotes like this one from a study will no longer scare you: “To our surprise, we have found that exercise has little, if any, effect on 24-hour fat oxidation.”115 Exercise is a healthy lifestyle choice, not a short-term weight loss miracle. By exercising, you will see weight loss results in the long term in addition to numerous health benefits.
If you don’t currently exercise, that probably means you don’t enjoy doing it. I’m aware of that and that’s okay, because mini habits can change that preference. One push-up a day changed my lazy self from resisting exercise to enjoying it and doing it several times per week. Anyone can do it.
Exercise is not a sacrifice you make to lose weight; it’s one of the most enjoyable parts of life that many people haven’t been able to enjoy. When you’re out of shape, it’s not much fun and feels uncomfortable to exercise, but once you start experiencing the benefits and getting stronger, you’ll get hooked. With this book, you have the best strategy to get to that point.
Food and movement are the primary two factors associated with weight loss discussion, but a few other factors deserve consideration, too. These factors can directly or indirectly affect weight by changing the way we move and eat.
Sleep
A study of ten people found that a lack of sleep sabotaged weight loss. It slowed fat loss by 55%, increased non-fat loss by 60%, and shifted hormones to favor increased hunger and decreased fat oxidation. This was the result of 5.5 hours of sleep compared to 8.5 hours of sleep.116 This study was interesting, because they tested each person twice for two weeks at 5.5 hours of sleep and then for two weeks at 8.5 hours of sleep. These differences were observed in the same people, and because they controlled participants’ calorie intake, the differences were minimized. When the people slept less, they were hungrier, which would make them susceptible to overeating. With even energy intake, their fat loss was hindered on less sleep.117
A larger study of 1,024 people found that shorter sleep resulted in lower leptin, higher ghrelin (the hunger hormone), and increased body mass index. Below the eight-hour mark, “increased BMI was proportional to decreased sleep.”118
To support the findings of these studies, what’s your experience been? Have you noticed that you tend to eat more when sleep deprived? I do. I remember some days of sleep deprivation in which my stomach seemed to be a bottomless pit of hunger.
Being that the key to lasting change is to make success easier than failure, not getting enough sleep is a serious hindrance to weight loss. It puts you at a severe biological disadvantage compared to getting enough sleep (of which the consensus is 7-9 hours).
Stress Levels
Cortisol is the hormone released when we’re stressed, and too much of it causes the body to store fat in the abdominal area. That’s not what we want, so the answer is to destress. That’s easier said than done, but it’s also easier to do than one might think. If you actively try to reduce stress in your life, you can succeed, but very few people plan ways to destress. Some of my favorite ways to relax are meditation, massages, playing basketball, and using sensory deprivation tanks.
Fun
“Across three studies, in both lab and field settings, we found that framing a physical activity as fun (vs. exercise) influenced participants’ subsequent behavior. Specifically, we found that labeling a physical activity as fun reduced the amount of calories consumed in side dishes during a meal (study 1), the amount of hedonic food served (study 2), and perception of fun during a race positively influenced the choice of a healthy snack (study 3).”119 If you perceive your weight loss journey as “work,” you’re missing out on the advantages of a fun perspective.
Simultaneous Change
You’re better off changing your diet and exercise at the same time, as diet and exercise can form a virtuous cycle together. A study of 200 people found that simultaneous change of diet and exercise improved adherence compared to starting one and adding the other later.120
Gut Health
Gut health is a growing field of science, including how it relates to weight loss. Scientists have found differences in the gut bacteria of overweight people (and rats) compared to their healthy weight counterparts. Fermented foods (e.g., yogurt, sauerkraut, kefir, kimchi, komboucha) are so healthy because they repopulate the stomach with beneficial bacteria.
While these fringe factors might not seem important, they can make a big difference, so keep them in mind.
Side Benefits of Mini Habits
Mini habits directly improve three of these hidden factors. First, they’re fun. They’re more fun than any other weight loss plan you’ve tried before. This strategy doesn’t ban you from eating any foods; it’s rooted in positivity and daily success, and it delivers outsized results compared to how easy the behaviors are. Compared to dieting, mini habits are like a theme park.
Mini habits also allow you to change your exercise and eating habits simultaneously without burning out. With traditional change methods, even two synergistic changes like this are extremely difficult to sustain. Since you can maintain several mini habits at a time, you’ll be able to make progress in both of these areas simultaneously and benefit from their synergy.
Finally, mini habits can decrease your stress levels. When you are less demanding of yourself and still get results, life feels easier and more relaxed. This can then improve your sleep.
I’ve presented my case for how weight gain and weight loss work.
After looking at hundreds of studies and analyzing their data, the only consistent finding was that processed foods cause weight gain, not carbs or fat or calories. We’ve had all of those other things for as long as we’ve existed, and the underlying, core theory behind each of these weight loss theories is that now we eat too much of them. They say we eat too many carbs, too much fat, or too many calories.
The modern Western diet is now measurably higher in ultra-processed foods than it is in real food,121 and that is why 70% of Americans are overweight. Other countries who have followed suit have become more obese.
If you happen to disagree with me, that’s fine, because this is only the second biggest problem of the weight loss industry. The biggest problem is not with nutrition-based diets, which generally promote healthier eating: it’s with the way people are taught to implement them. Mini Habits for Weight Loss isn’t a new diet, it’s a new approach to weight loss. If you have a particular diet or way of eating that you believe is best for your long-term interests, you can adapt these principles to implement it more effectively.
Part Two
Introduction: Strategy Rules
Welcome to part two, my favorite part of the book. Part one discussed the keys to successful weight loss; part two converts what we’ve learned from part one into an actionable strategy that works. The next three chapters are general strategy, food strategy, and fitness strategy.
In the upcoming chapter, we’ll talk about our general weight loss strategy. That is, how are we going to think about our big picture attempt to lose weight? Is it ideal to think of yourself as “trying to lose weight” or is it better to aim to maintain your weight instead?
The food strategy chapter is next, and it addresses how to think about food. It will answer questions like, “Should I ban junk food?” and “When will I know to stop eating?” and “What if I don’t like vegetables?”
After that, we’ll discuss fitness strategy and answer questions such as, “What’s the best form of exercise for weight loss?” and “How much should I exercise?” and “Does chasing my kids around the house count as exercise?”
“Where Are the Mini Habits?”
Since weight loss encompasses your entire lifestyle, there are factors to consider beyond what daily mini habits you choose to do. Strategy has two components—how we think about something, and what we physically do. There are a number of important psychological dispositions that can make or break your attempts. We’ll cover those and discuss the advantages of mini habits before closing out the food and fitness chapters with specific mini habit ideas. Practicing your mini habits will gradually change the way you think, but you’ll be even more likely to succeed if you have the right perspective to go along with your mini habits.
5
General Strategy
Look, If it Were Intuitive, We’d All Be Slender Billionaires122
“For changes to be of any true value, they've got to be lasting and consistent.”
~ Tony Robbins
Exercise and healthy eating are the hard path. Exercise makes almost all internal bodily processes and functions more efficient: it improves insulin function to better energize cells, increases blood flow to more easily disperse nutrients, and optimizes hormone levels. Good, real food provides micronutrients and unique compounds to improve organ function and reduce inflammation.
Aside from those “concrete benefits” of healthy living, you will also become stronger by taking the hard path. If you climb a mountain every day, a walk up the staircase is easy. But if you drive your car between sitting sessions all day, a walk up the staircase can be grueling. It’s beneficial for us to take the harder route because it makes everything else easier. Humans are smart, and we recognize this, but many people fail to consider their willpower limitations and overwhelming preference to take the easy path. We often succumb to the easy path, even when trying to take the harder, more beneficial path. The hard path is only beneficial if you actually take it! But how can we take it consistently?
Every other book will tell you to grit your teeth and just do it, or, even worse, they’ll tell you that you need to “want it more.” Basically, they’ll tell you to throw everything you have at your goal. Do whatever it takes to take the hard path, eat your vegetables, and get to the gym. If you fail, it’s your fault. How stupid. The smartest strategy harmonizes our natural preference (the easy path) with our unique power of choice.
If you need to take the hard path, but you like the easy path, you must make the harder path easier, and the easier path harder. Do you see now why mini habits are a powerful strategy? Mini habits make it easy to take life’s most difficult (and beneficial) paths.
The Importance of Perceived Difficulty
Doing 30 minutes of moderate intensity exercise on an exercise bike requires a certain amount of effort, and you can’t change that. You can, however, change your likelihood of getting on the bike through strategy, which can change your perspective, and your perspective changes the perceived difficulty of a task.
Imagine that Jim and Sam are people of equal ability who attempt the same challenge. Their ability and task difficulty are objectively identical, but Sam thinks the challenge is fun and Jim thinks the challenge is boring. Who do you think will find the challenge easier? Sam will, because he thinks it’s fun. Your perspective is powerful enough to make a difficult task easy or an easy task difficult.
A mini habit in practice changes your relationship with a behavior over time by creating a new expectation. Practicing piano is naturally harder to do than watching television, so a mini habit makes it comparably easy by asking you to play one song a day, or even to sit down at the piano and open your songbook. Exercising is harder than reading the newspaper, so a mini habit makes it comparably easy by asking you to do just one push-up (and more only if you so choose). Eating broccoli is harder than eating cake, so a mini habit makes it comparably easy by asking you to eat one piece of broccoli.
By making the hard path easier to take, you destroy the very foundation of what sustains unhealthy behavior and keeps healthy behavior a “someday” dream. Unhealthy behavior is so common not just because it’s easy, but because societies make it seem easy. Healthy behavior is actually not much more challenging than unhealthy behavior, but it becomes so when framed that way.
Why is it that a person will sit down to watch a one-minute YouTube video without thinking about it, but not run in place for one minute because “it’s not a full workout?” It’s okay to sit for a minute, but not good enough to exercise for the same amount of time? That’s why people sit for eight hours a day and don’t exercise very much. Why is it that eating salad is a special dietary decision, while eating a burger is normal? This needs to be reversed! The rare, special behaviors we put on a pedestal are the least likely ones to impact our lives. Your mini habits will transform these “special healthy behaviors” into normal ones that have a chance to become habits and change your life.
This is the framework of thinking behind the Mini Habits strategy. You’ll set easy, doable daily mini habits to form habits in high impact areas. Since we’re focused on weight loss and that entails many non-habitual choices too, you’ll also learn to make non-habitual healthy choices into some of the easiest, most casual choices you can make.
Nobody blames a sprinter for running in a straight line toward the finish line, because that’s the fastest and easiest way to cover the distance. Nobody scolds a basketball player for dunking the ball, when he could step back and try a more difficult fade away jumper. The easy path is always smarter, except when there are derivative consequences (like gaining weight) or when the hard path has derivative benefits worth pursuing (such as lifting weights to get stronger).
Sitting down all day is easier than standing, but it’s associated with mortality and metabolic slowdown. Eating fast food is easy, but it’s associated with inflammation and weight gain. Making success easier than failure isn’t insulting to one’s ego; it’s not a sign of weakness, and it’s not less impressive than “the hard way.” It’s just smarter.
These are a series of general mindsets for weight loss. Some are counterintuitive, and others are obvious. I’ll explain why each is effective. If you get these wrong, you lose. If you get these right, you win.
Your Primary Goal Is Not Weight Loss: It’s Behavior Change
When you want to lose weight, you shouldn’t focus on how you look or what the scale says. These things matter for measuring objective progress, of course, but they are not your measure of success, because they are not the primary thing you’re trying to change. This is akin to using a lever to move a heavy object. You can try to push the object directly, or you can use the lever’s power of leverage to make the move far easier.
Behavior change is the lever of weight loss. Therefore, the measure of success with weight loss is the same as any other attempt to change your behavior: To succeed with weight loss, you must change into the type of person who weighs less. If you do that, results will follow.
This means that if during your journey you haven’t lost weight but you’ve seen signs of behavioral change—whether it’s a growing preference for eating salad, less resistance to exercising, or an increasing sense of self control—you’re on your way to visible results. Behavior change always trumps weight change.
Do you think people would struggle if they could permanently, instantly, and visibly lose one pound of fat per hour spent on the treadmill? Of course not. To see that immediate cause and effect would be more than enough to motivate most people to lose all the weight they’d like to lose on a few marathon sessions.
Those who think they need results in order to motivate themselves to action have it exactly backwards. This viewpoint is why crash diets exist. Seeing 10 pounds lost in a week is supposed to trigger additional motivation to continue. This isn’t an inherently terrible idea, as results are indeed motivating and motivation is a good thing. It is, however, completely unsustainable weight loss, and you’re going to regain some or all of it back and take a motivation hit when you do, putting you in a worse position than when you started. The true formula to success is to take consistent action. Consistency creates habits, brings you results, and motivates you to continue. Results happen at the end of a process, not the beginning of it. As long as you maintain the process, you get the results. That’s why we’re going to master the process, which will continuously drive our results.
You’re in Charge
Previous attempts to lose weight probably positioned you as a lowly pawn on the battlefield. The diet guru has sent in your instructions, and if you want to lose weight, you will follow the diet. Regardless of the diet’s merit, this strips you of your sense of autonomy, and it makes it likely that you’ll rebel.
With mini habits, you’ll be designing your own battle plan. I’m giving you the information, materials, and ideas you need to succeed, but the style and exact plan of execution are completely up to you. You’ll have options of different strategies, all of which will put you in a position of power, where you can leverage your easy choices into habits over time (the key to victory) and immediate results now (the key to morale). I’ll tell you my favorite strategies and recommendations, but you know yourself and your life situation better than I do, so you will be making the final calls.
People can benefit from guidance, but they don’t need to be controlled. No person loses weight and keeps it off by giving up control over their choices. Eventually, they will make their own decisions. With mini habits, you’re in control from the start, so there’s no transition to make. You will not lose your sense of self-rule.
I’ll put it real-world terms: You will decide which days you overachieve with diet and exercise and which days you take a break and do the easy minimum. None of this takes away from your progress, because you’ll make that every day, even on bad days. This is completely adaptable to your life and your whims, which is why mini habits are the king of consistency and the most powerful change strategy in the world.
Don’t Be in A Rush
A study found that the best predictor of dropping out of weight loss treatment was high expectations for a lower BMI.123 The more weight they expected to lose, the more likely they were to lose their goal instead.
Every person’s mind and body are unique, and so the speed of weight loss is going to differ. Most weight loss books try to sell you on the speed of their method, taking advantage of people’s desperation to “finally lose the weight.” If a method doesn’t consider permanent behavior change, it will always put you back to where you started, minus the cost of the book and the opportunity to have made real change in that time.
CRITICAL: The End Goal Is Not the Strategy
This is one of the most important concepts to learn, not only for weight loss, but for any goal you wish to pursue. Many people, when they set a goal, make their strategy the same as their end goal. For example, a person who wants to stop drinking soda may make their strategy “stop drinking soda.” They assume it’s best because it’s the most obvious and visible strategy, but there are other strategies!
Every strategy you choose should be thoughtfully formed. If the best strategy for you happens to be the same as your end goal, then so be it. In my experience, the best strategy is rarely the most obvious one, because there are some counterintuitive aspects to behavior change. The futility of direct resistance is a great example of the obvious path being the inferior one.
To show you what I mean, here are eight (!) strategies you could use individually or in combination to stop drinking soda. The type of strategy is in parenthesis.
Isn’t that refreshing? There are at least eight approaches to stop drinking soda. You’re not trapped into trying and failing with the same one every time. In theory, any of them could work. In practice, some of them will work better, and some will depend on the person.
Since your strategy—not your desire—ultimately determines your success or failure, it’s worth spending time to think about it. I’ve done that with the strategies I’ll be recommending in this book, but don’t think that my ideas are definitely the perfect strategy for you.
Addition over Subtraction
One of the most difficult things about weight loss is the common feeling that you have to give everything up. You feel like you have to watch less TV. You feel like you have to cut out all of your favorite junk foods. It seems boring, dull, and difficult.
What if instead of trying to cut back on all of the snack foods you eat, you simply required yourself to eat more healthy food? The more healthy food you eat, the more comfortable you’ll be eating it. The problem isn’t so much that people eat unhealthy food; it’s that they are trained to do it. I eat unhealthy food on occasion, but my appetite for it is limited because I’ve practiced eating healthy food so much and now prefer it. I used to eat fast food almost every day, which only made me want to eat more of it. Every choice you make sets a precedent for the next time you’re in that situation.
Dieting is deprivation, so it’s a good thing we’re not dieting. Successful weight loss is more about adding new and better things to your life than taking things away.
Don’t Fear Food
When people diet, they “fear” certain foods that aren’t part of their diet, whether it’s bread or processed food or meat. They fear that they’ll be tempted and eat it. When you fear something, you’re admitting that it’s more powerful than you in some way. We don’t fear butterflies, because we know they can’t and won’t harm us.
Using fear as motivation seems powerful, but it puts you in a position of weakness. It also creates an all-or-nothing mindset. So, if you fear doughnuts (but really like them), you’ll avoid them for as long as possible until your willpower breaks and you go back to your doughnut-eating ways. The more you go through this process, the more you’ll reinforce the fear that you can’t resist tempting foods.
Fear’s all-or-nothing stakes damage your self-efficacy when things go poorly. Don’t fear eating doughnuts. Strategically and calmly devise ways to eat fewer of them (we’ll cover these in the Situational Strategies chapter). It’s much easier to quit something with strategy than with emotion.
Lean toward Delaying Pleasure
Tomorrow does not exist. Today is all we’ll ever have. We all know this, and it’s good to be reminded of it. But there’s an actionable takeaway here that’s easy to miss, and that’s to reverse your inclination. Instead of “I’ll have soda now and drink water tomorrow,” think “I’ll drink water now and have a soda tomorrow.” This is completely fine, even if you do drink a soda the next day.
It’s satisfying to invest in yourself, knowing you have a reward waiting for you later. The anticipation of a reward is sometimes better than the actual reward itself. By delaying pleasure, you increase the length and intensity of your anticipatory rewards. and you’ll end up doing the healthy thing more than planned. It works just as well for healthy food as it does for unhealthy food. Humans are good at procrastinating, and this is how to do it in a healthy way.
Delayed gratification is saying, “I know I can have this now, but I’m going to look forward to enjoying it later.” Overeating food (typically of the ultra-processed variety) front-loads all the rewards you can stomach now (literally). This is actually an inferior strategy for maximizing your pleasure, because of the law of marginal utility.
I first learned about the law of marginal utility in Economics class, and my professor explained it well with a simple example: “You’ll enjoy your first slice of pizza more than your second, and your second more than your fifth.” You’ve probably noticed this phenomenon, not only in your eating, but in all of life. If you truly want to maximize your food rewards, you’d be better off not pushing the limits of your fullness. When you eat food beyond fullness, the only reward you gain is the taste of the food. It can be unenjoyable or even painful to digest food when you’re already full. I could go into details like gas and bloating, but let’s just skip that part.
I’m asking you to eat smarter and enjoy your food in a different way, not suffer for weight loss. The same suggestion (don’t overeat) is often framed in such a way that makes you feel deprived for doing it, as if it’s a sacrifice you must make to lose weight.
Humans need rewards, and we will get them however we can. For lasting success, we must aim to live a rewarding lifestyle that results in weight loss. As you get better at delaying gratification, you will make more of the right decisions now and feel rewarded from that. Afterwards, additional gratification will come in the form of the pleasures you delayed and a healthier and more attractive body.
Don’t make this a hard rule: just attempt to lean toward delaying pleasure and doing the healthier thing today. There’s a fine line between direct resistance and leaning toward delayed gratification, but it’s absolutely critical to be on the right side of it. You’ll know which side of it you’re on, based on the amount of resistance you feel. If you feel a lot of resistance, it’s because you’re resisting too hard. Relax. Lower the stakes.
Present-Day Thinking
One of the most difficult aspects of weight loss is the weight of the past. If you’ve been overweight for a while, you may feel ashamed about your lifestyle or your weight. I invite you to drop that burden. You don’t deserve it or need it. It doesn’t benefit you, and it’s actually illogical to let it influence you.
Consider that this moment forward is unwritten, and therefore it is objectively neutral. You can live any number of different ways from here, which is why dwelling on the past isn’t merely a waste of time, but also a hindrance to forward progress.
Mutual funds will often give the disclaimer that “past results do not guarantee future performance.” The same is true for our lives, whether we’ve had excellent or poor results in the past. For those who have a past full of regrets and poor choices, this is freedom. For those who have been doing well, it’s a reminder to keep going. You can’t change the past, so don’t worry about it.
You’re Training
One of the biggest mistakes that nearly every person makes when trying to lose weight is in the perspective of what they’re doing. If you’re going to try mini habits for weight loss, you’ll do things differently, and you’re going to love the change! Why?
You’re not being punished. You’re not “making sacrifices” to lose weight.
Those are losing perspectives. What do top athletes do? Train. What do top writers do? Write. What does anyone successful do to get where they are? Practice their craft until they succeed.
Just like some people are born with athletic genes and some people learn to golf at an early age, some of us are genetically given slenderness (regardless of lifestyle) or have learned to manage our weight. Many others have been put in the “Western Lifestyle Program,” a weight-gaining system that works extremely well. You are going to retrain your brain and body to be healthier and lighter.
If you don’t like your current weight, but you like your current lifestyle, you’ve got a choice to make, because your lifestyle IS your weight. Lifestyle and weight are white on rice and cold on ice. They’re permanently bonded and inseparable. Lifestyle isn’t all-or-nothing, though. Just because you’ve changed to generally eat well and stay active doesn’t mean you can’t also eat chocolate truffles, drink socially, or binge-watch a TV series. Anyone who tells you these things are “forbidden for weight loss” is wrong on multiple levels.
The healthy lifestyle is extremely enjoyable, and I’m not talking about the health or weight benefits. To show you what I mean, here is an example of a positive chain of a healthy lifestyle: better nutrition leads to better sleep, which leads to fewer cravings, which leads to better eating habits, all of which lead to more energy, which leads to a more active lifestyle, which leads to improved physical and mental performance, which leads to more confidence and success, which leads to more money, which leads to a Ferrari. Better nutrition leads to a Ferrari? That’s unlikely. Even so, the chain effect of healthy living is powerful in surprising ways. You may not get a Ferrari from eating blueberries, but you will notice some unexpected tangential changes when living healthier.
Athletes have some of the strictest diets and training programs, and many of them enjoy every minute of it. People get addicted to going to the gym. People lust for salads. This is not impossible for anyone, it’s just foreign to most.
Choose Boundaries over Rules, Identity over Slavery, and “Don’t” over “Can’t”
What’s the first thing a person thinks when they try to lose weight?
I can’t eat junk food. I have to eat more vegetables.
It sounds correct and innocent enough, but this is an awful way of thinking about weight loss. First, notice the loss of control in the language. I can’t, I have to. These are phrases we use when we have no choice; these are phrases we used when our parents told us we couldn’t spend the night at a friend’s house.
“Sorry, James, Mom says I can’t sleep over tonight.”
~ An actual quote from a young, sad Stephen (I still love you, Mom).
In contrast, what does a non-smoking adult say when offered a cigarette?
“No thanks, I don’t smoke.”
The child is not in control of his situation. The adult is.
Consider that “can’t” is more an appeal to authority than a personal decision to change. Like in the child’s case, he wants to sleep over, but he can’t, because his parents said so. When an adult tries this “can’t strategy” with dieting and they realize that they are in fact still the decision-maker, it’s really easy to break that rule.
There’s science, too. Vanessa Patrick and Henrik Hagtvedt gathered 120 students and asked them to quantify their desire for healthy eating (on a 1-9 scale).124 Some students were told to use “I don’t eat X” and others “I can’t eat X” to combat temptation to eat unhealthy snacks.
After this, participants were moved to what they thought was an unrelated study, and, once they handed in their questionnaire from that, they were offered a chocolate bar or “healthy” granola bar. A piece of fruit would be a better fit as a healthy snack, but regardless, the study results were quite interesting.
They saw 64% of the “I don’t” group choose granola bars and the rest choose chocolate bars. Only 39% of the “I can’t” group chose granola bars.
The reason “don’t” works so much better than “can’t” is because it’s identity-based, rather than a superficial attempt to control your behavior. In the study conductors’ words: “Since the ‘don’t’ frame suggests a stable and unchanging stance that invokes the self (‘this is who I am’), it is more effective when goal focus is internal and related to the self (I don’t eat fast food).”125
The takeaway: identity-based decisions EMPOWER your internal long-term goals (such as those in weight loss); following baseless rules of a “can’t” nature WEAKEN you and activate your rebellious side.
If you decide not to have cake and someone pushes you to have some or asks you why you won’t, please don’t say that you’re on a diet. Don’t say that you “can’t have any.” That makes you look and feel deprived. Instead, say that you don’t want any. That makes you look and feel powerful. See the difference?
As surprising as it sounds, it’s perfectly okay to turn down unhealthy food because you don’t want it, rather than because you’re “watching your weight.” Society places a lot of pressure on us to succumb to processed foods, but they’re not as appealing when you consider the ingredients and the effect they have on your body. You may not yet see processed food in this way, but when you train yourself to enjoy real food with mini habits, you’re going to feel and look better, and your preferences will change. The person who eats low-quality food isn’t aware of how great they’d feel eating healthy food.
This is not to say that you won’t ever eat French fries again. I’m the weird guy who offers his friends carrots for snacking and fresh fruit for dessert when they come over. I still consume things like French fries, hamburgers, wine, beer, and pizza. Rarely, I’ll even drink soda, even though I hate what it’s done to human health. Nothing except artificial sweeteners and trans fats are completely off limits for me. I don’t have rules saying what I can and can’t eat. I don’t eat unhealthy foods very often because I’ve changed my identity. You can do it too.
Don’t Assign Morality to Your Food Choices
Once you make food a moral battle, you weaken. Eating certain types of food doesn’t make you good or bad. It doesn’t make you inferior or superior to anyone else. We eat food to survive. Some food is more nutritious than other food, but it all (mostly) works to keep us alive. Did you know there’s a woman who has eaten nothing but pizza for many years?
I eat a very healthy diet relative to most people, but it makes me no better or worse than anyone else. It makes me no better than I was when I ate fast food all the time in college. I have more energy now, and my diet has improved my health, but our value as people has nothing to do with what we eat.
You know how people will say, “Oh, I’m so bad,” before eating an entire chocolate cake? That’s making food into a moral battle. It is saying that you’re doing something wrong. Can you guess what emotions that generates? Guilt and shame. Whoops.
Food choices aren’t good and bad. They are beneficial or harmful to your health, well-being, and weight loss goal. When you eat a doughnut, you needn’t feel as if you betrayed your best friend. You needn’t feel like you’re a bad person. Instead, be aware that you chose to eat food for entertainment over sustenance. Be aware that you likely added a bit of fat to your belly. There’s nothing wrong with it, but there are consequences.
Forget the Congruency Mindset and Binge on Healthy Food
Have you ever thought about why you’re more likely to binge-eat potato chips than broccoli? You might think it’s because chips are tastier and easier to consume in bulk, and that may be true to some extent, but there’s another, more dangerous reason.
People are less likely to eat significant amounts of healthy food because of their mindset. Chips are known to be a weight-gaining food, as they’re high carb, high fat, high calorie, and not very satiating. So when a person begins eating chips, they see it as a “poor choice.” Since we tend to desire congruency, and overeating chips is a combination of two weight loss mistakes (eating a weight-gaining food and eating too much of it), it’s mentally satisfying, albeit disappointing later, to act in congruence with the “bad label.” We’ve all probably thought, “Well, I’ve made this mistake, so I might as well finish making it.”
When we eat broccoli, we’re cognizant that we’re doing a good thing for our body, and eating an excessive amount of food would seem to “go against” our good decision. Since we’re being “good” at the time, we don’t want to overeat and tarnish our good deed. But it’s almost impossible to overeat healthy food and unwise to moderate it artificially. If you artificially limit the amount of broccoli you can eat now, you’re going to eat more of something else later. This isn’t to say that you MUST eat a lot of broccoli. It’s to show you why you don’t need to fear overeating healthy food.
One reason real food triggers satiety before ultra-processed food is because of a concept called sensory specific satiety. Sensory specific satiety is the term for losing the desire for a particular food after consuming a certain amount of it. For me, egg nog and chocolate fudge trigger my sensory specific satiety very quickly. They taste delicious, but they’re so strong and “in your face” that I can’t handle too much.
Food scientists know about this phenomenon, and they’ve found a way around it. If a food or drink is nuanced with different flavors, we can consume (much) more of it. Did you know that soft drink flavors are engineered to be pleasant, but nuanced and not too strong to avoid triggering your sensory specific satiety so that you’ll drink more? It’s true.
When you are near healthy food, eat as much of it as you want. It will feel strange to mix large portion sizes with healthy food choices because common wisdom says to eat less, but overeating is rarely an issue with fruits and vegetables. The 24-year study with over 100,000 participants I mentioned earlier found that the most weight loss was associated per serving of fruit, meaning that additional servings of fruit meant more weight loss.126
I regularly binge on frozen fruit (typically mangoes and blueberries) covered with cinnamon for dessert, and it usually amounts to only about 200 to 300 calories before I’m completely satisfied.
Don’t Aim to Lose Weight, Aim to Not Gain it
A study on obese Black women found that the women had better weight loss results when they aimed for weight maintenance rather than weight loss.127 Attempting to “lose weight” makes you think you have to do more than you actually do. It suggests that you are “behind” and need to do something extra, which isn’t true. It leads to the scarcity mindset and suggests that you eat less food (both of which are weight-gaining perspectives). Trying not to gain weight correctly puts your focus on things like the type of food you’re eating and not stuffing yourself (rather than aiming for a deficit).
There are certain thoughts that practically add pounds all by themselves, because of how much they affect your behavior. Don’t think these thoughts if you want to lose weight.
1. I can trust this food. People place too much trust in the food system. It’s important to remember that people who sell you food are running a business, and your health is not even close to the top of their concerns list. This includes “diet” products, as the perfect “diet product” is one that you think works, but doesn’t.
When something is labeled “diet,” it often means it contains artificial sweeteners. On examining data from a 9-year study in San Antonio, researchers found that those who consumed 21 artificially sweetened beverages (ASBs) per week were almost twice as likely to be overweight or obese. Those who consumed artificial sweetened beverages experienced a 47% greater weight gain than those who did not. “Significant positive dose-response relationship emerged between baseline ASB consumption and all outcome measures.”128 Another study found that artificially sweetened beverages may even promote weight gain more than sugar sweetened beverages.129
2. I deserve a treat. Dogs get treats. Humans get rewards. We need a broader term than treat, because we can reward ourselves in many different ways besides eating. Finding alternative rewards is an essential part of transforming habits like overeating and stress eating.
3. This meal is a small exception. Special occasions and exceptions are the enemy of consistency, and that means they’re the enemy of successful weight loss. Remember the power of small compounded changes that we discussed? This applies to small exceptions, too. The innocent-sounding “just this once” has ruined lives by creating or sustaining addictions. It’s necessary to understand the compounding power of small directional shifts in your life for better AND for worse. Never discount the helpfulness of eating a carrot, or the possible damage from saying “just this once.” (Note: Mini habits minimize the need or desire for exceptions.)
4. If other people are doing it, it’s acceptable. Social eating dynamics are a big reason why people struggle with their weight. It’s a triple whammy:
Imagine you’re eating dinner, and everyone orders a cheesecake to share. In this situation, you don’t really want the cheesecake because you know it contains artificial ingredients, is highly processed, and the taste isn’t worth it to you at this time. If it were just you, you’d turn it down easily. But everyone encourages you to try a bite, they’re all enjoying it, and it seems that they’re reasonably healthy and having fun, so what’s the harm?
The harm isn’t the individual case of eating a little bit of cheesecake. It’s that you are allowing your decisions to be controlled by something outside of you. If you eat cheesecake or anything else, be sure that you’re the one making the decision and don’t be afraid to say no.
It’s more important to uphold your values than to be courteous 100% of the time; it’s okay to be rude if you’re protecting your values. Some people will disagree with that, because they believe that social etiquette rules all. If someone is so offended that you won’t eat cheesecake or drink alcohol with them, you are the one who should be offended that they don’t respect your desires and values. True friends will support your quest to become a better person, and not get upset if you refuse to consume unhealthy food with them. It’s critical to be able to say no, because, if you can’t, you’ll be at the mercy of other people’s ideas for life.
In the United States, it’s “normal” for people to drink soda with every meal. To be at a healthy weight in a country with a population that is 70% overweight, you have to be different from most people. We’re influenced by those we spend time with, and within that truth is a good piece of advice: If you can find them, seek out and spend time with people who live a healthy lifestyle.
Even with the strategies I’m going to give to you, it will remain extremely difficult to change if your environment is filled with people with unhealthy habits who always eat unhealthy food. Environment is one of the most powerful forces in our lives. If you find yourself struggling, take a close look at how your environment is driving your behavior.
5. Dancing for 30 seconds right now won’t help me lose weight. If you want to gain weight, make your standard for exercise and healthy eating so high that you can only meet it when you’ve prepared extensively for it. When you put healthy living on a pedestal, you’ll do it less.
Yes, exercise is important. Yes, it can help you lose weight in the long term. But no, you don’t need to do it impressively in clean 30-minute segments. Make exercise a common thing, dance around for a few seconds in the same way you’d grab a snack. Do a push-up (or a few) while waiting for the microwave to finish. A low bar to entry increases the number of entries. Right now, stand up and move around for 10 seconds. It’s just 10 seconds. You don’t have to do Tai Chi if you’re in the airport. You can simply get up and stretch or walk around for 10 seconds. If you can do this, you can succeed with mini habits. Read on when you finish.
If you haven’t done it yet and are feeling resistance to doing it, explore what you’re feeling. Your objections are probably about it not being good enough, that it’s inconvenient with no payoff, that you’d do it if you were in a different situation, and probably a vague feeling that you’d be better off not doing it. This is because you haven’t practiced doing such small behaviors and seen the payoff. When something is foreign to you, your subconscious will throw up these “smokescreen” excuses. Just this once, force yourself to do it as an experiment. It’s just 10 seconds. After you finish, compare the experience to your thoughts prior to doing it. At worst, you’ll see it as a neutral experience.
Did you feel your heart rate or alertness slightly increase? This is good. This little bit of movement is good enough, because it’s better than sitting for 10 seconds. It doesn’t prevent you from doing more, but it does make you far more likely to do more now or in the future. Every time you demonstrate your ability to take a small positive step like this, you decrease your resistance to further steps now or later.
6. In order to lose weight, I’ve got to do something big. I’ve got to make a huge change. Similar to the previous point, those who put the most pressure on themselves to make the biggest changes are the ones who fail most frequently. In a previously mentioned study, the best predictor of dropping out of weight loss treatment was high expectations for a lower BMI.130 The more weight they expected to lose, the less weight they lost.
The people who succeed financially are rarely those who receive windfall gains; they’re the people who methodically save and invest their money, growing their net worth steadily. In the same way, those who successfully lose weight don’t do it in 10 days; they gradually change their behavior over time and their body steadily improves. As with the wealthy, no individual day’s progress is electrifying, but the overall result will be.
7. I need to eat less. Careful with this one! This is one of the counterintuitive aspects of weight loss. It seems smart to think this way, but it activates your scarcity instincts. Scarce things are irresistible to us. When your life revolves around the amount of food you’re eating, you’re a slave to it, not a master of it. In the long term, it means you’ll probably overeat.
To lose weight, you need to have a mindset of abundance. Think: I have enough food to eat. This amount of food is satisfying. I’ve had plenty, and my next meal is coming soon. This will encourage you to stop at satiety rather than careen into belt-snapping territory because you’ve made food seem scarce and rare.
Shame is different from guilt. Shame is inward, and guilt is outward. As Joseph Burgo, PhD, puts it, “Guilt and shame sometimes go hand in hand; the same action may give rise to feelings of both shame and guilt, where the former reflects how we feel about ourselves and the latter involves an awareness that our actions have injured someone else. In other words, shame relates to self, guilt to others.”131 Shame is the feeling that you’ve let yourself down, that you’ve been “bad.”
When you feel ashamed about doing something, you are much more likely to do that same thing again. Shame cycles are devastating and persistent, because shame weakens the self. When you’re weak, you’re vulnerable to making decisions you’ll feel shameful about later. It’s the opposite of the prototypical commander, captain, king, or queen, who makes firm, confident decisions from their position of strength.
When I’m feeling shameful about playing video games and let it fester, to put it eloquently, it makes me feel like a pile of poop. Then I’ll want to do something fun to make me feel better and distract me from my feelings, something like playing video games. So, by feeling shame about playing video games too much, I’m more likely to play them more. Ouch.
Shame Is Pain
Shame is a form of emotional pain, and, like all pain, its purpose is to deter the behavior that causes it. Shame rarely works as intended, because it weakens us. The weaker you are, the more pain you’ll feel, and, when it’s too much to handle, it leads to the same comforting and distracting behaviors that caused your initial shame, and the cycle begins. Therefore, shame doesn’t work very well to deter shameful behaviors.
Shame weakens us, making us become more pliable to our environment, so a person can become a more willing puppet to another party (or dieting system) through shame, but, aside from harming the individual in ways more important than weight, this offers no chance at sustaining weight loss, which must come from an individual’s inner strength and choices. When shame is self-inflicted, like when you feel it before, during, or after eating something, it only harms you, your confidence, and your sense of self-worth and self-respect, all of which are far more devastating to your goal of weight loss than the most fattening food. Shame motivates us to avoid behaviors that cause further shame, which is useful in theory, but it is an even more powerful destroyer of self-respect, which is why it seems right and works wrong.
We need to reduce feelings of shame as much as possible, and the upcoming strategies are designed with that in mind.
What’s the difference between a person who exercises because they enjoy it and a person who does it because it’s a part of their “15 Pounds in 15 Days” bootcamp? Autonomy.
Autonomy in psychology is defined as making choices according to your own free will. It’s a critical but chronically overlooked factor in self-improvement and goal-setting. Autonomy is important for one simple reason—we all want to (and do) run our own show. Sometimes we give up our sense of autonomy for the promise of a specific result. There’s one serious problem with that. You can only lose your sense of autonomy, not your actual autonomy.
What happens when you’re told that you must exercise until exhaustion and eat less food to lose weight? You lose your sense of autonomy, but not your actual autonomy. In time, you will rest and eat as before.
While you can suppress your sense of autonomy to “follow the system” for a while, you’re eventually going to take control again. This is the calculation we get wrong, isn’t it? We commit to a difficult workout or diet program and think we can just “suck it up” until we get the result we want, but at some point, we will officially take back the control that we pretended to give up.
This isn’t limited to ideas we read from others, either. You can lose your sense of autonomy from a goal that you set previously. For example, let’s say that Jane decides for her New Year’s Resolution that she will lose 100 pounds by exercising two hours per day. Ten days later, Jane wants to rest because her knee hurts and she’s so sore she can barely move, but she feels controlled by the public decree she made on top of the dining room table after her second sixth glass of champagne. Jane’s going to quit her plan altogether. And what will she feel at that point? Relief. Freedom. After such a letdown and failure, why does Jane feel relieved? Because she’s regained her sense of autonomy.
People receive undeserved criticism when they stop dieting. Others say, “You should have stuck with the program.” They imply that it’s better to be thin and miserable than overweight and free. But we’ll never stick to a dieting program, because our freedom means more to us than anything else.
The Two Levels of Autonomy
The best goal strategies will not only protect your sense of autonomy, but also enhance it. This is tricky because autonomy exists at two levels, conscious and subconscious. The opposite of autonomy is slavery, and here’s what it looks like at the two levels.
Conscious Slavery Example: You want to lose weight and decide to avoid eating cake, but you see a slice of cake and eat it. Your conscious desire (lose weight, avoid cake) was controlled by your subconscious desire (eat cake). You’ll feel like a slave to the cake.
Subconscious Slavery Example: You want to lose weight and decide to avoid eating cake, and when you see a slice of cake, you resist it. Now your subconscious desire (eat cake) is being controlled by your conscious desire (lose weight, avoid cake). You’ll feel deprived because you want the cake.
It seems like a lose-lose situation, doesn’t it? Whether you eat the cake or not, some part of you is going to feel controlled. Anyone who has attempted to lose weight is familiar with this predicament, because dieting provides people with a temporary way to make the healthy choices to get the results they want. Until their motivation and willpower are exhausted, they can live in such a way to lose weight (their conscious desire). But our subconscious is powerful, and it will not allow itself to be controlled for long. Your cravings will get stronger. Your ability to resist will weaken. The conscious mind wins in the short term, but the subconscious wins in the long term.
The only lasting, permanent solution for this conundrum is to align your conscious and subconscious to desire the same thing. What if you wanted to avoid cake to lose weight consciously AND didn’t have a strong urge to eat it subconsciously? That’s now a win-win situation, because neither part of you desires the cake. This puts us into habit formation territory, which is the practice of shaping the subconscious to mirror your conscious preferences.
To successfully form a habit or change an old one, you must be consistent with the change for an extended amount of time. A 16-year cake-eating habit will not go away after 10 days of starving yourself on green smoothies. You won’t likely go from a couch potato to a lifelong fitness freak in 30 days either. Both of those strategies, as popular as they are, strangle your subconscious’s sense of freedom. We choose these plans because they align with our conscious interests. But ignore your subconscious desires at the peril of your goals, because if you fight it, you will lose. You may win for 10 or 30 days, but we’ve covered the folly of temporary weight loss. To win, you need to change your subconscious preferences, not declare war on them.
The Mini Habits for Weight Loss strategy is designed to preserve and protect your sense of conscious and subconscious freedom. When you’re in charge, and when your strategy is flexible enough to adapt to your life and subconscious desires, the gradual changes you make can last a lifetime.
The best strategies for big changes are adaptable to you. The worst strategies for big changes tell you to suck it up and follow directions if you want results. If you’re mailing a letter, sure, follow directions, but if you’re attempting to overhaul the way you’ve lived for decades, you’re going to need more than a list of foods, an exercise plan, and a pat on the back. You need a strategy that can meet you where you are subconsciously and integrate changes into your life as seamlessly as possible.
Now it’s time to delve into that strategy. We’ll begin with food.
6
Food Strategy
Here’s a List of Foods to Eat and Avoid.
Just Kidding. Let’s Do Something Smarter.
“Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.”
~ Viktor Frankl
If you want to give this strategy a try, you are allowed to eat any food whenever you want. No limits. Nothing is forbidden. You can eat unhealthy food. There’s no calorie counting. It’s all up to your discretion.
We’re using a pro-healthy-food strategy, rather than the common anti-unhealthy-food strategy. When you rely on food avoidance rules, your willpower and motivation to adhere to them will almost certainly fail you at some point, and then it gets awkward. Once you’ve failed, do you reinstate the rule immediately? Do you try a different plan? Many people give up once they “break the seal” and eat even more forbidden food than usual.
Food bans actually make the banned food more desirable in the long term, as we’re psychologically drawn to things we can’t have. A formal ban also suggests that this food is so desirable that your only chance is to force yourself to stay away from it. It’s the wrong approach, because it increases the perceived value of low-quality food.
The true goal is to eat healthy food, anyway. Eating is mostly a zero sum game, in that if you’re eating healthy food all day, you won’t have room left to fit in other food. Some people fear eating healthy food, thinking they’ll continue to eat the same amount of unhealthy food and therefore eat even more calories. This is not true to a relevant extent, because healthy food WILL take up some room in your stomach and it’s very satiating on a per calorie basis.
Besides, cutting out unhealthy food 100% with no exceptions is not sustainable or desirable for most people. It may sound crazy, but it’s better to fully allow junk food so that you’ll be able to eat less of it long term.
You probably have some questions about this approach, such as: How is this different from the typical person not on a diet who already allows unhealthy food and eats it excessively?
Live Between Banning and Mindless Eating
To control food intake, people initially try banning it, causing them to cycle between total abstinence and out-of-control bingeing. You will gain control of your diet by finding a sustainable place between those extremes. Whatever you attempt to do in order to improve your body must be completely and unquestionably sustainable. Trying to do too much will make it worse.
The New York Times said of Danny Cahill, former contestant of The Biggest Loser: “Mr. Cahill, 46, said his weight problem began when he was in the third grade. He got fat, then fatter. He would starve himself, and then eat a whole can of cake frosting with a spoon. Afterward, he would cower in the pantry off the kitchen, feeling overwhelmed with shame.”132 This type of shame- and deprivation-driven cycle is not only a horrible experience, but it’s also an extremely poor strategy that results in binges and a waistline that expands like a scared pufferfish. For food and life in general, the harder you directly try to suppress your desires, the stronger they’ll become.
A no-cake run that ends in a cake binge is far more weight-gaining than not dieting at all. On the other hand, consistently choosing to eat cake less often or in smaller portions can result in a big, permanent, and positive change that can be further improved. Also, when you consciously and mindfully eat cake, you might decide in hindsight that it isn’t worth it, and that could help you choose differently next time. The transition from a person who always eats unhealthy food to a person who allows it but usually chooses not to have it is first mindfulness and then new habits.
A great “side effect” of having mini habits is increased mindfulness of your food and movement choices every day. Being mindful of your behavior means you’ll be better able to control it. You’ll know your triggers. You’ll be cognizant of what you need to do.
Even if you do just one minute of jogging in place per day, you’ll be more mindful of exercise. Even if you only drink one glass of water at a specified time every day, you’ll be more mindful of your subsequent beverage choices. One mini habit in your breakfast routine will make you more mindful about your other meals. If there was only one change a person could choose to make for their weight loss journey, the right choice would be increased mindfulness. It helps change bad, mindless habits back into decisions we make and keeps us looking for other opportunities to make progress.
When you combine mindfulness about your food decisions with a positive drive forward to eat real foods, the effect is a small and consistent change in the right direction. The power in this change is exceptionally more potent than it will ever seem, because, unlike temporary change, sustainable changes compound over time.
No Limits Means Smarter Choices
I allow myself to eat unhealthy food in any amount, but rarely choose to do so. Because of gradual changes I’ve made to my diet, I now generally prefer the benefits and taste of unprocessed, nature-made food.
One day, I ate at a Greek restaurant, and my side choice was fries or a salad. This is a classic weight loss decision between foods at two ends of the spectrum. (I don’t need to lose weight, but my desire to be healthy rivals the desire of people wanting to lose weight, so it was a similar situation.) I had been eating very healthy food for a while, so I decided to splurge and order the fries. But then I started fantasizing about the salad. This isn’t a joke, it’s a true story. I ended up getting the salad when I planned to get the fries, and this sort of thing now happens frequently in my life (and need I remind you, I am a former candy and fast food addict).
This is exactly the reverse of what typically happens with people who have unhealthy eating habits, isn’t it? They try to order the salad, but fantasize about the fries and get those instead. It’s no different from my salad story; it’s just the opposite habit driving the decision.
If I had told myself that I absolutely can’t have fries because they’re unhealthy, the little bit of desire I had for them would have increased dramatically. It would have been a choice between the boring salad I’m “supposed to eat” and the forbidden, delicious fries that I can’t have. See how that perspective pushes us in the wrong direction?
Don’t underestimate the power of habit to change your preferences. Notice that my salad story above is not about me overcoming an insatiable desire for fries and heroically choosing the salad. I’m not lying to you when I say I’m lazier and have lower willpower than most people. I didn’t overcome anything and I’m not a hero, I just preferred the salad, which exemplifies why successful weight loss is not a willpower fight.
It is possible for you to plan on eating junk food and desire healthier food when the time comes. If people could fully understand and experience how much easier and more effective it is to target their habits to change their preferences than to fight themselves, they’d drop the diets and cleanses and prioritize habit formation. I hope this book helps make that happen.
Habits are our preferences, and, if we’re smart, we can shape them to work for us instead of against us. Contrast the effortlessness of habit-driven behavior to the person who tries to win through sheer willpower, suppressing their food choices and calorie consumption for days, weeks, or months. Those who attempt to win through brute force work much harder, but those who leverage habits work smarter to get much farther.
Self-responsibility is dying because of all the systems we rely upon today. We eat the food produced by the food systems in place. When attempting weight loss, we eat things labeled “diet.”
These systems take away our control, which can limit our sense of responsibility for our lives. There’s nothing wrong with following a system if the system brings you the right results. If a system does not produce the right results, it’s our job to get out of it and take back control and responsibility.
Ideally, we’d accept 100% responsibility at all times for all things, but it takes time and energy (two limited resources) to assume full responsibility for something, so we end up selectively choosing what we’re going to focus on.
So many people are overweight today because they rely on the world’s food systems, which are highly obesogenic. The diet and weight loss systems that are supposed to “fix” the problem are even more broken and ineffective. With two failing systems, we need to take 100% of our responsibility back to get healthy and lose weight.
The way to take back responsibility is to question everything. Is food coloring safe to eat? What does potassium sorbate do in the human body? What happens to oils when they’re heated to high temperatures? Will this diet product actually help me or just give me a short-term result and false hope? Is this fruit smoothie really 100% raw fruit blended up, with nothing else added? These are questions that the typical person does not ask, does not care to ask, or doesn’t have the time, energy, or expertise to answer. These questions matter, not just for being at a healthy weight, but for being in good health and minimizing your risk for disease.
Many see good health as the single most important part of a high-quality life. Those already in decent to good health might not say that, but those in poor health understand its supreme importance. That’s just to say that this particular area is worth taking full responsibility over, regardless of where you currently stand in weight and health.
Think about this: Dieting trains people to give up their responsibility by following a set of rules. This book will arm you with strategies and ask you to take full responsibility for your food choices outside of your daily mini habits. Those who take back responsibility and stop pressuring themselves to eat perfectly and instead look to make small, sustainable, and reasonable changes will succeed.
Take full responsibility for your weight and health from this point on, and never give it away. If we could trust things labeled low-calorie, diet, low-fat, no carbs, etc., then we wouldn’t have to think about food and we’d all be thin. The next section is called “How They Trick Ya.” You’ll see why those who trust food corporations end up sick and fat.
Some people see the word “diet” on a food product, assume it helps them lose weight, and drop their responsibility on the spot. They will continue to gain weight. There is no regulation for labeling a product “diet,” and even if there were, it would probably be based on the calorie content of the product, not the total weight impact of the product.
The Modern Challenge of Healthy Living
The current difficulty of living a healthy lifestyle is the unfortunate result of what many societies worldwide are becoming and have become. American society in particular has demanded convenience and branding over simple healthy eating. We the people are to blame, just as much as the corporations. No-added-sugar products don’t typically sell as well as those with added sugar, which is why those products are now hard to find. That’s the sign of an entire society not taking responsibility for their food choices, because, if taste is the highest or only factor, high sugar products will sell the best (and they do).
While making it easier to live well is the basis of our strategy, taking full responsibility for yourself is the one thing you must do that cannot be made easier. Nobody else can do it for you. You must own what you eat and own how active you are. How can anyone not eat healthy food if they make it the most important thing? Many have delegated their personal responsibility for their health and well-being to grocery stores, restaurants, and the government—they are too busy making money and governing, respectively, to take responsibility for individual health.
If you take responsibility (which, in most cases, is as easy as being generally skeptical of food and looking at ingredients to know what you’re eating), and set up some mini habits, you will succeed. But you need to know what you’re up against. Food is big business, and therefore, deception is rampant. Let’s talk about how they deceive us.
If a food corporation uses phrasing that seems healthy but has a potential loophole, their product is almost certainly unhealthy and to be avoided. Sometimes, actually healthy qualities will be listed, but it doesn’t mean it’s a healthy product, as processed food can hit you from so many angles. In this section, I’ll give you a few examples of trickery used to deceive customers into thinking a food is healthier than it really is.
If you read any of these on a package, pull the alarm, because a company is probably trying to trick you into making a poor decision. Every time you pick up a food item, skip the branding on front, flip it over, and look at the ingredients. Here’s some reasons why you shouldn’t trust everything you read on the front packaging. There are far more examples than the ones listed below, but these will give you an idea of what we’re up against.
100% Wheat!
What a person might think: 100% wheat! Perfect! This is the type of healthy wheat product I should be eating.
What it means: The product does not contain millet or quinoa (useless information). Saying 100% wheat does NOT mean that the wheat is whole, that there aren’t other ingredients, and that it hasn’t been refined and processed into oblivion.
Multigrain!
What a person might think: Yes! A lot of healthy grains for me!
What it means: More than one grain is used. They can still be refined, devoid of nutritional content, and doctored with caramel coloring to make them look like whole grains. A very popular sandwich chain has a nine-grain bread with the first two ingredients being “whole wheat flour and “enriched flour.” Enriched flour means refined white flour. Then, it goes on to list the other eight grains in the 2% or less category. It’s basically a combination of whole wheat and white bread, with trace amounts of other grains. Technically, it contains nine grains, but aside from some whole wheat, it contains more white bread than the other eight grains combined! It’s white bread wearing healthy-looking make-up.
Made with whole grains!
What a person might think: This product is 100% whole grains!
What it means: Whole grains are somewhere on the list of ingredients, probably right after the refined grains (which make up most of the food). The magical phrase to look for when it comes to bread or pasta is 100% whole grain. That’s what you want to see. Anything else is a loophole. And of course, any ultra-processed foods, even those made with 100% whole grains, are still not ideal.
Made with (100%) real cheese!
What a person might think: This product is mostly real cheese.
Wheat it means: Real cheese is used, but it might account for 2% of the total product. This is common practice with cheese crackers, which contain a little bit of cheese and a lot of refined flour.
Low Fat!
What a person might think: This product is healthy and good for weight loss.
What it (probably) means: High sugar! High sodium! High in preservatives! Highly processed! Highly unhealthy! Highly profitable!
Extra Virgin Olive Oil!
Olive oil’s health benefits are top tier when it comes to fats, and it’s an ideal choice for weight loss. If you’re after the health benefits, you should only consider buying extra virgin olive oil, which is made by crushing olives (other oils are often heated and processed with chemicals). Since extra virgin olive oil has become a big business in high demand, it has attracted corruption, and your bottle of extra virgin olive oil might not be so pure. Whereas the other prior cases were misleading, but technically true, this is a case of pure deception.
UC Davis collaborated with the International Oil Council to analyze 186 olive oil samples in two studies over two years. In the second study, they found that, of the five top-selling imported bottles of extra virgin olive oil in the United States, 73% of samples failed the IOC sensory panel. “Sensory defects are indicators that these samples are oxidized, of poor quality, and/or adulterated with cheaper refined oils.”133 As for the latter, extra virgin olive oil is sometimes mixed with cheaper, unhealthy, refined oils like canola or soybean oil. They also tested the fatty acid profile to distinguish real olive oil from other nut/seed oils.
If you just want to know the brands that passed the tests as real, pure, and quality 100% extra virgin olive oil, the two brands that passed all tests in all 18 samples were California Olive Ranch and Cobram Estate. Lucini was third, with 16 of 18 samples passing the tests. If you want to see the full study, you can see it here. Consumer reports did a similar study, with very few brands making the mark (once again, California Olive Ranch and Lucini were among the winners).134
Based on these results, I decided to purchase a bottle of California Olive Ranch extra virgin olive oil. It smelled like no other olive oil I’ve tried—very rich and aromatic, and clearly the real deal. The last oil I tried was an organic Mediterranean blend and it didn’t have that type of rich aroma. I highly recommend going with one of the above-listed brands for your olive oil. I have no affiliation with California Olive Ranch or any incentive to promote them or any other olive oil company. Honest companies deserve to be talked about.
When a soccer player wants to improve his kicking mechanics, he doesn’t slap himself in the face if he kicks the ball incorrectly; he practices kicking it correctly. If he can learn the correct kicking technique and continue to practice that, it will become a stronger habit than any of his former poor techniques, and he’ll have improved his game. This is a simple, obvious, and straightforward process. But how many people when dieting try to use guilt and punishment to motivate themselves to eat the right things? How many people make their food choices into a moral battle between “good” and “bad” foods, rather than just practicing healthy eating?
Perhaps it’s hard to see that eating is like every other behavior, in that it’s tied to habitual processes. The way to change your diet is to practice the new diet you’d like to have, not to forbid certain foods and hope you can resist. That bears repeating. You change your diet by practicing the new diet you’d like to have, not by forbidding unhealthy foods.
Let’s assume that you’re currently a candy-eating, soda-guzzling, fast food hall-of-famer. Do you really think that avoiding these foods is the answer? All that would do is leave you hungry and frustrated. If instead you learn to enjoy healthy foods, you’ll begin to prefer them. Our dietary preferences aren’t as innate as we think they are. They can change.
Habit Reversal without Rules
To break poor eating habits, we must make them into conscious decisions again. It’s the opposite process of forming a good habit, which is to make conscious decisions into subconscious non-decisions. Instead of making a decision conscious again, most people go with the dieting strategy and “forbid their habit.” Forbidding a core part of your behavioral framework is not smart.
If my rule is that I can’t eat ice-cream, that gives me some incentives to eat it. Eating ice-cream would demonstrate my autonomy, show I’m more powerful than the rule, make me feel like I’m in control, and I’d get to eat delicious ice-cream. Sign me up! That’s awfully appealing for something that’s supposed to dissuade me. Poorly designed rules like this may trigger our desire for control and backfire on us.
Just as processed food becomes more desirable when you forbid it, healthy food struggles with appeal when it becomes the food you “have to eat.” It’s important to grasp the following concept: People who eat a healthy diet long-term do not need to forbid themselves unhealthy food or force feed themselves healthy food. They just prefer healthy food. This is attainable for you too.
While following the mini habits plan, you can eat cheeseburgers, pizzas, fries, and candy, and drink soda or diet soda. In the meantime, you’ll have some mini habits to shift your preferences. To an outsider, it may seem absurd, but that’s because we’re ignoring superficial change and going for the roots—your habitual dietary preferences.
Once you lose some weight and feel better by eating better food, your perspective of ultra-processed goods will change. As your palate adjusts to the delicious spices and flavors of nutritious food, you’ll wonder why you were so focused on not eating certain foods in the past when you have so many delicious alternatives to enjoy.
The Pimento Cheese Disaster
I was lying in my bed one night when I suddenly sat up, leaned over the edge of my top bunk, and vomited all over my favorite Detroit Lions pillow below me. You may think I was giving my opinion of their performance on the football field, but no, I was sick with food poisoning. It was the beginning of a miserable couple of days. Earlier that day, I had eaten pimento cheese. It wasn’t as fresh as I had hoped.
To this day, I dislike pimento cheese. Before that night, I didn’t think pimento cheese was the greatest food ever, but I liked it. The pimento cheese incident changed my preference because of the power of association. I associate pimento cheese with food poisoning. Other factors that can affect our food preferences include: texture, appearance, smell, memories, beliefs, health impact, energy impact, gastrointestinal impact (beans, anyone?), and social influence (a common driver of alcohol consumption). Our food preferences involve many more factors than just taste.
Are Preferences Innate or Learned?
Much of the world is at least semi-addicted to salt. Processed and restaurant food comes loaded with salt, and some people still pour extra salt on top of that. Is this salt affinity an innate desire? Of course not. We don’t need that much salt to live and we’re not born loving it—we’re taught to like it.
Study: “Newborn infants generally display an aversion or indifference to moderate levels of salt, and it is not until age 2-3 that they prefer salty tastes. Similar effects are observed in low salt intake groups following initial experience with high salt diets, suggesting that at any point during the lifespan the introduction of a high salt diet induces an initial aversion and thereafter requires a period of habituation.”135
This is bigger than salt. We perform the behaviors that bring us rewards, and from a young age, society trains us to enjoy the foods that cause obesity—high salt, high fat, high sugar foods. Salt, fat, and sugar aren’t unhealthy naturally; they’re unhealthy in unnatural states and amounts. If you eat a processed food, it’s nearly guaranteed to have unnecessary amounts of salt, sugar, and/or fat. At first, we’re likely to find this somewhat repulsive. Have you ever tasted something too sweet, too salty, or too rich? If you ate it frequently enough, it would become normal to you.
We’ve become habituated to eating foods that overdo everything. Flavors, sugars, salt, and fats burst forth from these lab concoctions onto our tongues and overstimulate us. Sensory overstimulation has become not only acceptable, but an expected part of eating.
How to Change Your Food Preferences
The following is just my anecdotal experience, and it’s probably not the same as your experience, but I’m not unique in the fact that my dietary preferences can change.
I had a legendary sweet tooth. I liked sweet food so much that I’d eat non-food items if they were sweet. I vividly remember my sister yelling, “Mom! Stephen ate my Mini Mouse chapstick again!” That was my favorite flavor. I’d also take Tums, gummy vitamins, and candy I snagged from the grocery store into my room. I’d crawl under my bed and eat my forbidden treasures sneakily. (I don’t know how I survived childhood.)
I used to love candy and hate kale. Now I dislike candy and enjoy kale. I used to hate sauerkraut. Now I enjoy it. I used to eat at the worst fast food restaurants. Now I never do. I used to drink soda with meals. Now I always drink water.
Food preferences can and will change if there’s a reason for change combined with the right approach. I have a healthy diet now, and I’m the guy with weak willpower who loved candy.
You’re going to find that, with the complete freedom to eat unhealthy food, it’s going to lose a lot of its power over you. Guilt and shame compel us to self-destruct, and when you remove them by making all food fair game, you can make better decisions. By combining this approach with daily mini habits and situational strategies, weight-gaining foods will look differently to you than they ever have before.
I still eat unhealthy foods, but infrequently and in small amounts. When you regain your sensitivity for sugar, salt, and the like, it will take much less of it to satisfy you. I used to pile several scoops of ice-cream into a large cup because bowls couldn’t hold enough. Now I rarely eat ice-cream, but when I do, one scoop satisfies me. I never deprive myself. My tastes have just naturally changed, not by banning ice-cream, but by increasing my consumption of healthy food. Once I realized I liked frozen fruit with cinnamon and peanut butter nearly as much as ice-cream, I stopped buying ice-cream.
The Belief and Experience Paradox
If someone must experience change to believe it’s possible, but won’t try to change if they don’t yet believe it’s possible, how can they change? Once you’re inside this circle, positive change and belief (self-efficacy) will feed each other. But which comes first, belief or change? Or rather, which one is the better foundation?
Start the change, and belief will follow. Mini habits can enact real change, even with little or no belief, because they begin the change and make you believe.
It wasn’t until my one push-up mini habit morphed into a consistent gym habit that I actually believed I could build meaningful amounts of muscle. After dabbling in weight lifting off and on for 3-5 years and seeing nearly nonexistent results, how could I believe? Likewise, how can you believe changing your eating habits will change your weight after dabbling in healthy eating for years and seeing no difference? It takes more than dabbling to see the true effect of a new course of action.
The one perceived benefit of a crash diet or cleanse is that rapid weight results can spark belief, but getting rapid results without sustainability is harmful in the long run to your metabolism and your belief that you can change. Why? This “benefit” turns into a downside once you start eating normally again and regain the (mostly water) weight—you’ll go right back to thinking that real change isn’t possible. And ironically, you’ll think, “If this sudden massive change wasn’t enough, then there’s no hope.” Your problem was that you attempted a massive change—the brain and body don’t like that.
The brain and body like seamless, easy changes, so let’s start there.
The significant advantage that processed foods have always had over healthy foods is their convenience. A bag of chips can sit on your shelf for months, and it is ready to eat the instant you want it. That’s easy. Cutting a piece of fruit—one of the easier preparations of healthy food—is comparably difficult.
A healthy meal could mean two hours or more of cooking and cleaning, and if you don’t cook the ingredients in time, they may spoil! But there are many ways to make healthy eating as easy (or almost as easy) as eating processed food.
I’m both a bona-fide “health nut” and certified lazy person. This is tricky, because healthy living is generally difficult to do in the USA. This conundrum has forced me to be creative. With these two traits, I’ve had to learn how to make healthy living really easy, or else I’d self-destruct from frustration. Here are some practical ways to make the right choices competitive with the typically easier weight-gaining choices.
Make it Easy Meal Ideas
Buy a rotisserie chicken and use the meat in various dishes through the rest of the week. Rotisserie chickens will last at least 3-4 days in the refrigerator. If you have a family to feed, you’ll go through one in no time.
Buy frozen vegetables that you can microwave or cook on the stovetop quickly. Frozen food in general is fantastic, because it retains all of the nutritional value of fresh produce, it doesn’t go bad for a very, very long time, and it’s easy to prepare.
Master the stir-fry! I favor broccoli, so I’ll cook the (frozen) broccoli in a pan with coconut or olive oil, add multi-purpose seasoning (without salt), pepper, ginger, and turmeric, and when it’s nearing completion, I toss in some of the pre-cooked chicken to warm it up. It’s a healthy and satiating meal. It’s easy, it’s delicious, and it’s fast (maybe 10-20 minutes to prepare). Finding simple healthy routines like this is essential for weight loss, and it’s something you’ll want to think about a lot, because it makes a big difference. Here are a few more tips.
Learn some slow cooker recipes. Throw it all in the pot and come back when it’s ready.
My breakfast is often eggs, cheese, bread, and avocado. Eggs are very easy to prepare for breakfast. If you’re really in a hurry, you can microwave them in one minute. There are a number of microwave cookers specially designed for eggs. I have the Nordic Ware Microwave Egg Boiler; it boils four eggs in eight minutes and the shells come off easily. These days, I cook eggs in a pan (olive oil) because it’s fast, easy, and tastes better.
Dessert? Frozen fruit is one of the single greatest weight loss inventions in history. It may sound ridiculous, but having to cut fruit is enough resistance for many people (like me) to not eat it. Frozen fruit is already cut and ready to eat. Whenever I want a sweet snack, I’m happy, because my freezer is fully stocked with a variety of frozen fruits. These are good enough to eat right out of the bag, but you can also combine them with whole plain yogurt (which makes for an excellent breakfast, snack, or dessert).
My go-to dessert is a bowl of frozen fruit (usually mangoes, strawberries, and blueberries) with a generous amount of cinnamon on top. It tastes as good as any dessert I’ve had, and it’s extremely healthy and weight loss-friendly. When the fruit thaws about halfway, it tastes glorious, and don’t forget that fruit is one of the best foods for weight loss (according to both theoretical and observational science).
This is just what I do to make healthy eating easy. There are thousands of other ideas to make food healthier, easier to prepare, and more delicious than you thought possible. But you must look for them. When I wanted to have healthier breakfasts, I researched the easiest ways to prepare eggs. When I wanted to cook more meals at home, I researched and found that cooking meat and veggies in a pan is fast and easy. Whatever your needs, there is certainly an easy solution out there.
Before I cooked my own food, I always assumed it was difficult and took a long time. I’ve since discovered that it can be quick and easy. If you’re averse to cooking, start with the easiest dishes like the ones I’ve mentioned here, and see if it’s as bad as you thought. If you still think cooking is the worst thing in the world, then consider a healthy meal delivery service. You can get home-cooked, healthy meals delivered to you in more places than ever. Most of them cater to health-conscious individuals, so you won’t get a lot of the fattening additives that restaurants use.
Instant, Permanent, Easy Substitutions
There are a few easy substitutions that everyone can make immediately for long-lasting benefits. These substitutions can take you far all on their own and they don’t “cost” you anything. You make the decision once and live life as usual.
Switch to whole grain products. It’s astonishing how much better whole grains are for you than refined grains. It’s not “a little bit better.” Whole grains are a quality food, and refined grains are weight-gaining. Whole grains have more antioxidants, fiber, and nutrients, and are slower to digest. If you don’t think they taste as good as their refined counterparts (like white rice and white flour), you can learn to enjoy them as much or more. Tip: Think about the health benefits of the food as you eat it. I believe this is what changed my mind about sauerkraut and kale.
Exclusively use coconut oil and olive oil for cooking. You know that one oil you always cook with? Coconut oil and olive oil are better for your health and your waistline. They have great flavor, too!
Use olive oil, herbs, spices, and vinegar for dressings and dips. We want things to taste good, but that doesn’t mean we have to gain weight with the standard “soybean oil and sugar” dressings sold in grocery stores. Olive oil and balsamic vinegar make for a great salad dressing. You can also add black pepper, herbs, cheese, and spices to flavor salads. If you’re having (whole grain) garlic bread, olive oil and fresh garlic will make you dance.
Need dip? Go for hummus and guacamole! Ranch dressing is soybean oil with make-up on. Instead, use hummus or guacamole for a veggie dip. Healthy hummus and guacamole can be prepared and even store-bought (read the ingredients!).
Use large forks and small plates. If you want to change your dinnerware to psychologically help with portion control, the right combination is small plates and large forks, which have both been shown in studies to lead to less food consumption. It’s worth mentioning because it’s a one-time change that could help, but mindful eating is more important. You can do well, even if you’re unfortunate enough to have small forks and large plates.
Since portion size is less important than eating quality food, it’s probably not worth throwing out all of your dishes in favor of a smaller set. Rather, simply be aware that plate and bowl size affects your portion choices, and adjust accordingly. But try to pick enough food. One study showed that people ate less when they “filled their plate” with enough food, instead of going back for seconds.
Whatever you do, try not to let plate size determine your satiety. Believe your body when it tells you it’s had enough, regardless of how much food remains on the plate. Buy some Tupperware and practice saving food for later when you’re satisfied. It’ll be there when you’re hungry again.
Never require yourself to finish or “clean” your plate. It would be interesting to know the statistics on how many people eat with the goal to finish all of the food. Logically, using the amount of food that’s on your plate to determine how much you eat doesn’t make any sense, especially at restaurants, since they determine your serving size.
Think about two opposing eating habits: When you’re served a plate of food, one possible habit is to attempt to eat everything on it. Another possible habit is to disregard the serving size and eat the precise amount your body tells you to eat, no more and no less. If you have the plate-finishing habit, that means you have been ignoring your body’s signals. Put another way, it means you’re probably way out of sync with your body’s satiety signaling. If you ignore what your body is telling you in favor of the almighty “finish the plate” goal, that’s exactly the behavior you’ll get good at. The good news is that your body still sends these signals; you just have to decide to pay closer attention.
Finishing the food on your plate is less important than your health and well-being. Wouldn’t you agree? To clarify, this isn’t about eating fewer calories. Healthy people aim for neither calorie restriction nor calorie surplus.
Successful weight loss requires no counting, monitoring, or micromanagement of portion sizes. All it requires is that you eat mindfully. Mindful eaters never aim to finish their plate, because their decision is internally based. They may or may not end up finishing, but it has nothing to do with the amount of food on their plate and everything to do with what their body is telling them.
As for when to stop eating, eat to satisfaction, not to explosion. Overeating is a cultural and habitual practice. In Japan, there’s a popular concept called “hara hachi bu,” which basically means “eat to 80% fullness.” This is a solid guideline, and it isn’t semi-starvation. When you stop at 80% fullness, you’ll enjoy the whole eating experience more. Inflammation and hormonal issues can disrupt the way your satiety signaling operates, but this is best treated by mindfully eating healthy foods as a staple.
A great strategy for alcohol consumption is to simultaneously drink water. If you have several drinks in a night for fun, I’m not going to stop you, and you might not stop yourself, so instead of counting the night as a loss, make an effort to drink water too. This will help keep you hydrated, prevent hangovers, and minimize the damage of drinking too much alcohol.
One of the biggest risks for alcohol is how it might impact your food eating habits. It lowers inhibition and may increase your appetite for weight-gaining foods. I recommend looking at your previous behavior to form your strategy.
If you find yourself overdoing alcohol whenever you begin drinking, try to drink less often, to minimize your alcohol-related weight gain. If you always stop at one or two drinks, then you’re probably fine, unless drinking causes poor eating habits, in which case you can either try to reroute your habits (with the temptation strategy we’ll cover later) or drink on fewer nights.
The preceding information is something to keep in mind, but not a “mandatory” part of this strategy. The following mini habit ideas will be the foundation of your successful change into a healthier person.
When you’re down, sick, or have low energy, your mini habits are easy enough to accomplish. When you’re full of energy and motivation to change, you’ll have bonus activities to further your progress. You’ll act more consistently and intelligently than you ever have before, because your goal will finally be adaptable to you, allowing you to achieve precisely what you are able to each day. Unlike most strategies, which require a superhuman amount of willpower for consistent success, this strategy is built for success, no matter what state you’re currently (or will be) in.
The Ideal Mini Habit
The ideal mini habit is something extremely easy to do that also begins the process of engagement. For example, one push-up can begin the process of exercising. Eating one raw vegetable can begin the process of eating more vegetables. When you begin a process, you’re likely to continue doing it. Put another way, you’re most likely to do what you just did.
Whether or not you do bonus reps is optional, so don’t feel bad if you don’t. If you never do extra for a full month, then ask yourself if your mini habit really starts the process, or if you need to add in one more step to get engaged with the behavior. Mini habits are sparks. Any spark has the potential to become an inferno.
If you can achieve more on any day, do it. It feels great to overachieve goals, even small ones. We’re used to setting high targets, falling short of them, and feeling inadequate when we do. This time, you’ll meet or exceed your goals every day. Think about the psychological difference: A modest “normal goal” is to run a mile every day. A typical mini habit is to run for 30 seconds. If you run for half a mile, according to the normal goal, you’ve failed. According to the mini habit, you’ve not only succeeded—you’ve done more than expected!
A mini habit encourages progress in any amount. A typical goal suggests that progress is only valuable in large chunks, which is so inaccurate and nonsensical that it makes me angry. Every single thing on planet Earth is comprised of infinitesimally small matter. Every single success can be traced back to small individual steps, so this is a way to align your intentions with the way progress and success naturally work. The only kind of big “chunk wins” possible in life are things like winning the lottery (good luck). All of life’s other wins—such as achieving goals and losing weight—are based on your small daily decisions and actions.
It feels good to win, and when you start to win every day, you will change into a winner. Yeah, it sounds cheesy to say that, but those who win frequently act more confidently and proactively because they learn to expect success, and their success will fuel further success. I call it success cycling.
Many people try to turn motivation into success, but they have it backwards. Success and motivation fuel each other, but the most reliable starting point is success, which leads to motivation, which then leads to more success. The mini habits on this page give you an opportunity for daily success, no matter how unmotivated you may feel. When you string together days, weeks, and months of this success, you’re going to become a better, stronger, more successful version of your current self. The experience is difficult to put into words, because at no point does it seem reasonable that such small behaviors could do so much for one’s life. But they do, and it’s thrilling.
Food Mini Habits
My only fear is that you’ll be disappointed by this list, as it’s quite short and the behaviors are simple. This is a good thing, but it might not feel that way if you’re accustomed to highly demanding, complex weight loss systems that dieting culture has created. This is different, because those don’t work! The strongest strategies are as simple as possible while still being effective.
Within each of these ideas is a massive amount of variation, so you won’t ever be short for options. But the basic ideas are simple because weight loss is accomplished by increased mindfulness, a healthier diet, and increased movement. The way you eat food, your emotional health, and your perspective can also impact your weight (mostly by indirectly affecting those core three factors), so there will be some mini habits related to those.
As you look through these and think about which ones you’d like to try, don’t think about doing them all. You want to have a maximum of four mini habits, such as two food mini habits and one or two fitness mini habits. In chapter eight, we’ll discuss exactly how to integrate these ideas (and the general and fitness mini habits) into your life with a mini habit plan.
Eat one extra serving of fruit: It’s important to know how much one serving is so you know what to aim for. One serving of fruit is one apple, one large cup of berries, one banana, or one orange. It’s also important to always have fruit on hand if this is your mini habit. If you like it as easy as possible like me, buy frozen fruit, as it’s ready to eat and doesn’t spoil. I strongly recommend buying organic berries and peaches, as the conventional ones contain a high amount of pesticides. Berries and peaches are part of the “dirty dozen” (a name for the most pesticide-laden foods). If you buy conventional, rinse well.
Fruit Bonus: Eat additional fruit or add full-fat plain yogurt to your fruit.
Eat one extra serving of fresh vegetables: For some people, aiming to consume one serving of vegetables doesn’t make sense, since they already consume that daily. In that case, you can get more specific, like one serving of raw vegetables or one more serving than is typical. Ideas include: one full carrot, three pieces of broccoli, two pieces of cauliflower, half a bell pepper (red, green, yellow), one celery stick, one fourth of a cucumber, one handful of spinach, eight slices of raw radish, or whatever suits your tastes. If you want, you can count fruits that seem like vegetables as vegetables (e.g., four cherry tomatoes or half an avocado).
If you want dip for your raw vegetables, use hummus, which, in its simplest form, is pureed chickpeas, olive oil, lemon juice, tahini (ground sesame seeds), garlic, salt, and pepper. Another option is guacamole, which is avocado, onions, garlic, tomato, lime, salt, and pepper. Be cautious about buying prepackaged dips from the store, as you may end up getting three bathtubs of salt in every serving, added preservatives (inflammatory), and even sugar. “Vegetable dips” are almost always disguised soybean oil. Eating vegetables covered in soybean oil and other weight-gaining ingredients is not ideal. It may be a stepping stone to the ideal (if that’s the only way you’ll eat them, do it), but it’s not the ideal.
Vegetable Bonus: Eat additional vegetables or go all in with a mega salad!
Make one mini healthy food upgrade: This is a vague mini habit, but in practice, that can be a good thing. Make one small healthy upgrade per day or at mealtime (depending on your plan and cue). Maybe you’re at a restaurant and you swap your typical side of fries for a baked potato, green beans, or a salad. Upgrade! Maybe you’re at home ready to snack it up, and you think to eat chips, but decide to eat some unsalted raw nuts first. Upgrade! Maybe you go for the Cobb salad over lasagna, and you ask the waiter for olive oil and vinegar instead of the usual soybean oil dressing variants. Double upgrade! Every day is full of food decisions, and you don’t need to overhaul them all at once (nor should you try). This strategy cements that correct perspective in your mind by asking you to make one small upgrade of your choosing.
Here’s the opposite of an upgrade: skipping meals and not eating when you’re hungry. The next time you think to make yourself hungry as a way to lose weight, read the introduction of this book again. It will remind you that artificially restricting calories is a weight-gaining move. If it’s 11 PM and you’re usually hungry at this time, but aren’t feeling hungry on a particular day, then no, you don’t need to eat. Listen to your body. Eat when you’re hungry, don’t when you’re not, and use mini habits to shift how you eat.
Food Upgrade Bonus: Double or triple your upgrade. There’s no upper limit!
Prepare one healthy meal at home: This mini habit is completely dependent on your current situation and habits. Some people always cook at least one meal per day, while others eat out all the time. I suggest breakfast, because it’s very easy to make a healthy breakfast. (Eggs are great for weight loss because they are nutritious and make you feel full.136 Fruit and yogurt are a fine option as well. Add cinnamon!) For many people, this mini habit will be too big to start out with. It depends on your current habits. If you can’t do it every day, don’t try to do it every day. Either choose a different mini habit or aim for five days per week or something like that. Daily mini habits are best for a few reasons (consistency, daily mindfulness, time to habit, etc.), but again, it’s important to make this work for your lifestyle.
Don’t cheat yourself: Most microwave meals aren’t healthy. Cereal and grilled cheese are not weight loss weapons. White pasta and marinara sauce is a weight-gainer (whole wheat pasta and olive oil, though, is a decent choice).
Healthy Meal Upgrade: Prepare another meal, or make enough for healthy leftovers!
Drink one glass of water: Water is a weight loss WEAPON for the reasons we covered earlier. You might think it’s a bad idea to aim for one glass of water per day, because we’re supposed to drink more than that. But pay attention to that thought, because that’s exactly the type of thought we want to be having! Now you’re mindful of how much water you’re drinking per day, and thinking “I can do more than one per day,” instead of feeling overwhelmed by “having to drink 8 glasses per day.” Drinking one glass won’t ever prevent you from drinking another; it will only make you more likely to do so. Remember, the strategy is not the same as the end goal.
Too boring? I like the taste of plain water, but some people like some zing in their drink, and that’s okay. Nature has multiple answers. If you are accustomed to flavored beverages, you can make your transition away from “the dark side” easier by spicing your water up with fruits, spices, and carbonation. Lemons, limes, mint, apples, cinnamon, mango, ginger, cucumber, strawberries, oranges, and basically any other fruit (especially citrus) can liven up your water in a healthy way. Lemon is one of the most popular healthy water additives for good reason. It’s tasty, it’s packed with flavonoids and antioxidants (like Vitamin C), and it won’t take much of it to add flavor.
If this is really important to you (if you drink a lot of sodas, lattes, and the like, then flavoring your water could be crucial to your success), you can buy a water infuser pitcher and you’ll have delicious tasting water ready all day long. You’ll find plenty of infuser options on Amazon. Even if you don’t buy from Amazon, it’s a great place to see reviews. Just throw your fruits, vegetables, and spices into the infuser with some water and put it in the fridge. Don’t forget the cinnamon! Please, never forget cinnamon. (If you have some cinnamon nearby, go over there and smell it. It’s my favorite smell. My family had a cat named Cinnamon, and, as a kid, I used to sing to her. She’d flatten her ears out of love.)
Like most unhealthy foods and drinks, soda’s main advantage is availability. If you infused water with your favorite fruits and spices and always had that available, I bet you could easily move on from cheap syrupy soda. Soda tastes great, but why drink it when you can get delicious beverages without the downsides?
Perhaps you don’t want to go through the trouble of infusing your water with fruits and spices when there are so many ready-made drinks out there. I understand. A very easy and effective alternative is to buy 100% fruit juice, but instead of drinking it straight, add just a little bit of it to a full glass of water to flavor it. You’ll be surprised how refreshing this is, and you won’t be getting an overdose of fructose from drinking 100% fruit juice.
All fruit juices (even 100% fruit juice) are weight-gaining beverages in anything but small quantities. Fruits are one of the best foods for weight loss in their whole form, but they becomes weight-gaining as juices. Just add enough to flavor your water to satisfaction.
Avoid packets of powder for flavor. They all contain sweeteners. I’ve never seen a good one. They can be a decent exercise drink, but not for general drinking.
Water Bonus: Two, three, four glasses of water? Oh, you’re good.
Chew each bite 30+ times: This is per bite, not per mouthful. This practice has multiple benefits: You’ll digest your food easily. You’ll taste and enjoy your meal more. You’ll automatically eat more mindfully. You’ll be nearly guaranteed to eat less because your “I’m full” response will have enough time to register. Set a “chew count” per bite and practice it. Eventually, it will become habitual, just as your current chewing count is habitual.
I’ve tested out the 30 chews per bite mini habit and it’s great. Digestion is much better, the food is more enjoyable, and it’s tougher to overeat. I did find some issues with the flat 30 chews per bite rule. In practice, I would adjust to 15+ bites for softer foods like fruit and 45+ for tougher foods like meat, and I think that’s a good general guideline to follow.
Chewing your food well reduces food consumption for the same satiety and greater satisfaction. That’s a huge, irreplaceable win. A Chinese study found that men of all weights ate about 12% fewer calories when they chewed their food more. Scientifically speaking, they found more chewing resulted in decreased ghrelin levels (the hunger hormone). When left to their natural chewing preferences, the obese men ate more quickly and chewed fewer times. How many more chews did it take to decrease calorie consumption by 12%? 25 more. They started with about 15 chews, and were then instructed to chew 40 times, which resulted in the change.137 In my testing, I found 40 chews to be a bit excessive, and, if it’s a chore to do it, you probably won’t. I find that it works best to require less and encourage bonus chews. That said, if you want to and can chew 40 times, go for it. You can’t overchew food; you can only underchew it.
Chewing Bonus: On any bite, go for more chews. Can you do 50? At higher chew counts, it becomes surprisingly difficult to not swallow your food.
7
Fitness Strategy
Let’s Make it Fun
“Fitness needs to be perceived as fun and games or we subconsciously avoid it.”
~ Alan Thicke
Many overweight people associate exercise with strenuous activity, severe discomfort, and even pain. They think they have to “punish” themselves and their body in order to get the significant fat loss they want. Extreme workouts can definitely bring results, but if the experience worsens your relationship with exercise, those results won’t last.
A study found that those who had internalized the stigma of being overweight had lower self-esteem and avoided exercise.138 This seems paradoxical if you think in terms of simple cause and effect. If a person wants to lose weight, and exercise helps weight loss, why would they avoid exercise? Because they find it uncomfortable. Because they’re overwhelmed by society’s pressure to be thin. Because they think they have to climb 15 mountains before exercise will “show a benefit.” Because they focus on the stigma of being overweight. In summary, it’s because they have the wrong perspective and the wrong relationship with exercise, which makes them not even want to think about it, let alone do it.
What’s more valuable: losing 15 pounds in one month from strenuous exercise you hate or losing no weight in a month but enjoying exercise more than when you started? I hope you said the latter, because it is roughly 198 times superior than any exercise program ever devised. You may question it, because 15 pounds is a good amount of weight, but the return from a healthier relationship with exercise—and the knowledge of how to improve it further—will continue to pay off for the rest of your life. Choosing the 15 pounds in one month would be like taking a one-time payment of $200 now instead of receiving $100 a week for the rest of your life.
Imagine the following. What if you enjoyed exercise? What if you smiled when you thought of it? What if you did it because you wanted to do it, not because you wanted a result from it or felt pressured or shamed into it? This concept is foreign to many people, because exercise is portrayed everywhere as “the way to a flatter stomach” and “the fast track to burning calories and losing weight.” If that’s all exercise is to you now, you’re going to be very excited to find it’s much more than that.
In keeping with our theme, we’re going to focus on our long-term relationship with exercise, rather than on using it to get a short-term result. I’ve done this to transform multiple areas of my life with mini habits. One of those areas was reading. There was a time when reading was a chore I only did when I wanted a specific result from it. Reading to me was like exercise to most people trying to lose weight. Here’s the story.
How I Repaired My Relationship with Reading
When I was younger, I enjoyed reading books, especially the Goosebumps and Choose Your Own Adventure series. Then school happened. Some youth rebel with sex, drugs, and alcohol. I rebelled against homework. Aren’t I wild? I know most kids don’t like homework, but I despised it. I had to spend eight hours a day at school five days a week, and then they tried to take even more of my freedom by giving me busywork at home! No way!
A big portion of my homework was assigned reading. The more I was forced to read for school, the more I resisted. I was rebellious, sure, but this evolved beyond mere rebellion. My relationship with reading had changed. It was no longer a fascinating adventure into a fictional world or an enlightening nonfiction discovery, it became a dull “do it or suffer the consequences” activity. In my own time, I stopped reading for fun.
In college, I was excited to see a British Literature class available in which we would read and discuss books by two of my favorite authors, J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis. I didn’t read a single assigned book that semester.
My subconscious wanted freedom, but from what? Reading was not actually the enemy; it just seemed like it, because it was the tool used to take my freedom away. I only wanted my freedom back. Does that sound familiar to your experience with exercise? If you regularly feel overwhelming pressure to exercise, then you have a broken relationship with it. Society and weight loss books and programs tend to turn exercise from “just moving and using your body” into a resentment-ridden job.
My third ever mini habit was to read two pages in a book per day. It was easy, lightweight, and changed my relationship with reading over time. I read roughly one book a month these days. It’s nothing amazing, I know, but it is relatively amazing considering I used to read, at most, one book per year. I’ve even read thousands of studies researching for my books, because I can do it on my terms. I can do it from a place of freedom.
Within that story is precisely the difference between this book and every other “dieting” book you’ve read. I’m not prescribing you an exercise routine to “torch” calories or “shred your abs.” I’m asking you to work on your relationship with exercise (and food, too), because, if you can change that, you will drive your own results for life. Self-generated results sure beat a 30-day program that leaves you wondering what to do on day 31.
As you read through the suggested types of exercise for weight loss later in this chapter, keep in mind that exercise type is less important than repairing the damage done by seeing it as a job, as punishment for being overweight, or whatever other kind of dysfunctional relationship you may have formed with it.
What is to dislike about exercise, after all? We move every day, and that is exercise. If you dislike exercise, it’s probably the same situation as me and reading, and the solution is to get to know it again without all the baggage.
After exercising in the past, have you noticed that you feel better about yourself? Exercise is intrinsically and biologically rewarding on multiple levels. Other than improving basically every known health marker, it helps you sleep better, improves your sex life, improves your ability to focus, boosts your baseline energy level, feels good (as endorphins are released), chemically improves your mood, and is equal to medication in the treatment of depression and anxiety.139 As some have said before, if exercise were a pill, it would be a blockbuster drug with record-breaking sales.
A long list of exercise benefits is irrelevant if you can’t get yourself to do it. Before my one push-up per day mini habit, I failed to go to the gym consistently for 10 years, so I completely understand the frustration of wanting the benefits but not feeling up to the task. Understand that a lack of motivation to exercise is determined by your subconscious mind, and you can change it with an exercise mini habit.
This is critical: the end result is ultimately determined by the goal, but it is not dependent on the goal. The goal matters, but not in the way people think it does. In the push-up story, you might recall that when I aimed for 30 minutes (goal), I got nothing (result). But when I aimed for one push-up (goal), I got 30 minutes (result). The goal and result are nearly opposites, showing the counterintuitive nature of behavior change. The explanation, however, is simple—failure demoralizes us and success motivates us.
If you set a small goal and meet it, you’ve already succeeded on a small level. You can stack these small wins indefinitely, and you’ll end up with a bucket of small wins adding up to a huge win. But if you get greedy, aim for the big win right away, and fail for whatever reason, you’ll feel discouraged. In many cases, the initial failure is motivation, which we cannot fully control. It continuously baffles me that this boneheaded strategy is the mainstream way that we’re taught to pursue goals. I believe we get “dream big” confused with the strategies needed to reach those dreams. If you want to succeed at something, dream big and take small actions repeatedly (not “dream big” and “take massive action”).
A mini habit is a unique challenge in that it’s fun(ny). You’re going to be thinking, “I can’t believe I’m aiming for one push-up a day,” or “Walk to the end of my driveway? Am I seriously doing this? I hope my neighbors don’t ask me what I’m doing out here.” Laughing at your exercise goals is quite a change from the traditional daunting approach.
In addition to your exercise mini habit, you will be encouraged to do “bonus reps,” but that’s completely up to you. If you do extra, you’ll be doing it because you want to do it (autonomy), not because of some arbitrary, controlling rule. The small size of the mini habit means you won’t feel controlled by it, and the flexibility for bonus reps will supercharge your sense of autonomy because it’s choice-driven instead of goal-driven. You can use whatever momentum, motivation, or willpower you have at your disposal to do additional exercise.
On the days you need a break, you can do your mini habit and walk away with a win. Even the minimum mini habit is a win if done daily because it is enough to change your subconscious feelings about exercise. Not only are you practicing frequent exercise, but you’re also practicing the small step habit, or the idea that even a small step forward is useful. This will gradually replace any residual beliefs you may have about exercise being miserable and only useful in large amounts. I hope this makes sense in text form, because in practice it will blow your mind (in time, since we are talking about brain change).
Most experts speak of how exercise is less important than diet in the weight loss battle, and that’s true in the short term. You can’t outrun a poor diet. In 30 minutes of running, you can burn about 400 calories (depending on your pace and weight), which only amounts to a single Burger King cheeseburger.
Athletes Michael Phelps (swimming) and J. J. Watt (American football) both train for several hours on some days. They have something else extraordinary in common. Both of these athletes have been said to consume more than 9,000 calories a day while training! Despite eating more than three times as much as a typical person, they don’t get fat, because their metabolism burns through those calories like a bonfire burns through Uncle Jesse’s marshmallow. If you were to try to calculate the calories burned from their training, you’d get a number well under 9,000 calories, because many of those calories are burned at rest. Metabolism matters more than calories, which is why these guys can eat like horses and not get fatter, while another person starves herself on 800 calories a day and gets fatter soon after, because of increased appetite and decreased metabolism.
Phelps and Watt have a lifestyle of training, but the average person needn’t adopt such an extreme exercise plan—we can make big strides with incrementally more active lifestyles than we currently have. The lesson isn’t that we need to exercise for seven hours a day, it’s that our general lifestyle determines our metabolism. While it is important to exercise for overall health, it’s not as important as being active for weight loss. Today, we seem to think a healthy lifestyle is to remain motionless for 23.5 hours, and then run for 30 minutes on a treadmill. A 30-minute session on the treadmill counts for a lot, but so do the other 23 hours and 30 minutes of the day. According to juststand.org, 86% of Americans sit all day at work. This can easily change.
The Mortality of Sitting
In 2003, 6,329 study participants over the age of six were given an activity monitor. On average, participants wore the monitor for 13.9 hours. Here’s what they found: “Overall, participants spent 54.9% of their monitored time, or 7.7 hours/day, in sedentary behaviors.”140 Estimates for daily sitting range from 8 hours to as high as 15 hours for some people.
Studies on prolonged sitting:
Basically, studies show that sitting for long periods of time is lethal. But it’s also a missed opportunity to lose weight. In 2005, 10 lean and 10 obese volunteers were given underwear that tracked their body position every 0.5 seconds. (Who comes up with these ideas?) The magic underwear data showed that obese people sat two and a half more hours per day. Researchers said, “If obese individuals adopted the NEAT-enhanced behaviors of their lean counterparts, they might expend an additional 350 calories (kcal) per day.”144
The acronym NEAT stands for “non-exercise activity thermogenesis.” It represents all of the calorie burning your body does outside of intentional exercise. You are constantly using energy, as it takes energy to breathe, think, move, and circulate blood. How much energy you use outside of exercise is highly variable. Athletes like Michael Phelps and J. J. Watt might burn more calories at rest than some people do while exercising.
I believe that NEAT is an underrated key to weight loss. People are prone to devalue small improvements, such as the calories burned standing as opposed to sitting, but the theme of this book is how small but consistent improvements always create better-than-expected results.
The typical American worker sleeps, wakes up, and immediately begins resting in a chair for the entire day. A small change like standing up for part of your work day could make a big difference, not only in your metabolism, but in your productivity.
Dr. John Buckley, a researcher at the University of Chester, put sitting and standing to the test. He found that standing participants’ hearts beat at 10 more beats per minute. “That makes a difference of about 0.7 of a calorie per minute,”145 Buckley says. I did the math, and that is 42 more calories burned per hour, and that’s only if you don’t dance while standing. If you go beyond standing and lightly exercise on the job, Dr. James Levine says of the various methods of active desk enhancements, “[The obese can] burn about 150 extra calories an hour.”146 The effect is even greater than these calorie numbers, as it will likely improve your baseline metabolism over time (if done consistently).
Sitting isn’t precisely the problem; it’s the fact that most people remain motionless when they sit. There are products out now like the Deskcycle, an exercise bike that fits under your desk so you can pedal while sitting. There’s also a stepper you can place under your desk.
A NEAT Idea
Most NEAT activities take up none of your time. These are alternate ways of living that simply involve you using your body rather than relying on machines and chairs. Standing instead of sitting. Stairs instead of the elevator. Walking instead of driving.
The first focal point should be your job lifestyle, as we spend so many of our waking hours at work. As a writer, I spend a majority of the time at my desk, so I use a product called the Varidesk, a platform you put on top of your existing desk that extends to standing height and back down to desk level. It’s very fast and easy to lift it into standing mode or put it back into sitting mode. While this product is nice to have, it isn’t cheap.
Standing desk solutions don’t have to be expensive. When I first wanted to trying standing up to work, I stacked cardboard boxes on top of my desk. (It didn’t look stylish, but neither do sweatpants.) It was free and it worked fine. I’d move my laptop up and down to switch between sitting and standing.
Consider buying a stand-up desk, treadmill desk, or creating one yourself. Warning: don’t try to stand up the entire work day on day one. You will regret it the next day. Start with an hour or two per day and work your way up to half of the workday. A fatigue mat is very helpful. Talk to your employer; they might be willing to accommodate your needs (it is increasingly common these days, given the startling research on sitting’s dangers and the productivity boost gained from standing).
Standing advice: When at a standing desk, don’t lock your knees and stand still. Move, dance, shift, and change it up. Standing in the same spot for a long time is better than sitting, but it’s not great if you don’t move at all. (This can also be made into a mini habit, as you’ll see at the end of this chapter.)
One of the greatest benefits of a standing desk is how easy it is to walk away from it and come back. If you work in a creative field, then you know the difficulty of creating things. The answers don’t always just “come to you.” Sometimes you need to take a step back. At a standing desk, you can literally do that. I can’t tell you how powerful this subtle freedom has been. While sitting, you could conceivably do the same, but the small extra amount of resistance from having to get up is enough to keep us in our seat on more occasions.
When using a standing desk, I’ve had more energy, my mental sharpness has increased, and my productivity has been effortless at times (something I hadn’t experienced before). Increased productivity while standing is counterintuitive in a way, because standing uses more energy, theoretically leaving less energy for the brain to use. But the way our bodies work is quite different than that surface-level idea. Sitting slows metabolism and standing stokes it. Higher metabolism means higher energy, which is why I’m dancing as I’m typing this. Light activity doesn’t wear us down as much as it jumpstarts all of our systems. For this reason, walkers and joggers often remark that some of their best ideas come during their workouts. If you’re all-out sprinting, then you won’t be able to think about much else, because your body is putting all of its resources toward that action.
When I sit down to work, I feel lazier and waste more time. Sometimes I’ll fall asleep in my chair. Sedentary behavior generates sedentary behavior! While standing, I’ve found my motivation and energy to work are at least double what they are while sitting.
If you’ve explored all avenues and it’s somehow still not possible for you to stand up sometimes at work, set an alarm or chime to go off every hour or half hour, and then get up and move around when it goes off. You can do jumping jacks, push-ups, pace, or even perform a quick jig for the pleasure of anyone nearby. Just a few seconds is enough to awaken your sleepy metabolism from its resting state. While this is simple and easy to do, the impact will not be inconsequential.
However you accomplish it, the goal is to get to a situation in which you aren’t motionless for most of your day. Make it a priority, because it’s important for your health and may help you lose weight. One of the key ways I stay active in my sedentary occupation is my penchant for listening to music throughout the day and dancing to it often.
In the next section, I’ll give you additional (but optional) “mini challenges” if you want to increase your NEAT and raise your resting metabolism. This is the introduction to the strategy we want to pursue. We want to move, and not just while we’re working out, and not in the high-pressure way that weight loss programs prescribe (because that makes people hate being active).
After I moved to Seattle, for the first time in my life, I gained a noticeable amount of fat in my abdominal and love handle area. (Getting fatter while writing a weight loss book was not the plan.) I thought the fat gain was especially odd, as I had been going to the gym more than ever before in my life since moving here! I was, however, trying to eat a lot to gain muscle mass. In addition to eating more, I had stopped playing basketball regularly for the first time in as long as I can remember.
Since I already had an exercise habit in place and I wanted to decrease my body fat, I asked the question that everyone asks when attempting to lose fat: What type of exercise should I do? Should I focus on endurance, continue to lift weights, or go for high-intensity interval training (referred to as HIIT from this point forward)?
Not all exercise is equal for weight loss, and the most popular type might be the least effective. When beginning a new weight loss plan, what do most people do first? They get on the treadmill for endurance training. This sort of moderate exercise has shown to be an inferior way to trigger fat loss.
The Science on Exercising for Weight Loss
A 1989 study looked at the body composition of 18 men and 9 women after training for 18 months to run a marathon. At the end of one year, the men saw a modest 2.4 kg decrease in body fat, but the women were unchanged. Can you imagine running for a year and a half without any fat loss? It wouldn’t be very encouraging!
Exercise physiologist Mary Kennedy ran a pilot study consisting of 64 marathoners, comparing their weight before and after training. Their training was three months of running four days per week. About 11% gained weight, 11% lost weight, and 78% stayed the same.147 This suggests their marathon training had no effect on body weight.
Did these people waste their time? Absolutely not. The benefits of exercise extend far beyond fat loss. But if fat loss is your goal, there are better-suited types of exercise than running at moderate speed on the human version of a hamster wheel.
Research shows that HIIT exercise is the best form of exercise for burning off fat, especially in the abdominal area. So perhaps my problem was that I stopped playing basketball. Full court basketball is similar to HIIT, with its alternating periods of sprinting and active rest.
As a general rule, if you can handle high-intensity exercise—almost every person can handle some form of it—choose that over moderate-intensity cardio. Studies show that high-intensity exercise is very effective for fat loss, especially around the abdomen.148
When a 15-week HIIT program was compared to a 20-week endurance training (ET) program, they found that “the HIIT program induced a more pronounced reduction in subcutaneous adiposity compared with the ET program.”149 The difference was enormous: “The decrease in the sum of six subcutaneous skinfolds induced by the HIIT program was ninefold greater than by the ET program.” If you could get nine times the results in less time, and with less energy expenditure, would you? For less than half the amount of megajoules (an energy measurement unit) expended, HIIT produced nine times the fat loss.150 This means that, for the same amount of energy expended, HIIT was actually 18 times more effective than ET at decreasing fat. Wow.
Another study divided 45 women into three groups: steady state, high intensity, and a control group. Both exercise groups improved their cardiovascular fitness level. “However, only the HIIE [high-intensity intermittent exercise] group had a significant reduction in total body mass (TBM), fat mass (FM), trunk fat and fasting plasma insulin levels.”151
Not convinced yet? (I am.) This next study is the most shocking. Ten men and ten women were split into two groups. One group ran 30-60 minutes on the treadmill three times per week. Another group ran four to six 30-second sprints (that’s only two to three minutes of exercise time) with four minutes of recovery time between sprints, and they also did it three times per week. Fat mass decreased 5.8% in the endurance training group, but in the sprint interval group, fat mass decreased a whopping 12.4%!152 That’s more than twice as much, and in far less time spent exercising. If that’s not enough good news for HIIT, another small study found that intense interval training reduced the appetite of male participants.153 (See the footnote for more details.)154
Lastly, Google “sprinter body vs. marathon body.” Look at the difference in body type between these athletes. Sprinters, male and female, generally have much greater muscle mass than marathoners, who sometimes look emaciated and frail. Brief high-intensity exercise torches body fat without taking your lean muscle with it.
Personally, if I’m going to be pounding my joints for miles at a time, there had better be a payoff. Basketball isn’t easy on the joints, but I love to play it and it keeps me fit. Marathons aren’t fun to most people, and, if you don’t enjoy them, they aren’t worth it. Some studies have even found negative cardiac implications from endurance training,155 including heart scarring.156 For example, a study found that 50% of a group of 12 lifetime marathoners showed signs of heart scarring, while none of the age-matched control group did.157 This is not definite proof that endurance training is harmful. For example, the heart scarring study was about lifetime marathoners, which most of us are not. I do think it’s a good example of how endurance training in extreme amounts wears down the body, rather than making it stronger.
It’s common to assume that time is the most important factor in exercise, but all these studies show that intensity matters a lot more than time does, and that recovery time is a smart idea. This happens to be a very mini habit-friendly data point, as we’re aiming for activities that initially only require small amounts of our time. Intense activity is somewhat intimidating to someone not accustomed to it, but much less so when it’s for seconds.
Before we get into high-intensity training considerations, there is a very important caveat to this information. High-intensity exercise is not the best form of exercise. The best form of exercise is the type you’ll actually do. You may have heard this before, and it’s true. I believe most people will prefer high-intensity exercise because it takes less time and gives much better results, but if you will only run for 30 minutes on the treadmill while watching your favorite TV show, then you should absolutely do that. Exercise of any kind will help your health and possibly your weight. If you want to try high-intensity exercise, here are some considerations.
High-Intensity Training Considerations
1. Consider the safety of high-intensity exercise. I’ll try not to sound like a pharmaceutical commercial, but talk to your doctor about high-intensity exercise, especially if you have any doubts or pre-existing health problems. If you are able to do it, intense exercise has been found to produce greater cardiovascular capacity and cardioprotective benefits than moderate exercise, but it “could acutely and transiently increase the risk of sudden cardiac death and myocardial infarction in susceptible persons.”158 Here’s some data on that last point to ease your concerns.
A study tracked 4,846 coronary heart disease patients performing all types of exercise. In 129,456 hours of moderate exercise, there was one instance of exercise-induced cardiac arrest. In 46,364 hours of intense exercise, there were two instances of exercise-induced cardiac arrest. You can see that both rates of occurrence are extremely low, but higher with more intense exercise. These incidence rates were low even with heart disease patients, who are at the highest risk for a cardiac event. Since higher-intensity exercise produces greater benefits for heart health and weight loss, and cardiac events are rare even in heart disease patients, it’s almost always the better choice.
2. The primary benefit of exercising is not to get a fat loss result. Fat loss is a side effect of living healthier. The whole reason fat loss makes us look more attractive is because being healthy is attractive. But the benefits of being healthy far exceed attractiveness and weight. If you are eye-locked on the scale and on your stomach in the mirror, you may feel discouraged early on when results aren’t there yet. It takes time for your body to show change. If you put in the work consistently, results will follow. We’re going to go about this in in a smart, mini-habit way to keep you on track regardless of your motivation, but remember this if you’re having doubts.
3. High-intensity training requires recovery time. Be careful not to overdo high-intensity training, because an injury will set you back; more is not necessarily better.
4. You’re not supposed to do high-intensity training every day (unless you’re already an elite athlete). You know now from the studies that it doesn’t require a lot of time exercising to make a difference. And here’s the good news, depending on how you look at it: the more overweight you are, the more results you’ll see from exercising.
5. High-intensity exercise keeps your body working, even after you stop. If the results of HIIT were limited to time spent exercising, it would be shown to be inferior to moderate-intensity exercise in studies. Instead, it’s shown to be far superior, and that’s because of the effect it has after you stop.
One workout I’ve been doing in my apartment building is interval training in the stairwell. (Very few people use the stairs in my building. Everyone takes the elevator. I digress.) Starting at the bottom, I sprint up the stairs as fast as I can. Then I’ll “actively rest” by going back down the stairs at a pace that lets me catch my breath. Pro tip: I play the Rocky Balboa theme song on my phone, and put it at the top of the stairs, so as the difficulty increases toward the top and I’m feeling fatigued, the music gets louder to cheer me on!
One day after I had finished interval training session on the stairs, I continued to actively sweat for 10 minutes. Even after I took a shower, I continued to sweat. My body was still working. A study found this “afterburner” effect for fat oxidation: “Although more lipid was used during exercise in the low-intensity trial, more lipid was used after the high-intensity exercise.”159
To conclude, when you exercise for fat loss, don’t aim for time, aim for intensity. You can easily make up your own HIIT program. The basic idea is to go all out in an exercise for 15-60 seconds with a period of rest of 1-5 minutes.
If you want to use the treadmill, most of them have an interval setting. When I use the treadmill or exercise bike, I tend to adjust the speed manually. One good idea for an entertaining interval session is to watch a TV show or game (if your gym has a TV) and, whenever a commercial comes on, go all-out for its duration. Commercials take up roughly five to seven minutes total out of a 30-minute show, which is a nice interval split. When your show comes back on, you’ll be rewarded with rest and entertainment at once! It’s a nice little system that I’ve enjoyed. My friend and I have also done “curl challenges” during commercials, in which we curl a relatively light weight for the full duration of the commercial break.
The internet has plenty of other ideas for high-intensity training. Search for “HIIT workouts” or “interval training,” and make it fun! You’ll see interval training as a mini habit option in the next section.
Walking
Walking is very good. If you look at the human body, it’s easy to see that we’re meant to walk. In the past, walking was necessary to get around. We’ve since invented our way out of having to walk very much, but walking is too good for us to quit doing.
If you want to start out with something effective and not intimidating, walking is a proven winner. Whereas most exercise is known to increase appetite, one study found that the energy deficit induced by walking did not result in increased appetite: “This study demonstrates that, despite inducing a moderate energy deficit, an acute bout of subjectively paced brisk walking does not elicit compensatory responses in acylated ghrelin, appetite, or energy intake. This finding lends support for a role of brisk walking in weight management.”160
The National Weight Control Registry says that, among people who have achieved lasting weight loss, walking is the most commonly reported form of exercise.161 Anecdotally, I’ve found that lots of walking makes my stomach trimmer, more so than resistance exercise. I highly recommend making walking your “base” activity, and then doing HIIT as a bonus. You can combine them into one by aiming to walk a certain amount and then doing the occasional run/sprint. I’m aware of how unstructured that sounds, but structured routines are for people who already have strong exercise habits.
If you are still in the stages of fighting yourself to exercise, a structured “full workout” plan will be a great struggle to do consistently. Consider unstructured plans like “walk to the end of the driveway, optionally continue walking, and optionally do interval sprints during the walk.” The difficulty is adaptable to you, meaning that you have very little reason to say no to it, even on your “off” days.
Resistance Training
Resistance training is the best way to increase lean muscle mass. This is highly beneficial for a number of reasons, but it has not been studied very much in regards to weight loss. Theories abound about how more muscle mass increases metabolism, but one study found that aerobic training was superior for weight loss, because resistance training did not result in fat loss (it did result in lean muscle mass gains).162 Starting out, I recommend focusing on walking and aerobic (HIIT) exercise. Those are going to give you the greatest initial return on time and energy invested.
That said, resistance training is more useful than aerobic exercise for daily living. It can improve your posture and your performance in anything active, and it can even reduce pain caused by weakness or help you recover from injury (physical therapy). Don’t rule it out completely! It’s fun to see yourself get stronger with weight progression. If you learn to enjoy exercise, you’ll love resistance training.
If you’ve never been able to exercise consistently, you’ve got to try having an exercise mini habit. These are just some of the fitness mini habits you could create. There are certainly more! Most of these mini habits take seconds, not minutes or hours. The busiest person on Earth has time for this. The laziest person on Earth has enough energy for this. Mini habits make exercise unintimidating, fun, and always doable (the opposite of nearly every exercise program). Here’s the list of fitness mini habits.
Fitness Bonus: Do more of the same exercise or more of a different exercise.
You may notice some variations, like putting on gym clothes vs. putting on gym clothes AND doing an exercise mini habit vs. showing up at the gym. For some, doing an exercise when they aren’t in workout clothes is futile for bonus reps, because they don’t want to exercise in business clothes. That’s why there’s a “put on gym clothes” mini habit, which may be enough to start the exercise process. Others may need to begin exercising in order to get the process started, but also need to be in workout gear, so, for them, the ideal mini habit is going to be something like “put on gym clothes and do one push-up.” Yet others will do well with just a “one pull-up” type of mini habit. I started with one push-up per day, and now I aim to “just show up” at the gym, which has worked really well.
Offbeat Mini Habit (not related to exercise or food)
Meditate for one minute: Meditation is one of the best indirect practices for weight loss, because it improves many relevant areas. It can decrease cortisol levels, improve your willpower, increase your mindfulness and focusing ability, and help you sleep better. Each of these has been shown to help with weight management. Meditating for just one minute can make a difference. Try it! Search for “one minute meditation” on YouTube for a guided meditation session.
Bonus: Meditate another minute or seven.
8
Mini Habit Plans
Everyone Laughs until They Experience the Results
“Do the difficult things while they are easy and do the great things while they are small. A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.”
~ Lao Tzu
Now we will bring it all together into a strategy that fits your lifestyle like a glove. Here’s a recap of the mini habit ideas we’ve covered so far. Choose a maximum of four you’d like to integrate into your life.
Food Mini Habits
Fitness Mini Habits
Offbeat Mini Habit
Meditate for one minute
Visit minihabits.com for more mini habit ideas.
In the first Mini Habits book, I covered the basic strategy of using small daily practices to create mini-sized habits and change your behavior. Once you commit to a mini habit, it’s important to define your cue.
Mini Habit Cues
A habit cue is whatever triggers you to perform the behavior. For example, a person wanting to develop a guitar practicing habit might say, “I will practice playing guitar every day at 7:30 PM.” The cue is 7:30 PM.
I have good news. Weight loss is challenging, but when it comes to forming good eating habits, you have a significant advantage over other behaviors. Meals themselves are cues. For example, one push-up can be done at 6 PM (time cue), before a shower (activity cue), or any time during the day (flexible daily, no specific cue). A meal, however, is going to happen whenever it happens, and your mini habit will be in play whenever it does (i.e., a meal-based mini habit’s cue is the meal itself).
Therefore, every meal-based mini habit will have an activity-based cue. The one exception is if you decide to use the flexible daily cue for all of your mini habits. In that case, you’d complete your mini habits at any time during the day, even between meals.
My mini habits have always been the flexible “do it any time before you go to sleep” type, because I am literally the least schedule-driven person I know. I rarely make plans. I’m not “busy.” Almost every day is freestyle for me, and as long as I get the right things done, I’m happy. This lifestyle choice allows me to do things like travel at a moment’s notice. To me, not having things on the schedule is freedom (one of humanity’s longstanding core desires).
Here’s why I bring that up: Most self-help advice ignores people like me, or else they suggest that I should transform myself into a “type A” person. I see the advantages of living that way, but there are also advantages to my way and other ways of living. Poor strategies force you to adapt to them (e.g., dieting); smart strategies adapt themselves to where you are right now. This book has a smart strategy flexible enough to fit the lifestyle of all types of people (A, B, C, R, and Alien).
There are three cues to choose from: activity-based, time-based, and the flexible “any time before bed” option. If you’re schedule-driven, you’ll do well with the time- or activity-based cues. If you live a spontaneous and non-scheduled lifestyle, you’ll love the flexible daily cue. That said, there are no hard rules about who can succeed with what cue. Maybe schedule-driven people would enjoy the opportunity to find a time between activities to squeeze in a mini workout. Maybe spontaneous people would enjoy a bit more structure in their lives with scheduled mini habits. All of these cues can work, but make sure you choose one for each mini habit (except meals, which we’ll cover next).
Activity-Based Cue: These actions are cued by activities you know you’ll be doing each day. Example of four activity-based mini habits: Eat one serving of fruit once you arrive at work, eat one serving of vegetables during your first work break, drink one glass of water when you get home from work, and chew each bite 30 times during your daily work snack. (A clever activity cue for exercise is to do at least one push-up or alternative exercise action after you use the restroom. That is more than once per day, but that’s still doable for some people.)
Time-Based Cue: Time-based actions can work well if you have a tightly scheduled lifestyle in which every moment is planned for. Example of three time-based mini habits: Eat one healthy snack at 3:15 PM, drink one glass of water at 6 PM, and eat a bowl of fruit at 7 PM.
Flexible Daily Option (No Cue): These actions can be done whenever, as long as you do them before the day ends. They’re flexible, but they require a bit more mindfulness, as you have to choose when to do them each day rather than rely on a preset cue. Example of four flexible mini habits: Eat one serving of fruit any time before bed, eat one serving of vegetables before bed, chew each bite 30 times at any meal during the day, and drink one glass of water before bed.
Traditionally, only time-based and activity-based cues are possible for forming habits, but a mini habit is so small and easy to do that it doesn’t need a specific cue. We don’t need cues for bad habits, do we? We just tend to do them at various times because they’re easy and rewarding. A mini habit has the same sort of appeal, only it’s a good habit.
A smoker may smoke when eating, drinking, and/or stressed out. That’s multiple cues for one behavior. In the same way, you’ll develop some triggers for a flexible daily mini habit, but won’t rely on any one cue. There are still triggers involved, but you’ll let them grow “in the wild.”
The advantage of this is diversified strength. Think of a cue as an individual root. You can develop one very strong root for a habit, or you can build a number of weaker roots. Multiple-root habits have individually weaker roots, but together, they may be more resilient than a one-root habit. This is precisely why bad habits are difficult to break—because it’s not as if you can just single out the one trigger for the bad behavior and avoid it. The triggers are numerous, and some of them are even internally triggered by certain feelings (unavoidable).
With a mini habit, you can harness this power for good. It’s why I write every day, but not at any specific time. It’s why I exercise almost daily, but not on a schedule. To help you decide between these three cue options, here’s a table that shows the strengths and weaknesses of each cue.
Each cue is ranked from 1 to 5 in various categories, 5 being the best possible score. Here’s what the categories mean.
Flexibility is how much freedom you have in deciding when to perform the behavior.
Remembering is how conducive the cue is to helping you remember to do the behavior. A time-based cue is inflexible because you must complete it at a specific time, but it helps you to remember because you can put it on your calendar or set a reminder on your phone. The flexible daily plan has no concrete, single cue, meaning it’s the easiest one to forget. You can use reminders with any cue. For the flexible cue, try placing a pen on your pillow to remind you to do your mini habit before bed (or better yet, place a sticky note reminder in the fridge for your food-based mini habits).
Time to habit is the speed at which your behavior will form neural pathways and become habitual. Activity- and time-based cues will become habits faster, because they have only one pattern for the brain to recognize. If you choose a flexible daily plan, you might develop several go-to cues, and multiple behavioral patterns will take longer for the brain to solidify into habit. Flexible habits are structured a lot like “wild” habits that we form unintentionally. Smokers don’t decide to smoke at 11 PM every day, they smoke after various triggers (multiple cues). Multiple cues make it difficult to break bad habits; in the same way, when your good habits have multiple cues, they have better “stickiness,” as they aren’t dependent on one cue.
“Never lose” is the ability to successfully complete your mini habits every day and well—never lose. It’s most difficult with a time-based cue, because if you miss your cue at 2 PM, you technically failed. With a daily cue, you have all day to succeed, even if you do it right before bed. That’s not to say that it is difficult to always win with a time-based cue, only that it’s relatively more difficult than with a flexible cue.
Bonus reps is the likelihood that you’ll do more than your mini requirement. Each cue is about equal in this regard.
Multiple habits is the ease with which each cue supports multiple habits. Any of the cues can do well with multiple habits, but the flexible plan is strongest here, since you can adapt your daily habits to the flow of your day.
The best plan is the one that works for and appeals to you. All of my mini habits use the flexible daily requirement, because it suits my unscheduled lifestyle. You might not know which style suits you best right away, so don’t be afraid to experiment. You can mix and match cues as well. For example, maybe you set the goal to drink at least one glass of water per day (flexible daily), but also require one serving of vegetables at dinner (activity), and a raw carrot at 3:15 PM (time). In general, it’s probably best to choose one type of cue across all of your mini habits for simplicity, but again, the only “rule” is to do what works best for you.
If you prefer, you can just use this system by choosing up to four mini habits (and a cue for each). Alternatively, you can choose a “meal plan” for all of your food-related mini habits.
These meal plans all use activity-based cues (the meal itself) and have different objectives for those meals. The strategies below share the same life-changing concepts we’ve been discussing, but their implementation is flexible to suit you.
Make sure you only choose ONE of these plans. These are competing options, not a checklist. Think of these as themes to help you remember when and how to complete your food-based mini habits. If you go with one of these meal plans, don’t forget to add on a fitness mini habit using one of the cues from the last chapter.
1. The Meal Upgrade Plan
This is my favorite strategy. In the meal upgrade plan, you choose one mini habit “upgrade” to do at every single meal you eat. This means that, even if you’re eating an unhealthy fast food meal, it’s not a total loss as you might typically see it. You can choose to chew each bite 30 times, drink water instead of soda, drink a glass of water before eating, get a lettuce wrap instead of the bun, or swap your fries for a healthier side. To determine what counts as a healthy upgrade, use your past behavior as a marker. If you already always drink water, that’s fantastic, but don’t count it as an upgrade.
The strength of this plan is that you won’t need to keep track of what you’ve done. Every meal serves as your cue to perform one small healthy “upgrade” to the way you’d typically eat. Bonus (always optional): You can make additional upgrades at any meal, or go for a giant upgrade by eating a fully healthy meal.
With this choice, you’ll form the habit of looking for small healthy upgrades when you eat, which is probably the most valuable habit to form for weight loss. You will be less likely, however, to form specific healthy habits like drinking water before meals, eating particular fruits or vegetables, and so on, because your healthy upgrade could vary with every meal.
For traveling, this is a good option, since it gives you complete flexibility and keeps you mindful of your eating habits.
2. The Meal Stronghold Plan
The goal here is to conquer one meal at a time. All of your efforts will be focused on one meal, and your other meals will be whatever you want. If you choose this plan, start with breakfast. All of your mini habits, such as adding or swapping fruits or vegetables for your usual meal, chewing your food 30 times or more, or drinking water before or during eating, will be done for this meal. Once you find yourself eating healthy food, chewing it well, and drinking water for breakfast consistently with a long winning streak, you can move on to lunch. I don’t recommend you do so before at least two months have passed, because if you switch to lunch too soon (before your breakfast behavior is habitual), you risk trying to do too much too soon, which all former dieters know ends in failure.
This is called the stronghold plan, because one meal will become your stronghold for living a healthy lifestyle. If you can permanently transform the way you eat one meal, you can do the same for all meals. Though slightly different from the traditional mini habits setup, this is still progress every day, and it will be a great foundation to build from. Choosing breakfast first is a good idea, because how you start the day can greatly influence how you finish it. When you begin each day by eating well, it might just influence your lunch and dinner decisions, even though they are “eat whatever you want.” Since there’s no pressure to eat every meal perfectly, you will be able to maintain success at breakfast.
Mini Stronghold Example: Drink one glass of water between waking up and eating breakfast, eat one serving of fruit or vegetables at breakfast, chew each bite 30 times at breakfast, and do whatever you want for lunch and dinner. You might also consider creating healthy go-to meals, like full-fat yogurt and fruit for a quick breakfast (it’s just as fast as cereal, only healthier) or eggs and spinach when you have time to cook.
3. The 2x2 Meal Plan
In this plan, you’ll pick two meals per day to do the following: Eat one serving of healthy food (vegetables or fruit in most cases) and one meal modifier (drink a glass of water before meal, chew count, eat to 80% fullness, etc.). That’s one healthy food and one modifier at two of your daily meals.
Two mini habits at two meals is four mini habits. When you add in your fitness mini habit, it makes five total mini habits, which is higher than I typically recommend. In this case, I think it’s doable for some people, since two of these mini habits are modifications of behaviors rather than new behaviors (and so they should be even easier than most mini habits). If you struggle with this plan, it’s probably because five mini habits is too many.
Choose Two Example: For breakfast, you drink a glass of water and eat a grapefruit. At dinner, you chew each bite 30 times and eat a side salad.
This is a flexible approach, because it doesn’t specify the exact food or modifier to perform at each meal. You might use an approach like this while traveling, since traveling generally requires more flexibility.
4. The Line Drive Plan
This plan is simple and easy to remember. At every meal, perform the same mini habit of your choice. For example, you can drink a glass of water before every meal or during any meal as your main beverage choice. Drinking water instead of soda alone can have a big impact on your weight and health. Another option is to eat a side of vegetables at each meal, or even a specific vegetable if you have a favorite (but availability could make that a challenge). This plan isn’t typically flexible, since you’re picking a single specific action, but you can choose a backup action in case your primary choice isn’t doable (such as a restaurant not serving your chosen vegetable).
Line Drive Example: Drink only water at every meal (assuming you eat three meals a day, this would count as three mini habits).
5. The Flexible Mini Plan
This plan means not having a meal plan. You will choose when to do your mini habits, whether it’s eating a serving of fruit or making one healthy upgrade. In the flexible plan, you can freely choose to do your mini habits all in one meal, do two for breakfast and one for lunch another day, or any other combination. You could even accomplish them in between meals. Meals are the bulk of the food we eat, so I would still attempt to prioritize meals if you go this route.
Let’s say you have three meal mini habits: one healthy upgrade, eat a serving of fruit, and chew each bite 30 times. On Sunday, you eat yogurt with blueberries, bananas, and strawberries instead of your regular cereal and milk. The yogurt is a “mini upgrade” over milk (probiotics and gut health), and your multiple servings of fruit meet your daily fruit goal and then some. That’s two of three. You eat fast food for lunch. For dinner, you have steak and potatoes, and chew each bite 30 times (and a few more chews for the steak). That’s three for three. Success!
The Final Word on Meal Plans
Choose only one of these meal plans to do at a time. You can choose an alternate meal plan for traveling, but otherwise, pick one plan and be consistent with it. This is what will change your brain and help you develop better habits that can benefit you for a lifetime.
Your chosen strategy here will serve as your core food strategy, but there’s also fitness, snacking, meditation, and other non-meal mini habits to consider. Don’t forget about them! I recommend adding a fitness mini habit to your meal plan, with an activity-based, time-based, or flexible daily cue. For simplicity’s sake and for “healthy living synergy,” you might consider using meals as the cue for your exercise mini habit as well (e.g., one push-up before dinner). I would suggest doing it before your meal, since exercising immediately after eating is rarely a fun experience.
If you think these plans aren’t “enough,” you’re probably still thinking in terms of dieting, and you’re discounting the power of real, long-term change. Consider this: Once you develop a healthy eating habit, it becomes effortless, and you can build from it. Most people underestimate the power of this because it isn’t flashy; it just works. Dieting fails because it’s too much at once for the brain and the body. This is the right dose of change that can sneakily make you stronger.
Now that we’ve discussed the general structure of how you’ll be integrating positive changes into your life, let’s discuss some of the questions you may still have.
Tracking your progress is important for three reasons: it proves your commitment, encourages you daily, and lets you know exactly how well you’re doing over time.
Here are some strategies for tracking your progress. In whatever strategy you choose, I recommend that you check off your success before you go to sleep. If you check off your task early in the day, the sense of completion might make you feel less motivated to do “bonus reps.” Also, it's a good habit to check it off before bed so that you don't forget.
The Big Calendar (Recommended)
This is the strategy I use for tracking my mini habits. I use a large desk calendar on the wall in my room. I write my mini habits on a nearby dry erase board, and check off every day on the calendar when I complete them. It's simple and it works great. Checking off a successful day still feels great after months of mini habits!
Another option is a yearly “at a glance” calendar if you're just going to be checking off days. And a smart budget move is to print one of the many free printable calendars you'll find online (tip: simply print out your Gmail calendar). Physically making a check mark makes your success feel more tangible than digital tracking does. Additionally, if you put it in a prominent place where you'll see it often, it's going to make you mindful of your mini habits, your progress, and your success. Don't underestimate the impact of this!
The only excuse for breaking the chain of successful days is forgetting, because mini habits are too easy to fail. But forgetting is a poor excuse too, because your calendar will be in plain sight and every night before bed you'll ask, “Did I do my mini habits today?” And just to throw this out there, your mini habits don’t have to be a fad you'll drop in a few months, this can be a lifetime pursuit. It works too well and is too flexible to quit!
Both writing down your mini habits initially and checking them off as you go is vital to your success. Don't skip it. Regardless of how you track your mini habits completion, I suggest you at least handwrite the habits themselves in a place you can see.
App Tracking
Some people will want to use their smartphone, and while I prefer the old-fashioned way, smartphones have some significant advantages. The first is accessibility—people carry their smartphones with them everywhere, even on vacations overseas. The second advantage is in visibility and reminders—some apps can remind you to do your mini habits, or serve as a concrete cue to take action.
Visit http://minihabits.com/tools/ for the updated list of recommended apps.
Final Note About All Digital Apps
You're going to see ideas for pre-made healthy habits to add from these apps and websites. Resist the urge to start these habits unless they are already minified (unlikely). If you really like one of them, make sure that you minify it before adding it to your repertoire! It looks fun to try doing 100 push-ups per day, but it's less fun when you quit. It's more fun to have one push-up per day as a goal and blow that tiny goal away for 200+ days in a row.
The following technique can be integrated into your mini habit plan however you wish (or not at all). You can even use this fun method to choose all of your mini habits each day. It’s up to you. If you have trouble choosing between several options, you’ll love this!
On a piece of paper or on your phone, list and number six of the same type of mini habit (food or fitness). For example, you might write this list for a fitness mini habit:
Make sure the list is somewhere that you’ll see it daily—your desk, the refrigerator, an app in your phone, and so on. When you’re ready to do a mini habit, get one die or two dice (or a dice rolling app).
With One Die
If you’re using one die, roll it every day, and do the mini habit that corresponds to the number you roll. If your list was the one above and you rolled a five today, you would then walk to the end of your driveway. This gives you two opportunities for bonus reps: you can walk further than your driveway, or you can roll again!
IMPORTANT: one list takes the place of only ONE of your mini habits. You’ll still only do one of these per day. If you really like this idea, you can create up to four lists (for four mini habits) to roll for each list to determine what you do that day.
With Two Dice
If you’re using two dice, you have the option of expanding your list to 12 activities and doing what number you roll. Alternatively, you can keep the list at six mini habits and give yourself an either/or choice. If you roll a three and a four for this list, you’d choose between 10 jumping jacks and running in place for 30 seconds. If you roll a double six, then you must dance!
Optional Features
You can consider adding one difficult action to the list. For example, maybe you would put “run one mile” as number one, so if you roll a one, you’d have to run a mile. That isn’t a mini habit, but it does add some stakes to the roll, and it makes your other mini habits seem really easy by comparison (a good thing!).
If you add a difficult challenge, you might consider adding some kind of reward to another number. For example, you could make six a “free choice,” roll in which you choose your mini habit. Or you could keep six at “dance to one song” and add a small piece of candy as a bonus for rolling six. (See minihabits.com for more reward ideas.)
Rolling Benefits
The randomness of the dice rolls is fun and varies your activities, both of which can keep your experience fresh and enjoyable. While your daily behaviors will be more varied with this method (which seems like a hindrance for habit formation), you’ll still form the habit of making progress in fitness and eating every day. Your primary goal is to change your relationship with the concepts of being active and eating healthy food, and this can accomplish that.
By rolling the dice to determine your next move, you actually decrease resistance to action even more. Rolling the dice is a contract in which you agree to do what it says. This is a diluted version of making a bet with a friend: “If they lose, I’ll go in the dunk tank, but if they win, you have to buy me dinner.” Someone might not volunteer for the dunk tank (where someone throws a ball at a target and you fall in the water if they hit it), but if it’s a part of a friendly bet, they’ll do it. The dice roll is a fun bet you make with yourself. Whatever it rolls, you do.
Lastly, the dice roll makes it easier to make a decision. Instead of deciding to do something you might find slightly uncomfortable (a fitness mini habit), you only have to decide to roll the dice, which starts the process of your mini habit.
Incorporating dice into your mini habits plan adds one more step, which is typically a bad thing, but the benefits and fun it provides are well worth it. For those who’ve seen weight loss as a lot of work and misery, this sort of “gamification” might be just what they need to succeed.
If you have problems making mini habits work for you, look no further.
I’m feeling resistance.
Resistance is a sign that your subconscious is uncomfortable with what you want to do. Run through this checklist to make sure your perspective is correct.
Am I aiming for a mini habit, or am I pretending to aim for a mini habit while secretly aiming for more? You cannot fool your subconscious mind, so don’t try. Your intention needs to be small. Remember, it’s one step at a time. This is not to say that you won’t ever do more; it’s to say that you’ll get there most often by thinking in small, incremental steps, not by saying “I’ll take this small step” and secretly requiring more of yourself.
Is my mini habit actually mini-sized? One of the biggest issues I’ve seen with mini habit implementation is that people don’t minify the action enough. For example, someone will tell me they’re struggling to read 10 pages in a book per day. Well, my mini habit is to read two pages per day, which is five times less! Ten pages might not sound like much, but on a bad, unmotivated day, it can be too much. Make your mini habits small, and you won’t resist them. Consistency is much more important than quantity, which is why we make these mini-sized in the first place.
Do I still feel resistance? It’s okay to feel some resistance, because you have willpower at your disposal. These mini behaviors are so small that there should never be a time that you don’t have enough willpower to force action. That’s how this strategy is designed for success. Willpower is reliable, as long as you have enough of it for the action you want to take. Relying on how you feel is not a winning strategy. The most successful people in any field did not get there by only taking action when they felt like it. They show up every day, regardless of how hard life is. With a typical goal, this falls into the “easier said than done” category. With mini habits, this is easily said AND done. It doesn’t matter what you’ve been through—you can drink a glass of water, eat an apple, or do a push-up!
Whenever you feel resistance toward a mini habit, be sure to challenge yourself on it. Don’t accept that you don’t feel like dancing for a minute. Think about how easy it would be and how you’d feel good about accomplishing it. Challenge yourself to get up and try it. The more you practice overcoming that initial resistance into an easy mini habit, the more you’ll trust the process, and the better your results will be.
I’ve been skipping my mini habits.
Ask yourself these questions.
Am I taking this seriously? Look, I know that “chew your food 30 times” sounds goofy when you want to lose 100 pounds. But there’s some irony here. The crash diets and boot camps seem like a serious effort to change your life, but they’re actually aiming much lower than we are. They’re a joke compared to the permanent life change possible with mini habits. A crash diet or boot camp aims for a short-term and superficial change in body composition. We’re aiming deeper. We’re aiming to change your brain and the way you relate to and think about food and exercise. People temporarily adhere to these insane, torturous programs because they are desperate for the promised results. If you can understand how much greater the result of lasting habitual change will be, you won’t have any problem taking your daily mini habits seriously. This doesn’t mean you won’t laugh at “having to walk to the end of my driveway;” it only means that you’ll be sure to do it, regardless of how silly it seems on the surface.
Do I have the right cues? If you’re not getting it done for any reason, take a hard look at the cues you’ve chosen. If you chose a time- or activity-based cue, then maybe you need more flexibility and should try a flexible daily cue. If you have a flexible daily cue and keep putting it off or forgetting, then maybe you need a more structured cue (time or activity).
Do I have too many mini habits? Regardless of what I say, I know some people will immediately begin 10 mini habits after reading this book (I recommend four maximum). One guy told me he had some trouble completing his 20+ mini habits every day.
When you have too many mini habits, you overwhelm yourself by the number of things you must do, and the result is the same as for any overwhelming goal (failure). That being said, if you have four mini habits, that might still be too many for you. Personally, I do best with two or three mini habits. When I add in the fourth one, it doesn’t work very well. And I’ll add that I started with just one mini habit (one push-up per day) that completely transformed my life and relationship with exercise. So don’t think that having only one mini habit is useless! If you aren’t completing your mini habits, consider dropping one of them.
What if I complete some mini habits and not others?
Partial completion is failure in mini habits. These behaviors are supposed to be so easy that you can complete them all on the worst day of your life. So if you find yourself completing some, but not others, either drop the others or figure out why they’re posing such a challenge to you. With all of the strategic plans for implementation, you can also try tweaking your mini habit plan to see if that helps. This strategy is meant for 100% daily success, but you might not achieve that immediately, as you figure out the strategy and number of mini habits that work for you. The great upside to having mini habits is the ease of restarting a mini habit program at any time for any reason. If you “fall off the horse,” you can get back on within five minutes! Aim for 100% completion of all of your mini habits. If you’re not hitting that mark, make adjustments until you do.
I never do bonus reps. What am I doing wrong?
Bonus reps are just that—a bonus. If you never go “above and beyond,” there’s no need to panic. Some habits take longer to take root than others. For example, my reading mini habit was fairly slow developing, my push-up mini habit had moderate growth, and my writing mini habit took off like a racehorse. You can expect variance, but otherwise, consider this.
Is your mini habit too small? This is something I didn’t mention in the first Mini Habits book because I wasn’t aware it was possible. One day, I received an email from a reader. She told me that she had written only 30 words in 30 days—one word per day. This gave me an epiphany: A mini habit is too small if the action fails to start the process of your target behavior.
For example, if your goal is to write more, writing just one word does not begin the writing process, because, at the very least, writing requires you to form a thought or phrase that means something. Otherwise, you can write “The” and stop thinking about it. My writing mini habit is 50 words per day, because that almost always leads to more ideas and writing; it begins the writing process. Since it’s only a paragraph, I’m never intimidated by it. I don’t get writer’s block.
One push-up per day is a good example of a very small mini habit that’s still enough to start the process of exercise. Once you get into push-up position and do one, it’s conducive to doing more. Some people may feel the need to be in workout clothes before they exercise, so they might modify their habit to “change into gym clothes” or “change into gym clothes and do one push-up” or “change and drive to the gym.”
One day, I noticed that every time I set up my doorway pull-up bar, I did pull-ups. From that moment on, I didn’t set the goal to do even one pull-up; my goal was to set up the bar. Then habit took over.
Whatever the mini habit, pay close attention to what starts the process for you. If your mini habit is to eat a baby carrot and you only ever eat one, try making it two baby carrots to see if that gets the carrot party started. The ideal mini habit is always going to be at the level of lowest possible resistance that also begins the process of the target behavior.
What if I miss a day?
If you miss a mini habit for whatever reason, it’s not a big deal. At all. A study on habit formation found that one day missed did not affect successful habit formation.163 The only threat of missing a day is that you’ll let it grow to two days (which is a new trend in the wrong direction). If you miss a single day, don’t worry about it, but make it your highest priority to knock out your mini habits (early, if possible) the next day.
One advantage of having mini habits is the ease of “jumping back in” if you experience a setback. Since you can “get back on the wagon” in less than five minutes, you stand to succeed as long as you’re committed to it.
Should I reward myself?
If you’re familiar with the habit formation process (cue, behavior, reward), you might be expecting me to discuss rewards, but rewards are optional for mini habits. There is an intrinsic reward for accomplishing your goals, and that is plenty for a mini habit. Maybe we would need rewards to encourage a more difficult behavior, but a mini habit is easy enough to force yourself to do even without any external reinforcing reward. The intrinsic reward of success is enough for a mini habit. The only point in an external reward is to get your brain to the point that you’re conditioned to do the behavior even without a reward, that is, you don’t need a reward to do the behavior (which is one of the reasons it’s superior!). As Sun Tzu said, “Victorious warriors win first and then go to war.”
There’s also a good reason not to think about rewards: It adds one more thing to manage. This strategy thrives on simplicity, so I recommend keeping it as simple as possible. That said, you can reward yourself and treat yourself well in general, and draw the connection to your success with mini habits. That’s certainly worthwhile, but you don’t need to make it a hard rule.
How many mini habits?
I recommend a maximum of four mini habits at a time. Aside from those, you’ll have numerous (optional) opportunities to improve your health and weight. Don’t worry about not doing enough! Besides building a foundation for lasting change, which already boosts this strategy above the rest, you’re going to have opportunities to make short-term progress, too.
I remembered to chew each bite 30 times, but it was halfway through my meal. Does it still count?
Yes, it does. Chewing half of your meal 30 times per bite is a mini habit (you could even make it your standard mini habit if desired). The spirit of this strategy is that all progress is valuable. It’s obviously better to remember to chew all bites 30 times, but if you’re trying, give yourself the benefit of the doubt. The second most important thing (behind consistency) is to remain positive about your progress.
What is a healthy meal?
Healthy meals have one thing in common—they use real and minimally processed ingredients. They lack preservatives, added colors, added sweeteners, emulsifiers, added flavors, and other chemical additives. Beware of companies using these phrases to get your attention. Just because there are no artificial colors or flavors does not mean there aren’t a lot of other terrible, processed ingredients. Healthy food is rare.
What counts as a serving of fruit?
When it comes to your mini habits, do not count any fruit that comes in a can or in sauce. Fresh or frozen fruit is easy to acquire almost anywhere, and it has plenty of flavor and sweetness on its own (it doesn’t need the sugary syrup they put in fruit cups). If it’s some kind of fruit salad with creamy dressing, whether you count that is up to you. My suggestion is not to cheat yourself either way. Your goal isn’t to “cheat the system” and count a fruit snack pouch as your daily fruit; it’s to eat more fruit! If you eat four blueberries covered in syrup or blueberry jam, that’s not really hitting the mark.
What counts as a serving of vegetables?
The ideal target to hit here is raw vegetables. Second best is boiled, steamed, or baked vegetables. That said, if the only vegetables you’ll eat are sauced beyond recognition or salted, you can start there. It’s better to eat healthy food covered in unhealthy food than to only eat unhealthy food. So, if you only enjoy broccoli if it’s smothered in something unhealthy, well, go for it.
The paltry, low-quality lettuce and tomato you might get on a fast food burger is better than nothing, but not what we’re looking for. I suggest making the rule that vegetables need to “carry the most weight” in the food you’re eating for it to count as a serving. French fries, for example, are potatoes, but that’s dwarfed by the fact they’re deep fried in vegetable oil.
If you want your vegetables to have more flavor, black pepper gives a healthy and delicious kick to basically any savory dish. There are many more spices that can do the same. I use organic all-purpose seasoning for most things. Healthy food is usually delicious as it is, but for some foods and some palates, experimentation might be warranted.
What if I don’t like [insert healthy food here]?
You don’t have to eat it if you don’t like it. With the variety of flavors, textures, and preparations of fruits and vegetables, it’s almost impossible to dislike everything. Find the combinations that work for you. I enjoy salads, blueberries, mangoes, strawberries, broccoli, and spinach the most, so I eat them the most. These foods are a small fraction of the number of options. I will occasionally eat cauliflower, but I don’t care for it. I never eat mushrooms. Chicken is healthier than red meat, but I tend to go for beef and broccoli more often because I like how they go together. Remember that everything is on a scale, and that broccoli dipped in soybean oil ranch dressing is still healthier than macaroni and cheese.
What if I can’t stop eating unhealthy food?
The strategy for temptations is in the next chapter. The sneak preview answer is: Don’t try to willpower your way out of a poor diet. The way out of an unhealthy diet is not restriction, it’s abundance! Unhealthy food provides a reward, and you must find an alternate way to get that reward. If you cut out a powerful reward completely, you won’t last long!
You’re going to continue to eat some unhealthy food as you integrate changes, and that’s okay. The short-term perspective says that no amount of junk food is acceptable, and that just makes me want to eat a cheeseburger. Think abundantly, and move toward healthy food rather than away from unhealthy food. Our strategy in the next chapter is more specific and actionable than this advice, but perspective does matter.
What if I’m not in the mood for a carrot?
Just now, I took a break from writing to eat something. I thought about eating a carrot, but I was in the mood for something more substantial (like a meal). My desire for a full meal or heavy snack had discouraged me from eating “just a carrot.” I suspect this feeling is extremely common, since vegetables are not calorie dense. In this case, I would usually skip the carrot and eat what I craved, but this time, I imagined actually eating the carrot. I thought about the flavor, texture, and satisfying crunch of it, and immediately, it became more appealing to me. But the key thought that sealed the deal was reminding myself that eating a carrot does not mean I can’t eat something else too. I ate the carrot and enjoyed it. Not long after that, I once again desired a meal, but now I had a carrot in my stomach.
If you’re in such a situation, you might think that eating the carrot was a “waste,” since you still feel just about as hungry after eating it. This is NOT true. Vegetables provide powerful health benefits, independent of how well they sate your appetite. In addition, it’s unlikely that your sense of hunger is so sensitive and accurate as to be able to say, “I feel exactly as hungry after eating the carrot as I did before.” Did you measure your hunger before and after? What were the readings?
Vegetable consumption does not always have to be a “meal replacement.” You can and should continue to eat if you’re hungry. If you eat vegetables and you’re still hungry, eat something else, even something unhealthy if you must. Abandon the dieting scarcity mindset. If you eat three whole carrots and a salad, and then eat a hot dog, dieting law says that you’ve failed. In reality, that is a huge success! If you hadn’t eaten carrots and the salad, you might have eaten two or three hot dogs. But even if vegetables miraculously defied the laws of physics and didn’t satisfy your appetite even a little bit, despite taking up space in your stomach and providing energy, they’d still be worth consuming for their many other health and weight loss benefits.
This is a vital perspective: Healthy foods might not be a 1:1 replacement for unhealthy foods in the early stages of your change. Eating a small salad might only satisfy 35% of your appetite, and of course you’ll feel deprived if you think, “Darn. That salad was my meal but I’m still hungry. That pizza would have filled me up. I guess I must suffer to live healthy.” No, no, no! That’s so wrong that I hated typing it. You know what’s better than three greasy slices of pizza? Three greasy slices of pizza plus a salad. If you’re worried about the extra calories from the salad, well, just think about that.
When you eat something healthy, try not to have expectations for how it will affect your appetite. Don’t make a light salad have to live up to the caloric satisfaction of a cheese steak sub. I call my salads “mega” for a reason! If you eat something healthy and you’re still hungry, you can eat more of it or eat something else. That’s all. Leave appetite regulation up to your body. Eat when hungry and stop when you’re satisfied.
Is cheese fattening?
I don’t believe that. Real cheese is a healthy food packed with nutrients. When you eat nacho cheese at a movie theater, that’s not actually cheese. It might have cheese in it, but it has a lot more in it as well. When it comes to homemade nachos, the chips are far more fattening than the cheese (if it’s real).
Cheese is basically in the same camp as milk, which we’ve discussed. It’s not going to win “weight loss food of the year” awards, but it’s not quite as bad as it’s perceived to be either. As with milk, full fat cheese is the right choice. All of the science says that skim milk is more fattening and unhealthier than whole milk.
If foods like avocados (82% fat) and blueberries (high sugar) are not only helpful for weight loss, but two of the world’s best weight loss foods, and studies suggest they are, it shows we need to stop caring so much about macronutrients and more about the quality of the entire food. The consistent finding in research is that processed foods make us fat—not high-fat foods, not high-sugar foods, processed foods.
In most cases, ultra-processed foods are stripped of life, low in fiber, low in satiety, low in bioavailable micronutrients, inflammatory, and high in calories, fat, and sugar. You can pinpoint any one of these areas and say, “That’s it! We get fat because of low fiber foods!” But all of those roads lead us to the door of Frankenfoods. Foods designed in a lab are experiments, and, like any experiment, they can go poorly. While we don’t get immediately sick from eating these foods, they confuse our bodies, starve us of nutrition, and make us fatter and disease-prone. Experiment failed. Let’s go back to eating real food for our primary sustenance.
Should I buy organic?
It depends. I think it’s funny how people take pro-organic and anti-organic stances on this issue, because whether or not to buy organic should be done on a case-by-case basis. I never buy avocados organic but I always buy berries organic. Why do you think that is?
The Environmental Working Group (in Washington, DC) tests produce for pesticide residue (pesticides are not used on organic produce). The top 15 most pesticide-laden foods for 2016 were (in order of most pesticides to least): strawberries, apples, nectarines, peaches, celery, grapes, cherries, spinach, tomatoes, sweet bell peppers, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, snap peas, blueberries, and potatoes. These are the foods to buy organic to limit your pesticide consumption. The 10 foods least important to buy organic (because they tested for the least amounts of pesticides) are: avocado, sweet corn, pineapple, cabbage, sweet peas, onions, asparagus, mangoes, papaya, kiwi, and eggplant. The full list is on their website.
Now, organic produce might contain more nutrition because of the way it’s grown. For example, a study on milk found that “organic milk contained 25% less ω-6 fatty acids and 62% more ω-3 fatty acids than conventional milk.”164 That is a vastly superior ratio of fatty acids. But given the cost of organic and varying budgets, it’s important to know where to begin. Produce is the most important area to buy organic, but not necessarily all produce. If your food budget is tight and you’re buying organic avocados, well, you shouldn’t!
What about GMOs? Genetic modification is another way humans have tampered with food. I’m not going to get into it much, but I try to avoid them when possible, which is most easily done by buying organic food. GMOs are a hotly debated issue, but when you’re eating fast food every day, GMOs are the least of your concerns (actually, maybe they are a concern, since fast food is loaded with them). If you make healthy dietary changes, you’ll automatically eat fewer GMOs, which is to say that GMOs are not the right focal point unless your diet is already healthier than 95% of the population.
In this book, I’m introducing a new concept I call “mini challenges.” They are like a mini habit in size, but they are optional and situational. These mini challenges are never required, and are not a part of your core mini habit plan. They are opportunities to make bonus progress.
Most dieting and weight loss programs are blinded by the thought of what would happen if adherence were perfect; they overload participants with rules and restrictions. But for a strategy to succeed, its mandatory requirements (i.e. rules) must be handled with great care to preserve autonomy and prevent burnout. Optional activities, however, can be practically unlimited without a negative impact, because any instance of not doing them will not harm your self-confidence or winning streak.
Do you see how exciting this is? Imagine a typical day. Rather than feeling overwhelmed by the gap between who you are and who you want to become, you’ll have an easy list of daily mini habits to do, and additionally, you’ll have a bigger list of small but impactful behavioral challenges to do if and when you desire. These aren’t obligations, they are opportunities. Obligations are a burden, but opportunities are weightless and enticing.
These optional challenges (and your mini habits) will let you experience healthy living in a safe environment. Anyone who has dieted has experienced healthy living in a controlling, suffer-for-results environment. This is, unfortunately, the most common perspective of “healthy living.” It’s weighed down by shame, reminders of past failures to adhere to diets, and other emotional baggage. Healthy living has never been the “fun uncle,” but it can be fun if you experience it on your terms without its undeserved associations. Remove all of your preconceived notions, start experimenting, and you’ll be surprised at how enjoyable this journey can be.
The common idea behind these mini challenges is this: Being active is worthwhile in any dose.
TV Challenge: Before watching TV, exercise or move for 20 seconds (jumping jacks, push-ups, jogging in place, dancing like a jester, etc.). Need a reminder? Attach one to your TV or remote. You can use a small mark or sticker, since you’ll know what it stands for. If you think 20 seconds isn’t worthwhile, I challenge you to test that theory right now. Get groovin’ full speed for 20 seconds and see how you feel.
While 20 seconds is short, it will seem longer while you’re in motion! Afterwards, your pounding heart will tell you exactly how “worthless” that 20 seconds was. I think 20 seconds is a good amount of time for this mini challenge, because the end is already in sight before you begin, and yet it’s not over immediately once you start, which creates a nice mix of low resistance to action and a satisfying payoff. Low resistance and a satisfying payoff are a powerful formula for any behavior to stick (this formula is how bad habits thrive).
TV Challenge Bonus: For every 30 minutes of TV, get up and move for another 20 seconds. I recommend dancing to scare your family members. If you are watching TV with your family, and you randomly get up and start dancing without telling them why you’re doing it, you are my friend for life.
TV Commercial Challenge: Every commercial you watch during TV, get up and move around. You don’t even need to “exercise” per se, just get up and move around. Commercials are terrible anyway. Walk laps around the interior of your house. Clean part of your house. This will keep your metabolism from plummeting during a TV session, and it’s a nice way to be entertained while doing something positive for your body! When your show comes back on, you’ll feel great for “earning” more leisure time. It’s small and sounds silly, but please try it before you discount it. It feels great.
It’s not good to “earn” unhealthy food with healthy living, but it is VERY good to “earn” relaxation and entertainment for healthy living. Relaxation and entertainment aren’t harmful; they are an essential part of healthy living and the natural reward for hard work. People often feel ashamed for watching too much TV, but that’s because they do it inactively and in big chunks. If you add activity to your leisure time, you win on multiple levels because of the synergies. You’ll enjoy your entertainment more because you won’t be distracted by feeling “lazy shame.”
Stairs Challenge: Whenever possible, take the stairs! Take pride in skipping the elevator and escalator. I am the only person in my apartment complex who lives on the 7th floor and takes the stairs. For different results, you must live and think differently than others. This is one opportunity to do so.
Be careful not to think in all-or-nothing terms. If your destination is the 18th floor, you can take three flights of stairs and then take the elevator. Or take the elevator and jog in place as you ascend (especially do this if there are others in the elevator with you). If there are several flights of escalators and stairs, take the stairs first and the escalator next. There are no rules. Nobody is going to say, “Hey! She just took the stairs and then switched to the escalator! How inconsistent! That’s weird!”
Parking Spot Challenge: Park in the furthest spot from the store. The walk isn’t that much farther, and you won’t be hunting for “the best spot” for five minutes too long like everyone else. Here’s a secret: The best parking spot is the farthest from the store, because it gives you the best walk, the most enjoyment of the weather, the least stress, and the most rewarding feeling.
Walking/Biking Challenge: If you can walk/bike somewhere instead of drive, go for it. I am often surprised at how enjoyable it can be to walk places.
9
Situational Strategies
Rules Can Be Broken. Strategies Are Forever.
"Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth."
~ Mike Tyson
Dieters abide by their list of good and forbidden foods until life happens, and it turns out that it happens often. Such rules can be broken, but strategies last forever.
The following strategies are not rules to follow. These are in-the-moment mindsets and actions you can choose to use at any time. It’s up to you if and when you’d like to use them. All of these strategies are conducive to influencing you and your decisions in the right direction. Since you don’t have to use them, there’s no feeling of “messing up” if you eat a popsicle on a whim.
The core mini habit plans we discussed in the previous chapter are the “main course.” These are optional, but highly encouraged “side dishes.” This reflects the nature of healthy living, which is mostly dictated by habit, and secondarily dictated by our perspective and the non-habitual choices we make every day.
Since real-world application is more important than theory, what follows is a list of several challenging real-world situations you’ll find yourself in, with custom strategies to help you make winning choices more often.
You have a plan in place. It’s fantastic. But then you’re hit with a strong desire to sink your teeth into seven cookies … uh oh! What can you do? The worst thing you can do is resist the craving directly and deprive yourself.
A craving is a rare opportunity for progress. Do you know why? There’s significant motivation behind your craving, and we can harness it! Motivation is the very thing billions of people want when it comes to their goals. Here we have it, and it’s powerful, but it’s motivation to eat a cookie, which isn’t in line with our goals. How can we use this to our advantage?
I’ve used the tactic I’m about to tell you about to dramatic positive effect. One of my less impressive habits is bingeing on video games. I’ve played for double digit-hour sessions many times. (I told you I’m lazy.) Often, when I feel the urge to play, I will think about previous binges and tell myself I shouldn’t play or I shouldn’t play too much (does this sound like you with food?). These thoughts are shame-driven and make us feel deprived, which makes things worse.
I’ve found a better strategy than shame. Let’s say that my overarching goal is to play games less and be more productive. To accomplish this when I’m tempted, I will place a small, non-intimidating, and beneficial obstacle between myself and my game. And I do it on the condition that I can play the game without shame. A no-shame game, if you will. On multiple occasions, this has led me to productive work sessions lasting several hours without playing any games. Other times, I’ve worked some and played some, coming out satisfied with each. Regardless of what happens when I do this, I win. Now, let’s talk about what this strategy can do for you when unhealthy food temptation strikes. Aside from the core mini habit strategy, this may be the most exciting strategy in the book.
How to Be an Opportunistic Craver instead of a Victim
What’s the typical behavior of a craver? They resist until they cave to the crave. They fight, exhaust themselves, lose, and eat the treat. It’s as if they’re victims of a craving attack. Then, they feel bad about losing the battle. What if these “victims” could not merely defend themselves from these craving attacks, but go on the attack themselves? We’re going to completely change this game, and you will never look at your cravings in the same way again.
We’ll start by asking you a piercing question. What’s more harmful to your long-term weight loss goals: eating an unhealthy snack or feeling ashamed about eating an unhealthy snack? Which one do you think causes more weight gain over time? Put that thought on the back burner as we talk about cravings.
Think of your craving as a magnetic force, causing you to steadily move toward it. You can resist it for some time, but the moment you let your guard down, you’ll rush in. Our strategy is to harness this force by putting some choice miniature obstacles between you and the craving. Not instead of the craving. Between you and the craving. But before we get into the mini obstacles, we must get our perspective right.
By completing these mini obstacles, you are indeed getting closer to your cookie (or whatever it may be). However, and this is extremely important, you are NOT “earning it.” You are not doing these things in order to “buy” the right to eat something unhealthy. The concept of “buying” unhealthy food with healthy behaviors suggests that they cancel each other out, that they’re worth the same, that a little bit of good makes up for a little bit of sin, and other similarly false beliefs. You are not buying the cookie, you’re buying a “get out of shame free” card. If you complete your mini obstacles, you will agree to feel no shame about eating the item. (If you still feel shame, you ought to be ashamed of yourself! Actually, no, that wouldn’t be good. You get the point. If you begin to feel shame, simply remind yourself of your deal.) If you complete this task, agree with yourself that you can eat your object of craving without shame.
If you’re wondering why you would ever choose to complete these mini obstacles when you could just go for the treat directly, I like how you think. Question everything. This strategy is so good that you will gladly choose the package with mini obstacles on many occasions. And why? Because unlike the “straight to the cookie option,” the mini obstacle package comes without any shame AND you still get your food. It’s the same reason why I enjoy working before playing video games—whether or not I play after working, I feel good about my decision to do something positive and don’t feel bad about playing video games.
Resisting food cravings directly is futile and harmful. Successful resistance today means that you’re weaker tomorrow; resist the next day too, and you’ll be even weaker the one after that. Direct resistance is the most common choice for dealing with temptation, but it is a proven loser for three reasons. First, it makes you feel deprived, and very few people can accept deprivation for long if given a choice. Second, it makes you focus on the temptation more: “I mustn’t eat the chocolate” makes you think about the chocolate, increasing the strength of the temptation as you burn through your willpower. Third, it leads to shame if/when you cave, which is what we feel when we want to do “the right thing” but do the wrong thing instead. That last point is why you’re not “earning” the treat, but earning a “shame free” outcome.
This is not a fight to resist your craving. It doesn’t matter if you’re able to resist your craving in any given moment, because the willpower war doesn’t end there. If you win the cookie fight this morning, it may weaken you for the cheeseburger brawl at lunch, or the battle of cheesecake hill tonight. You may resist for an hour and then cave in. You may resist for days or weeks, and then binge on the 37th day. Temptation is a perpetually recurring threat, and this is why strategy is paramount and direct resistance is counterproductive. This strategy consistently increases your chance to beat the temptation without draining your willpower and making you feel deprived. You can replicate this strategy several times a day without issue, because even if you give in to the temptation, the act of going through this process strengthens you.
To summarize the correct perspective: Give yourself full permission to eat the item, without shame, without regret, and without any hint of self-judgment IF you go through the first two mini obstacles in the list I’m about to show you. This turns your motivation to eat the treat into a powerful motivator to do these mini challenges, because you’re granting yourself immunity from shame with only a small, easy condition to meet. On the surface, it looks like you’re giving yourself permission to gain weight and lose: You’re saying I do these easy little things and then I can eat this junk food without feeling bad about it? Are you crazy?!
We are now face-to-face with the counterintuitive side of psychology, because as much as your shame-free pass to eat the cookie is appealing to the part of you that wants to eat allllll the cookies, dropping shame is far more beneficial to the “I want to eat healthy food to lose weight” part of you.
Let’s put it all together now. The incentive (eating item without shame) that makes the motivator (eating item) even more desirable does you the great favor of decreasing your sense of shame (immediately) while motivating you to complete a highly beneficial mini routine that is designed to end with you sometimes no longer wanting the item. You may or may not end up consuming the item, but that’s not the measure of victory. The measure of victory is whether you’ve strengthened yourself or weakened yourself. As for the question I asked earlier: Eating something unhealthy or even a binge session is a one-time event. The shame from eating one unhealthy item or one binge session can spiral and last years. Which one sounds like the bigger threat to you?
This mini routine itself is not merely going to make you more mindful, it’s not merely going to strengthen your willpower and self-control; it’s going to build you up instead of tear you down. It’s not about the individual instance, it’s about who you’re becoming. You can “lose” to your craving and still make significant progress toward changing your behavior.
Do you see how powerful this is? Can you see the difference between this and “fat shaming,” alternating starvation and bingeing cycles, and inflexible dieting? This is the refreshing difference that real strategy brings. It is superior to the smartest doctor in the world telling you exactly what foods to eat for weight loss.
Now, there’s one more factor to consider. Whenever you are tempted and decide to take on this mini challenge, which I recommend you do as frequently as possible (since it’s win-win), make your initial requirement to complete the first two actions. You’ll notice that the list I give you is longer than two actions, and that’s because you can choose to add additional challenges to your requirement. It’s up to you! Just like the core mini habits strategy, it has a low floor and no ceiling.
What if you feel that your challenges weren’t “good enough” to eat the item shame-free? First of all, congratulations, because you’re finally fighting the correct enemy. The food isn’t your problem, self-destructive behavior is, and shame is the heart of self-destructive behavior. I must remind you, however, that shame should never be involved with eating, since food isn’t moral (good or bad); different foods just have varying effects on our bodies. Besides that, you can always do more of any challenge if you feel it’s necessary, or you can move on to the next mini challenge. Whatever you decide, make it your goal to free yourself of shame.
Here are the challenges. I said they were obstacles before because they basically are obstacles in your path from A to B, but a more positive phrase for these is mini challenges.
Temptation Mini Routine
I’ve thought through the ordering, but you may respond better to a different ordering. I put meditation first to slow down the mind, increase mindfulness, delay the action, and calm emotions. This addresses several possible food triggers. It then progresses to substitution to satisfy biological cravings, exercise to activate your “live healthy” motivation, water to address thirst that is often confused for hunger, a small delay, another activity of your choice, a bribe, walking away, and finally, portion negotiation. Here they are in detail, using the example of a cookie craving.
1. Meditate for one minute. This is a good way to clear the mind and slow down. See it as delaying the cookie: ok, I can eat the cookie, but first, I will meditate for a minute. This simple delay (and the impact of meditation) may be enough to make the craving disappear.
Sit down somewhere quiet. If you’re at a party, excuse yourself to a quieter room, outside, or the restroom. Just focus on your breaths for a minute. Don’t fight thoughts and desires, just observe them as if you’re an outsider. Search for “one minute meditation” on YouTube for a guided session. Why is this #1? Meditating will reduce your stress immediately, improve your emotional state, and make you more mindful. It’s a powerful trifecta of defense against temptation. And if you don’t think one minute is enough, try it right now and see for yourself.
Don’t cheat. Try your best to focus on your breaths. If your thoughts drift to the treat or anything else, and they probably will, gently bring them back to your breathing. It’s been said before and it bears repeating that, even if you get distracted a lot while meditating, you’re still benefiting. Just like anything else, you practice meditating to get better at it, not to do it perfectly on the first try.
2. Eat a healthier item. If it’s a drink you’re considering, I’d still recommend eating something healthy if you can. If no healthy food is available, then use #3 as your #2.
3. Do one push-up, one sit-up, dance for a minute, run in place for a minute, or do 15 jumping jacks. It’s best to pick your preferred mini exercise now, rather than decide later. But the idea is to do something active. This can make you more mindful, more motivated to live a healthy lifestyle, and it could even cascade into a full workout. As with all mini habits, be open to doing more.
Just think of the times you engage in snack-eating. It’s probably when you’re relaxed, watching TV, and feeling a little bit lazy. Well, it’s hard to feel lazy right after doing push-ups (or whatever your exercise choice may be)! It puts you in a much better mental state to resist or no longer desire the unhealthy food.
4. Drink a glass of water. We often mistake thirst for hunger. This would fix that!
5. Delay for 10 minutes. This is a great willpower strategy, as it takes much less willpower to delay an action than to resist it completely and doing so weakens your temptation. As Kelly McGonigal states in The Willpower Instinct, “When the brain compares a cookie you have to wait ten minutes for to a longer-term reward, like losing weight, it no longer shows the same lopsided bias toward the sooner reward. It’s the ‘immediate’ in immediate gratification that hijacks your brain and reverses your preferences.”165
6. Distract yourself with a small step into another activity. It’s good to have some alternate path ideas in mind before you’re hit with temptation.
7. Present yourself with an alternate reward/bribe. This could be a TV show instead of nachos. It could be the decision to buy that T-shirt you’ve wanted instead of buying ice-cream. The idea is to choose a non-food reward that doesn’t cause weight gain.
8. Take a walk. Just get out the front door and go. This is pretty fun to do, assuming you live in a safe neighborhood.
9. How was the walk? If you’ve come this far, this is already a MONSTER win! If you still want the item, but are high on these small victories and want one more, agree on a specific portion or agree to eat it another day, leaning toward the balance of shame-free (don’t mindlessly indulge) and happy (never undercut yourself).
That concludes the temptation mini routine list. If you want to switch the order around, be my guest. Some might work better for you than others. Do not wait until you’re tempted to decide which order the mini challenges are in, because making decisions depletes your willpower, which is an important resource to conserve (especially when tempted!).
Feel free to improvise if the situation calls for it. If your standard order is the one listed above, but you see a great alternate reward right away (#7 on the list), you can do that right away. That said, consistently doing the same mini challenges is helpful because, the more you do the same behaviors, the more habitual they will become when you’re tempted. That’s why I recommend having a go-to order of mini challenges that you can change on a case-by-case basis.
Craving Example
It’s 11:34 PM, you’re sitting on your couch, and “OMG I NEED ICE-CREAM NOW.” This is a craving. Relax. Don’t make it into a high-pressure “dieting decision.” Don’t fear caving into your craving. React as calmly as possible.
Realize that shame is the true enemy here, and that you can agree to two mini challenges to eat ice-cream without any shame. In the past, you’d let your desire for complete control translate into rigid rules and subsequent rebellion. Now, you’re gently moving the behavior from all-or-nothing abstinence or bingeing into something that you calmly decide on.
The Law of Marginal Utility states that we’ll enjoy our first slice of pizza more than our fifth slice. This is true for everything, which is why mindfulness is so important while eating. We’ve all likely eaten unhealthy food without even enjoying it, simply because we weren’t being mindful. Whatever you eat, eat it mindfully.
When You Eat it, Make it Good
There will be times when you do you mini challenges (or not) and still consume the fried onion rings, the soda, or the fast food. It’s fine. You’re only human. When that time comes, do NOT try to cheat and trick your body with a “diet” treat.
Never, ever consume diet food. Not only are diet foods generally weight-gaining—because weight gain is a metabolic issue and they’re worse for your metabolism than real sugar—but consuming “diet food” is one of the most psychologically backward things you can do if you’re trying to lose weight.
It’s the classic picture of the person bingeing on baked chips without worry. It’s the person drinking diet soda after diet soda because, why not? They don’t contain calories! It’s the person guzzling down skim milk as if cows are going extinct. A “diet” product makes you believe that you’re not going to gain weight by consuming it, or that you’ll gain less weight than the “non-diet version.” This isn’t a reduction of shame, it’s a reduction of truth! This belief is often wrong as it stands, but it becomes much worse when you feel compelled to consume beyond what you typically would consume because “it’s diet.”
When you consume unhealthy food, make sure it’s full of real fat and real sugar. First, this food will actually be enjoyable and satisfying biologically, because your body can process these substances. Second, you’ll be more conscious about your decision. It’s the same reason why people recommend paying with cash instead of a credit card—when you hand over the cash, you feel the pain of losing it more than swiping a piece of plastic for hundreds of dollars. In the same way, when you chomp into that triple chocolate fudge sundae, you will feel the gain! Not shame, because you took care of that, but gain. It’s good to associate these foods with weight gain, because that’s the truth, even when they’re pumped full of non-food chemicals and labeled “low-calorie” or “diet.”
This isn’t to make you feel bad about eating unhealthy food; it’s to make you aware that there are no shortcuts to losing weight if you eat cake all day. Real food repairs your metabolic system by reducing inflammation, triggering proper reward and satiety responses, and giving the body time to heal itself from previous consumption of Frankenfoods.
Even with the excellent strategies in this book, you will sabotage yourself if you approach your eating and movement habits with thoughts as innocent-sounding as, “I have to fight to eat well and do the best thing for my body.” When you take a fighting stance against your current eating and movement habits, you’re declaring war against your subconscious. Bad idea! Some people have struggled with the original Mini Habits system because they don’t actually shed their old way of thinking.
Mini habits and the optional strategies in this book are strategically casual. A mini habit’s strength is that it does NOT trigger any of these internal wars. Its strength is that it does NOT pose a threat to your current way of life. Like a taxi, it picks you up where you are without judgment and takes you someplace new.
The following is critical to understand, so reread it if necessary. If you ever feel resistance to doing a mini habit or going through the series of mini challenges when tempted, it’s because YOU are resisting “the wrong way.” It’s because you are trying too hard to do “the right thing.”
When you’re tempted by something, your first instinct should not be, “Oh no, here’s the craving. What can I do to stop this?” Even if your approach after that point is smart, your initial attitude of direct resistance to the temptation has already put you at a significant disadvantage.
I’m going to write this three times because it’s that important.
The more you resist, the more you will feel resistance.
The more you resist, the more you will feel resistance.
The more you resist, the more you will feel resistance!
The way this works is that your resistance to “doing the wrong thing” riles up your subconscious (because it wants to do the wrong thing), and then you’ll feel resistance to doing something as simple as one push-up or drinking a glass of water. On their own, these behaviors are laughably easy, but when you posture them as roadblocks to “the fun stuff,” they’re only slightly better than the massive goals people fail with on a regular basis.
The myth of the “quick fix” is one of the biggest hurdles to success with mini habits. Change your behavior through freedom, acceptance of where you are right now, and strategic and consistent movement toward better behaviors. It might be easiest to convey the right perspective in thoughts.
Good: “Those cookies look delicious and I want one. I know they’re weight-gaining, so I’ll go through two mini challenges and take it from there.”
Bad: “Those cookies look delicious and I want one. Ugh. But I can’t have one now! I shouldn’t! I really want to lose this weight, but they look so good! I have to do something now! What strategies could I try to prevent myself from eating this?”
See how the first response is calm, collected, casual, and easy-going? See how the second response is frantic, defensive, and out of control? The first response works well because it doesn’t create a win-lose scenario and it doesn’t put any pressure on you to change yourself instantly. It allows you to breathe.
Also bad: “I’m going to do this mini challenge in order to defeat this craving.”
The “end goal” of a mini habit is to do the mini habit. Nothing else. You can’t expect a mini habit to save you from temptation, to turn into a full workout, or to make you love green beans on any given day. You can expect a mini habit to improve any and all of those areas over time. Does that make sense? If you ever place an in-the-moment expectation on a mini habit, you are no longer aiming for a mini habit, but for whatever your expectation is. The way to avoid this is to stop obsessing over individual events and results, and instead focus on being consistent with these small behaviors. In weight loss, every battle counts, but no single battle wins the war. Don’t fear losing a battle; fear losing the war because you let a battle get the best of your emotions. (This goes back to the question “Is it worse to eat a cookie or to feel shame for eating a cookie?”)
I understand that you really want to change. I understand that you really want to rid yourself of some of these bad habits that are keeping you from the health and body you desire. Funnel this energy into mastering this strategy and you will be rewarded with real progress, not the typical dieting rollercoaster of 10 pounds lost in 10 days followed by 15 pounds gained over the next 60 days.
The Emotional Cake Spiral
Food cravings for pleasurable foods are emotional and are largely driven by emotion. Pleasure eating triggers chemical reward signals that aren’t present in hunger-driven eating.166
Knowing that food temptations are emotion-driven, consider this: What does the noble attempt to resist a food craving do to your emotional state? It increases the internal friction between your conscious and subconscious desires. This internal conflict amplifies your entire emotional state, which increases your subconscious desire to indulge.
Has this process matched your experience? Do you see why we’re taking a different approach?
You have a split second to decide how you will react when a food craving hits. If it’s frantic and “Oh no! I mustn’t!,” then you’re probably going to lose. Instead, take a deep breath, take your time, decide to be calm, and consider the strategic options in this book. If you want to try the optional temptation strategy, do it. If not, that’s okay too.
If you buy it, you will eat it.
The home eating war is won and lost in the grocery store. The food you buy creates your food environment at home, and it is very difficult to fight your environment if it is unfriendly to your goals.
If you only bought healthy food, you would eliminate your unhealthy snacking problem at home immediately and easily. I understand that it can get complicated with others in the same house who don’t want to join you, but if that’s the case, maybe you can ask them to hide their unhealthy snacks from you.
Here’s the strategy I recommend while you’re shopping: Buy groceries as usual. When you’re ready to check out, remove one piece of unhealthy food and replace it with a healthy alternative. Why this way? It’s awkward to tell you to buy at least one vegetable or one fruit. Unless your eating habits are exceptionally poor, you’ll likely buy some amount of fruits and vegetables normally, and thus, an “at least one” requirement would do absolutely nothing for you. But replacing an unhealthy item you typically buy with a healthy substitute is an instant double win.
As with all mini habits, you can continue to make additional healthy replacements, but aim for just one to start. Here are a few examples:
If you literally only buy processed foods, you can buy at least one kind of fresh or frozen vegetable (with some plan of how you’ll consume it later; don’t buy a squash and let it rot in your closet… don’t put vegetables in your closet).
The Price of Healthy Food
People assume healthy eating is expensive, but is it really? Upfront, it is a bit more expensive. A meta-analysis of food costs covering 27 studies in 10 countries found that the difference in price between a healthy and unhealthy diet was $1.50 per day per person.167 That’s $45 extra a month and $547 extra a year to make a significant positive investment in your health, weight, and well-being. It’s a cliché but true to say that you’ll save money by cutting down on medical costs when you eat healthy food and take care of yourself. The price of healthy food is less expensive than the long-term costs of eating unhealthy food.
Many people in the USA spend $5 or more every day on lattes and other superfluous foods and beverages. In fact, $1.50 is close to the price of getting a soda at a restaurant, and low-income people drink more sugary drinks than others.168 It is possible for most to afford healthy food if it’s prioritized.
The single best thing you can do for better home eating is to make healthy foods easily accessible. Accessibility plays a big role in your willingness to eat well. Buying healthy food is not the complete answer, because it’s very easy to buy healthy food and let it spoil as you eat something else. There are three components to making healthy home eating more accessible.
1. Plan for consumption. When you buy broccoli, you should know how you’re going to eat it. Be precise. Are you going to boil it in water? Are you going to sauté it in a pan? Are you going to use it for a casserole? Are you going to eat it raw, and will that include dip? Will it be a random snack food where you reach in the fridge and grab one or two, or a more robust snack of several stalks? Are you going to put it in a salad? You don’t necessarily need to decide the exact use for it, but determine at least one or two ways you intend to eat it. This seed of intention can make a huge difference, and it will also prompt you to buy the right accessories you need while at the store. If you prefer to have broccoli in salads, but you don’t have any lettuce, then you’re much less likely to eat broccoli.
2. Learn faster ways to cook. If you’re like me, you don’t enjoy the time required to cook a decent meal. That said, there are plenty of fast ways to cook healthy food. One of my go-to methods is to stir-fry vegetables and meat. It takes 20-30 minutes max and afterwards I’ll throw all cookware and dinnerware into the dishwasher. Easy. Rice cookers and slow cookers take longer, but they take about one minute of your time to prepare!
Salad is one of the healthiest things you can eat, and also one of the fastest to make, as it doesn’t require any cooking. Sometimes I’ll make simple salads with lettuce and just a couple other vegetables, olive oil, vinegar, pepper, all-purpose seasoning, and cheese. Other times, I’ll create a mega salad with 15+ ingredients. The easiest way to do this is to cut a lot of vegetables in the first session. Cut an entire bunch of radishes, an entire stalk of celery, several whole carrots, a bell pepper, a few tomatoes, etc. Then use what you need for your salad, and store the rest in the refrigerator in sandwich bags or Tupperware. They’ll last about 3-4 days, and the next time you want a salad, you can pull out all of your ingredients, throw them together in a bowl, and have a delicious mega salad in no time! For me, this sort of speed hack is the difference between me eating salads or eating at a restaurant.
3. Give yourself plenty of options. Do you have plenty of fruit for sweet cravings? Do you have healthy snacks like nuts or easily prepared fruits and vegetables? Do you have several viable healthy dinner options? Given that processed food is always going to be easier to prepare than healthy food, I rarely buy it (and I eat whatever I buy). But if I’m not buying processed food and I’m also not stocked with healthy food supplies, my only option is to eat out (and hope in vain that the restaurant uses quality ingredients).
To be satisfied with a healthy diet, which is absolutely possible, you must have enough food. You do need to balance this with the first component (plan for consumption), because the only thing worse than not having enough food around is having healthy food around and letting it spoil because you didn’t plan how to consume it. That wastes your time, money, and motivation to eat healthy food.
The overarching goal is to create a home environment that is conducive to healthy living. Increase the ratio of healthy food to unhealthy food, plan for consumption, and learn what sort of food preparation you’re willing to do. As much as I like to eat healthy food, I’m not willing to cook two hours every day to do it. If you are, that’s great, but if you’re not, then don’t make that your win condition. Make it convenient, make it easy, and you’ll do well.
Emotional eating is a major cause of unnecessary snacking, and it is difficult to overcome. I know.
You might be expecting me to tell you that you need to get your emotions in check in order to fend off emotional eating. Not in this book. Mini habits are effective because they don’t depend on emotional manipulation.
The smartest approach to overcoming emotions is indirect, because when you fight your emotions directly, well, you usually lose. Emotions are subconscious feelings that don’t just go away because you want them to go away. In order to feel differently, you have to act differently. Feeling itself is not a choice, but it is greatly affected by your choices.
Every person hopefully learns at some point in their life that it works better to focus on things you can control. So, instead of trying to reverse the emotions that cause excess eating, we’re going to rewire your emotional response software. Right now, you might be programmed to eat potato chips, ice-cream, and chocolate bars when you’re stressed out or sad.
The Two Possible Emotional Support Systems
Being a human is hard work. I think we can all agree on that. Since life is hard, we tend to need support from others, and also from things.
Some people get their support from ice-cream, the couch, and a good TV show. This isn’t even wrong in moderation. But if this is your primary and regular therapist in life, your body will almost surely accumulate fat.
You can get a similar type of support from things like going to the gym, eating healthy food, and meditating. Not only is this type of support more effective—because it strengthens rather than weakens your mind, body, and emotional fortitude long-term—but also these things can be done “excessively” without negative consequence. They’re stackable!
When someone is faced with changing their behavior to achieve a result (weight loss), they may think about the enjoyable things they’ll have to lose, and they should consider that. But they also need to consider what they’re gaining. A balanced perspective is best.
The feeling I get after playing basketball for a couple of hours is one of the best feelings I know! I feel relaxed, worn out in a good way, satisfied from being active, and my endorphins are flowing. Exercise is proven to reduce stress and improve mood. Meditation does the same.
Matthieu Ricard credits meditation for his nickname, “The Happiest Man on Earth.” Ricard is a Buddhist monk, and, in his TED Talk, he shared the results of a brain scan of his fellow monks. The monks were four standard deviations higher in left prefrontal cortex activity, the side of the brain associated with happiness. Their happiness by this measure was off the charts, because they meditate so much.169 These sorts of activities can be a powerful defense against emotional eating, because they improve your underlying emotional health.
“Snackers Gonna Snack”
Snacking is fine. What’s the problem? This isn’t a starve-yourself diet. The same perspectives and ideologies apply to snacking as much as to dinner. Obviously, it’s better for your weight to choose celery over cupcakes, but if you want to eat a snack because you’re hungry, then it’d be foolish to restrict yourself, since weight is not lost (long-term) by eating less food, but by eating more healthy food.
Some people suggest that you only eat 3-5 meals per day without snacking. They don’t understand what they ask of us snackers! Newsflash: It’s possible to lose weight and snack at the same time. Forbidding snacking is a classic example of needless restriction that makes us rebel and grab a doughnut.
If you’ve decided to snack on something unhealthy, select the amount you want to consume and place it in a bowl. Don’t select less than you want, as you’d be fighting the wrong battle there. If you go back and get more, that’s fine if you really want it, but try to select how much you actually want next time. Studies have shown that “second helpings” result in more food consumed, compared to those who fill their plate to satisfaction at the first serving.
You’re not artificially limiting your consumption by choosing your snack portion; you’re avoiding the mindless “out of the bag” eating. If you’re eating fruits or vegetables, take the whole bag and enjoy. Mindlessly eating food that helps you lose weight isn’t such a problem, but be careful not to confuse raw fruits and vegetables with “fake healthy” options like organic vegetable chips or fruit cups with added sugar.
A good rule of thumb to follow is: Snack when hungry, not when bored. Snack because you need energy, not because you need a therapist. If you feel the desire to snack, and it isn’t because you’re hungry, you can take a look at the temptation mini challenge. The mini challenges can improve your mood and reduce or eliminate your craving if it’s based on emotional distress.
Remember that the goal is not the strategy. The goal is to not choose ice-cream and cookies when you snack, or to not eat much of them if you do. The strategy is to respect your craving, not try to deprive yourself of it. Make calm, rational choices, such as going through the temptation mini challenges, choosing your portion size, eating mindfully, and stopping when you’re satisfied. If you do this, you WILL eat less unhealthy food. Don’t lose sight of this and begin falling back into the dieting mindset of “Oh no, I want chips. I need to resist it in order to succeed!” That’s when you’ll fail. Direct resistance is futile, and the goal is not the strategy. Don’t forget it!
That said, your goal isn’t to be ignored either. You should remain mindful of your goal to eat healthier food. If you stop caring about your goal and mindlessly go through the motions of the strategies in this book, then you’ll struggle to do the right thing. Be mindful of your goal and strategic with your actions—that’s what you need to succeed.
In most cases, it’s hard to lose weight when you eat out frequently. Eating out is one of my favorite things to do and I do it often, but I’m very selective of where and what I eat. When you eat at a restaurant, you can’t assume that their food is healthy, as it likely has unhealthy additives and unnecessary amounts of sugar, sodium, and fat. Restaurant food is generally made for taste, not health, especially since customers are oblivious to the ingredients used (something I find frustrating).
It’s unusual for customers to ask about ingredients and nutrition information. This made sense back when food was simple, but now it’s more important than ever to know what you’re eating, and a restaurant is one of the few places where you may have to “eat blindly.”
Assume that restaurant ingredients are unhealthy unless the food is obviously simple (like steamed vegetables) or the restaurant explicitly says what ingredients they do (and don’t) use. More restaurants these days are advertising about things like no artificial colors or flavors, no preservatives, antibiotic free meat, and so on. Just be warned that the meal probably still has excessive sugar, salt, and fat.
Check the Ingredients
When you are thinking about eating at a restaurant, I recommend Googling “[restaurant name] ingredients” first. Not many restaurants list their ingredients online, but some major chains do. If you don’t find exact ingredients, you might find some kind of commentary about them. If you find the ingredient list and don’t recognize an ingredient, it’s probably some chemically made preservative or flavor enhancer. If the ingredient list is extremely long, that’s also a warning sign.
Caring about your weight means caring about the ingredients in your food. It would be easier if good ingredients were standard, but they are more expensive, and consumers rarely ask about ingredients. As businesses, restaurants have a much greater incentive to use cheap ingredients that taste great.
Far more important than how often you eat out is:
In general, healthy meals are simple dishes of vegetables (and meat if you’re not vegetarian), and the worst dishes contain fried foods, oils, and sauces (sauces are the hidden weight gainer in many restaurants). Sauces and dressings taste great, but they almost always contain a massive amount of unhealthy fat (soybean oil), sugar, and chemical additives, and they’re not satiating.
The more aware you are about restaurant food, the better you’ll be able to manage your eating out frequency and choices. Do some research on your favorite restaurants to investigate their food quality. In addition to checking out the ingredients, you can usually find restaurant menus online to see if there are any healthy options that appeal to you.
Ask the Right Questions
If you’re considering a dish with meat or fish, ask how they cook it. Look to get it broiled, baked, or grilled. On several occasions, I’ve accidentally ordered fried food, because the menu didn’t specify the cooking method used and I didn’t ask. Now I ask if it doesn’t say.
Of course, none of these are rules—you can eat whatever you want. There’s a difference between knowing the right way and feeling pressured to live it perfectly. These details are important to be aware of because of how easy it is to mistake an unhealthy meal for a healthy one when eating out. The worst thing is thinking you’re eating healthy food when you’re not!
Mindset check: Eating high quality food isn’t “required suffering” or “punishment” for people who want to lose weight. What you just read is exactly how I approach restaurant eating and I’m not overweight—I just care about my health. I’ll eat at places without checking ingredients sometimes, but I know the ingredients of the restaurants I eat at regularly. It’s what you do most often that defines your long-term results.
The Unseen Power of a Hot Dog
When I was a kid, I ate by taste (remember, I ate chapstick because I liked the flavor). If I still operated by that program, I would love eating hot dogs. But when I look at a hot dog, I see that processed bun full of preservatives, and when I look at the hot dog meat, I think of the disgusting ingredients inside.
It’s not common to talk about food ingredients in many cultures. In the United States, some guy would say, “It’s just a hot dog, dude.” It’s unusual to not want to ingest a lab abomination that isn’t fit for human consumption. And why? Anecdotes abound, such as “My uncle ate a hot dog every day and he lived until he was 88,” which says much more about the uncle’s vitality than the hot dog’s suitability for consumption. Association is also at play, this time to our detriment. Many people have their fondest memories associated with the worst foods. Baseball games in America are associated with hot dogs. Movies at the theater are associated with bathtub-sized soft drinks and a bucket of salty butter sprinkled with a few pieces of popcorn. Memorable parties and holiday gatherings are almost explicitly comprised of unhealthy foods.
These associations have layers of influence on us—personal memories on top of societal pairings (hot dogs and baseball, cakes and birthdays, etc.), on top of current social norms (getting beers with the guys, eating pizza at college, etc.). These social forces are the most potent influencers in the world, and they’re making us fatter.
If I were to bring up the non-food-like qualities of a hot dog, I could potentially even offend someone. Maybe this someone grew up going to baseball games with his father, and always got a hot dog. The father’s since passed away, and now the hot dog is a part of his memory, so by telling him how terrible hot dogs are, he sees it as alleging that his dad was a bad father because he let his son eat hot dogs, or that I’m judging him because he eats hot dogs. That’s why food is not just a discussion about calories, nutrition, and food quality. It’s also culture, society, memories, emotions, habits, and experiences. The quality of food is the surface-level discussion that dominates weight loss books. But it’s all of that other stuff in our subconscious that has the greatest influence on what we eat.
Different Results Require Being Different
A 2016 study found that only 2.7% of Americans matched four healthy lifestyle characteristics (non-smoking, healthy body fat percentage, active lifestyle, and healthy diet). That should surprise no one. It’s weird not to drink socially when you go out, to suggest vegetables as a snack, or to order a big salad. That’s because sadly it isn’t normal to eat real food anymore.
To be at a healthy weight, you have to be different from the average person, because the average person in many countries today is overweight. Some people get this concept right, but with the wrong applications. They switch to diet foods and drinks, try to starve themselves, and do “cleanses.” It’s estimated that 45 million Americans diet every year, and very few succeed. You don’t just want different results from the overweight population; you also want different results from the dieting population. That means you have to approach this differently from almost everyone around you (the mini habits approach is different and it works).
Even with Better Information, Behavior Change Lags
Nutritional information has gotten better recently, and many people are trying to change. For example, soda consumption hit a 30-year low in 2015, with diet soda seeing the steepest decline (hooray!).170 That is to say that all hope is not lost, and some of us are waking up to the processed food experiment that’s gone horribly wrong.
Still, even as nutrition education increases and people know what they should do, lasting behavior change remains a rarity. It’s estimated that 25% of Americans eat fast food every day. In America, fast food revenue surpassed $200 billion in 2015. Worldwide, it was $570 billion. That’s billion with a “B.”
That’s why this book is a game changer. These strategies are so powerful that they can empower you to swim against this worldwide current of obesity.
Peer Pressure Strategy
Now that we’ve covered just how much pressure there is against healthy living (a lot), here’s what to do about it. First of all, if any of your friendships depend on you living an unhealthy lifestyle, then that’s an unhealthy friendship by definition! Real friends won’t judge you or try to make you feel bad for making good decisions. You should be able to remain friends with people as you gradually shift your behavior with mini habits, but be aware that any lifestyle change—even when done gradually—can alter the dynamic of your relationships.
For each food decision that is being influenced by your peers, ask yourself what’s more important to you at the moment—your health or conforming to your surroundings. I don’t mean that in a demeaning way, and I’m not implying that you “should always choose your health.” There are times when we would rather join the group than choose the healthier option, and there’s nothing wrong with it. The problem is when you have no control over that decision and peer pressure wins out every time. If you have a track record of caving to peer pressure, you need to practice being more independent with your choices. Your peers don’t have to live with your choices, only you do. Here are some ways to navigate the peer pressure minefield.
Speak from preference, not from obligation. People almost always respect preference. If you don’t want something, people aren’t going to pressure you too much into eating it. But if you “can’t have it” because you’re “on a diet,” then they might see if they can coax you into indulging. One reason why people want you to join them in indulgence, by the way, is so they’ll feel better about their unhealthy lifestyle choices. If you order a salad and everyone else gets fried chicken and fries, your salad may make the others question their decision (or feel bad about it). It’s as if the lettuce in your bowl lectures them as they try to enjoy their fried food.
Let’s say that you’ve decided to choose the healthier option despite your friends indulging. Bravo! But one of your friends makes a comment or a question about your choice (expect this, because healthy eating is unusual). What do you say?
The worst thing you can do is act as if skipping the chocolate cake isn’t actually your choice. This is an appeal to authority in order to reduce your responsibility for the decision. It seems as if it gets you out of questioning because you’re “just following instructions,” but this often incites the wrong response from others. If I’m your friend and you tell me that you “can’t have it” because of some phantom authority you’ve made up, I might be motivated to set you free from that authority who isn’t allowing you to enjoy life. You’ve implied that you want the cake but have no freedom of choice. You might start thinking about fighting back against this phantom authority too. Nobody likes the fun police!
If you confidently say that you don’t want chocolate cake, then your friends have very little incentive to argue with you. Your personal preference is the ultimate authority when it comes to your food choices, and most people intuitively understand and respect that. If someone presses you on it, simply continue to state what you want (or don’t want). It’s that simple. You don’t need any “I’m on a diet” excuses to not eat dessert. There are plenty of other reasons to not eat dessert that can come from you.
Correct and strong responses
“I don’t want [unhealthy food].”
“I really want [healthy food].”
“I’d rather have [healthy food] than [unhealthy food].”
Weak responses
“I can’t eat [unhealthy food], I’m on a diet.”
“No thanks. I’m watching my weight.”
“I have to eat this [healthy food].”
Don’t impose your healthy choices on others, either. One of the best things you can do when eating healthy food is to make it clear that you’re not judging anyone else for their food choices (nor should you!). What people choose to eat is personal, amoral, and should concern nobody else. If someone remarks about how healthy my meal looks, it might be because they feel shameful about their meal choice, so I’ll often compliment their meal or mention that I also eat what they ordered sometimes. And it’s true. As I’ve said, I’ve eaten all of the worst foods, just as most people have. To judge someone on what they eat in a single meal is nonsensical and unproductive.
If you want to encourage others to eat more healthily, piling on the guilt is not the way. Nobody enjoys the healthy food police. Even encouraging someone to eat healthier food with good intentions can imply there’s guilt involved. It’s a sensitive subject for many, so be careful out there! The best way to handle it is exactly the way you’ll be thinking about food with Mini Habits for Weight Loss—food choices aren’t ever bad, wrong, forbidden, or illegal.
Some food is terrible for our health and weight, but we have every right to choose to eat it. If that’s what you take away from this book and you decide that you just want to eat cake in bed all day and not feel bad about it, that’s your choice, and I don’t judge you for it. The path to lasting success is through freedom, choice, empowerment, and mindfulness, not guilt and shame.
In conclusion, the way to navigate peer pressure is through mutual respect. Demand respect for your food choices and desires, and give the same respect to others in return.
The holidays are a big deal, not just in life, but for weight loss. A Texas Tech study found that Americans gain about 1.5 pounds over the six-week holiday season, which is about 75% of the entire year’s average weight gain.171 Two pounds a year sounds small, but over 20 years, that’s 40 extra pounds.
Thus, the seemingly small weight gain during the holidays is devastating to long-term weight loss plans. Your behavior at holiday (and other) parties is important, because these are the situations where you’re most likely to make poor decisions due to terrible food options, peer pressure, and the “special occasion” effect.
Party Snack Psychology
Imagine you're at a party with loads of snacks, some healthy and some unhealthy. (If you find any healthy snacks at a party, you’re probably the one who brought them.) When looking at the vegetables and cookies, don't think in all-or-nothing terms, which leads to rebellion. It’s not vegetables or cookies—think about how best to merge your sweet tooth with your healthy goals, and do your best to "lean healthy." The difference between a person who eats healthy and one who eats poorly is smaller than you think. One leans healthy and the other leans unhealthy. One gains a pound over the holidays and the other gains none or loses a little bit of weight each month, including during the holidays. Small choices accumulate into big changes over time.
Holidays are special occasions, not special food occasions. Food is not what makes the holidays special. Or, rather, it shouldn’t be. Otherwise, the holidays are no different from a trip to a nice buffet.
Do your best to dissociate holiday cheer with food and beer. This isn’t to say you mustn’t eat anything unhealthy; it’s to remind you not to give up responsibility for your food choices because “Oh, it’s the holidays, and therefore I can eat mindlessly!” If you really begin to change—and your daily mini habits will help you do that—your healthy lifestyle won’t last 46 weeks per year but all year. Therefore, the holidays are a good indicator of where you really stand. Dieters feel as if they’re being torn apart every holiday season because they know what they “should” do, but they don’t want to do it. People who change their subconscious preferences no longer desire these foods to the extent they once did.
It’s hard to try to convey the mindfulness and consistency needed for success without giving that “You can’t have fun anymore” vibe. I’m aware that dieting has made all of us prone to assume the “I can’t do XYZ because ____” mindset. That’s a failing plan. Real change means you don’t want to do XYZ.
Party Strategy
This is not a situation in which you “need to be careful” and “watch out.” That gives the wrong connotation, and you’ll be right back to your dieting ways of direct resistance. Be calmly strategic at parties. Negotiate with yourself and make deals. Be mindful. For example, maybe you negotiate to have some candy, but drink water, or you choose to drink booze, but snack on carrots and celery. It’s all delicious. You’re calm. You win.
As you think about these decisions on what foods to eat and how much, one of the best underlying and decision-driving mindsets is to simply care about your body and your health. That alone can make you genuinely not want some of the food that isn’t worth the cost. The reason I don’t eat much candy is because I know (and don’t like the thought of) the effect it has on my body. There may be some foods—triple fudge cake—that you think are worth the cost, and, in that case, maybe you take a slice and eat it slowly, mindfully, and without shame.
When eating a slice of triple fudge cake, there are a few ways to go about it.
Never forget that the enemy of weight loss is processed food, but the enemy of behavior change for weight loss (what counts the most) is some combination of mindless eating, shame, inconsistency, and giving up.
What Mindfulness Looks Like
What No Shame Eating Looks Like
What Consistency Looks Like
What Never Giving up Does
Those who never give up will find their way to success. Persistence is the common factor in every success story. Just because you have success every day with your mini habits does not mean that you won’t have off days. It’s key to mitigate the psychological damage from such days, and that’s done by combining the above factors with the decision to never give up.
By going into parties with a calm, strategic mindset, you’ll be one of the few people there who can have fun and make progress. Over time, you’ll make better choices, which will lead to healthier preferences.
10
Conclusion
You’ve Tried Dieting Many Times, Try This Once
“All men can see these tactics whereby I conquer, but what none can see is the strategy out of which victory is evolved.”
~ Sun Tzu
I used one push-up per day to become a frequent exerciser. It prioritized consistency in order to change the brain and familiarize it with exercise, increased short- and long-term motivation with early success, maximized momentum-based progress by starting the process of exercising every day, and improved my morale by ensuring a long winning streak. Those who see the one push-up tactic may compare it to something like the “100 push-up challenge,” which is to do 100 push-ups per day. Comparing these tactics without considering their underlying strategy often leads to the wrong choice. The strategy behind 100 push-ups a day is comparatively weak. The idea is to create rapid progress and snowball motivation, but it’s almost always thwarted by the slow-change nature of the brain, fickle motivation, limited willpower, and the unpredictability of life.
Most people who want to lose weight adopt some form of dieting as their tactic of choice. The strategy behind dieting is to lose weight by doing something more extreme than the people not trying to lose weight (one such tactic is intentionally creating a calorie deficit). This sort of change is counteracted biologically and neurologically in ways beyond our control. So even if you succeed with this plan, you’re likely to fail with your goal, as shown in the introduction. That’s how terrible the strategy is—when executed perfectly, it fails. Not only are extreme changes not necessary to lose weight, they are also counterproductive.
The new mindset we’ve discussed is recognizing that weight loss and behavior change are best done gradually. When change is gradual, we don’t trigger the brain’s countermeasures that make us revert to old habits or the body’s countermeasures that make us regain the weight (and then some). Instead, we will methodically shift the baseline fat set point lower and lower as we change our behavioral and dietary preferences (which are dictated by habit).
To go along with this, we’ve clarified that weight loss is not a matter of carbs, fat, or calories, but of food quality. To isolate any of those factors would be an incorrect, albeit popular, oversimplification. There are different types of each macronutrient, and they have vastly different effects in the body. Olive oil and coconut oil are healthy fats. Trans fats and vegetable oils are unhealthy fats. Fruits and vegetables are healthy carbs. Ultra-processed foods like chips, soda crackers, and fries are unhealthy carbs. Anyone can point to an example of an unhealthy fat or an unhealthy carb and say, “That’s it! It’s the carbs (or fat)!” This is like meeting one mean person and concluding that all people are mean. Some of us are nice! Observational science consistently finds that fats, carbs, and calories are sometimes good and sometimes bad, depending on the quality of the source.
Some people say that we’re just eating too much food. That may be true, but if so, why are we eating too much food? Were our ancestors more adept at counting calories or buying sugar-free cupcakes? The factors that really matter are satiety, satisfaction, micronutrients, and phytonutrients. If you have two foods that are 100 calories, but one is 14 times heavier and more filling per calorie, how can you say that calories are all that matter? Strawberries are 14 times heavier per calorie than potato chips. To anyone who still believes in calorie counting, I invite you to put it to the test with the strawberry chips challenge!
Take this challenge at your own risk. I don’t recommend it.
One day, see how far you can get eating one 8-ounce bag of potato chips. I imagine I could eat the entire bag in one sitting. Another day, see how far you can get eating 7.2 pounds of strawberries. One bag of chips and 7.2 pounds of strawberries contain the same amount of calories, so as long as you “count them,” it doesn’t matter if you eat chips or strawberries, right? Oh, what’s that? Your stomach exploded when you tried to eat seven pounds of strawberries? Disclaimer: Do not try this challenge at home… or anywhere else.
If anyone ever suggests to you that counting calories is all that matters, tell them to take this challenge. When they refuse or give an excuse like, “Well, you just have to eat the chips in moderation,” then you can clarify to them that satiety-per-calorie matters more than just calories (and so does micro-nutrition, but that’s less tangible than seven pounds of strawberries, so we’ll keep it simple). If you count calories, you risk being hungry and wrecking your metabolism. Eat healthy foods that satisfy your hunger and nutritional needs. That’s the right solution.
To summarize the new mindset of this book: Don’t worry about carbs, fats, protein, and calories. Only concern yourself with the quality of food you’re eating. If you eat quality food, all of those other things will fall into place. It’s not easy to eat quality food in a world obsessed with processed food, but it’s easier than counting calories, carbs, or fat. No math necessary. I like math, but not calorie counting math.
Do not break these laws. If you do, you will greatly reduce your chance of success.
1. No Dieting
Do not diet and call it mini habits. Mini habits are small and easy changes, not, “Sorry, I can’t eat that. I’m watching my weight and can only eat salad.” Dieting forces you to eat healthy food, but your mini habits will gently teach you to enjoy it more.
2. No Limits on Unhealthy Food, No Deprivation
Your body is used to a certain way of eating, and, if you threaten that, you will lose 95% of the time (this is the failure rate of dieting, according to some studies). If you feel a powerful craving to eat a burger, think about it and apply the optional temptation strategy in this book to see if it changes, but if it’s still there and strong, YOU HAD BETTER EAT THAT BURGER! Enjoy it, too.
If your cravings frustrate you because you want to make progress, you still can make progress. Chew each bite 30 times. Drink water. See if a lettuce wrap would be agreeable instead of the bun. There are battles within the battle, and the optimal decision is not usually at the extreme. Even if you lose the entire battle, it is less important than winning the war. We don’t swing blindly anymore. We choose fights we know we can win. Patience and cunning strategy lead to victory.
The way to eat less junk food is to allow it unconditionally, and to employ strategies to help you make healthier decisions. Leave deprivation to the dieters. If you ever feel deprived while following the Mini Habits for Weight Loss strategy, either you’re doing it wrong, or you need to tweak it to your needs.
This doesn’t mean you should always eat unhealthy food if you crave it. If you prefer a burger, but find salmon and vegetables to be almost as desirable, then go ahead and get the salmon. That’s not deprivation of an uncontrollable craving; it’s the better choice between two desirable options.
3. Feel No Shame
There’s no reason to feel shameful about what you weigh or what you eat. If you just ate a slice of pizza in two bites, you didn’t commit a crime, you didn’t destroy your chance at losing weight, and you certainly didn’t do anything “wrong.” Food is amoral. That is, there is no morality associated with food (except with certain religions—you know who you are).
That is to say that consuming burgers, sodas, fries, candy, Brussels sprouts, French onion soup, or bacon should have no effect on how you feel about yourself. Think about it—nearly everyone has eaten nearly every type of food. Why should you feel bad about eating a food everyone else has eaten before? It doesn’t make sense. I’m a health nut, but I’ve consumed all of the very worst processed food. In the 1990s there was a briefly popular soft drink called Surge, and I drank it as if I thought it gave me superpowers. Surge had more sugar and caffeine than most soft drinks, so it felt like a superpower at times.
Food is how we survive. It’s enjoyable, except for the cricket I ate in Thailand. That fried food your neighbors just ate still gave them life-sustaining energy.
You can be fully aware of how food impacts your body without feeling shame for eating it. By not being on a diet, you’ll have a much easier time with this, but you might have to remind yourself if your old “dieting” instinct kicks in. You might even need to purposefully and confidently eat unhealthy food to prove to yourself that it’s not criminal. You have a plan to lose weight, but it’s nothing like the ones that didn’t work. It’s rooted in your personal freedom, autonomy, and empowerment. No foods are restricted.
Make the decision right now to drop all shame about your weight and the foods you eat. You will feel 100 pounds lighter just from shedding shame, and you sure won’t miss it!
4. Be the Captain, Not the Deckhand
This one is important. Many people, when reading a strategy-driven book, will attempt to “follow the steps to success.” For this strategy especially, you have to take initiative. Be the leader, and use this as a guidebook for your change. All of the best leaders have advisors. This book is your advisor, but you’re the one calling the shots. This is your life.
If, instead, you demote yourself to a deckhand, you’ll be following literal directions and you may miss the concepts that make this strategy effective. Those who have the greatest success with this strategy will be the ones who “get it.” They’ll see the concepts at play, such as how small, imperceptible changes won’t trigger the body or the subconscious into countermeasures, how shame destroys us while small wins encourage us, how autonomy empowers us to new heights while rules beat us down until we rebel, or how consistency matters more than anything else because it shapes our habitual preferences.
One of the best ways to describe the difference between the captain and the deckhand is this: The captain will make changes as necessary, while the deckhand will only do what he’s told. The captain will be more aggressive in general, making bonus reps a more likely occurrence (and bonus reps are one of the most exciting aspects of this strategy).
You’re free to live as you wish, but you’ll be armed with potent strategies to change yourself for the better. This is a lifelong strategy, because you aren’t giving up your freedom. You’re adding power to your life, not following directions and depriving yourself to get a result. Please take the wheel, Captain. (May I suggest Hawaii?)
5. Never Stop Self-Negotiating and Strategizing (Don’t Allow Complete Rebellion)
The moment you say, “screw it” and binge is the moment you’ve lost, not because you’re about to eat an entire cheesecake, but because you’ve let the “strict” side of you—the one that wants to lose weight—domineer over your carnal, cheesecake-loving self for too long. In order for this venture to be a success, you have to be happy with your decisions consciously and subconsciously. You need to make decisions that at once support a healthier you and provide you with the carnal comfort you need.
Counterintuitively, the way to stop rebellion is not through brute force tactics (like willpower), but to make rebellion seem like a ridiculous idea. People don’t rebel against things they like. Make sure you like what you’re doing. This strategy is built to be very agreeable, but feel free to customize it to better meet your needs. Just be careful not to “customize it” into a typical dieting system of rules and restrictions. That’s why understanding these concepts is critical to success.
6. Rely on Your Healthy Heroes
Take note of healthy foods that you like. These are your heroes, and you can rely on them to carry you. If you don’t like vegetables much, but you have an unusual affinity for broccoli, eat lots of broccoli. If you like to snack on radishes, do it often. If you love the taste of asparagus, always have it on hand.
Those who diet tend to force-eat food they don’t enjoy. Some food is an acquired taste, so it’s not a bad idea to make yourself eat food you don’t enjoy on occasion, but don’t make it your primary strategy. You can avoid the “suffer for weight loss” mindset by choosing food you like. If you don’t think you like any healthy food, then continue to experiment. You haven’t tried all of it, and you’re most likely comparing it to processed food. When you eat lots of processed food, healthy food won’t seem as appealing because it’s different. Don’t think of eating healthy food as substitution; think of it as practice. The more consistently you eat healthy food, the more you’ll want it.
7. Try
Mini habits are powerful little behaviors. They can change your life. They are not, however, magic. I mean, they’re almost magical in how well they work, but you can’t think, “Okay, I did one push-up and nothing happened.” Underlying that quote is someone who is indifferent to success, hoping to get it without trying. In order to make the mini habits strategy work, you still have to try, just as you would with any other strategy. The total effort required for success with mini habits is lower than most, but effort is still required.
8. Never Mistake Your Goal for Your Strategy, and Use Them Both Properly
Your goal is where you’d like to go. Your strategy is how you plan to get there.
Processed food is terrible. It is the bane of weight loss. Therefore, the goal is to stop eating it. The best strategy, however, is not to “stop eating it,” since a “junk food ban” will make you feel deprived when you don’t eat it and shameful when you do.
Your goal is not your strategy, but your goal is still important. Just as bad as using the goal as your strategy is ignoring the goal and mindlessly using the strategy. If you eat a carrot and passively wait for something to happen because “the strategy is supposed to work,” then you’re not thinking about your original goal, which is to live healthier.
When you know your goals and you use smart strategies to achieve them, you will thrive. Your goals give you direction and desire, and your strategy puts you in the best position to reach the goal. Here are a couple of examples.
Mistake (using your goal as your strategy): “I want to stop drinking soda, therefore I’ll stop drinking soda.”
Correct: “I want to stop drinking soda. My strategy is to allow myself to drink it, but stock up with several healthy alternatives, and every time I’m tempted to drink soda, I’ll go through the mini obstacle course I’ve set up, including drinking a glass of refreshing lime-infused water.”
Mistake (ignoring the goal and mindlessly trying the strategy): “I’ll eat one carrot at 3 PM every day because Stephen said.” (This could work, but it’s not the ideal perspective.)
Correct: “I want to lose weight by eating more vegetables. My strategy for that is to eat one carrot at 3 PM every day to decrease my resistance to eating vegetables over time. Also, I can use that momentum on some days to eat more carrots or other vegetables in that moment, or maybe it will encourage me to keep making good decisions for the rest of the day. The first small step should break through the resistance I usually feel and put me on the right track, while doing it every day could develop the carrot-eating habit.”
Since we’ve covered so much information, you might be wondering how to put it all together. Let’s take a zoomed-out look at the entire actionable portion of the book.
The Mini Habits for Weight Loss strategy has four components. Three of these are optional, and one is a daily requirement. We’ve covered these in detail, and this is the overview of how they all work together.
Daily Mini Habits (mandatory): Choose 1-4 mini habits you’ll do every day, and select an implementation plan that suits your personality and lifestyle (as covered in the “Mini Habit Plans” section). These daily mini habits are the most important component for change, because they’re your “base” of consistent progress. They’re easy to do, even on a bad day, which is why remarkable consistency is not just possible but highly probable. Daily mini habits are the only mandatory aspect of the entire mini habits strategy. You must do these every day if you want to succeed. Since these are a “must-do” requirement, it’s helpful to remind yourself just how easy these behaviors are, or else you might feel controlled and rebel. If you feel resistance to your mini habits, consider these tips:
If you can internalize that mindset, you will thrive. Beyond mini habits, the rest of the strategy is about shifting your mindset and making use of the following optional strategies to help you.
Temptation Strategy (optional): Within the “Situational Strategies” chapter is a broad temptation strategy that umbrellas over all situations. The temptation strategy is designed to reduce shame, decrease the severity of your cravings, and empower you to make better decisions now and later. These three things are accomplished through a simple “mini obstacle course.” This strategy is smart because it strengthens you even when you “lose” and indulge in a craving. You’re not going to resist processed food perfectly for the rest of your life, so any strategy that counts on your doing that (read: every other weight loss book you’ve ever read) is a poor one.
The temptation strategy is optional, meaning you do not have to try to implement it every time you’re tempted. Your goal is to make healthier choices, and this is a tool to help you accomplish that. If I suggested that you make it mandatory, it would interfere with the broader mini habits strategy. If you required yourself to use this strategy every time you’re tempted but you didn’t always do it, then you might think you’re failing or that the mini habits strategy isn’t working as a whole and stop doing your daily mini habits. This is obviously something to avoid, since the daily mini habits are most important, and this is more of a bonus if you can do it.
That said, this is a very powerful strategy that I recommend you do as often as possible. But don’t ever feel like you’ve failed or that you’ve “messed up” if you are tempted by food and just eat it without trying this. This is optional, but I would prioritize it over the other optional strategies, since cravings and temptation play such a large role in eating.
Situational Strategies (optional): Life presents you with plenty of challenges if you want to lose weight. You’ll find yourself in situations in which it’s difficult to make healthy decisions. Most people try to use willpower to mitigate all of these situations, and it works well… until it fails. Since willpower does fail us sometimes, it’s better to use strategies that are effective in any willpower or motivational state.
In the “Situational Strategies” chapter, we covered general temptation, six other common situations, and the ideal strategy for each one. You can use them as a reference. For example, when you’re about to attend a party, you can review the “Parties and Holidays” strategy guide. Having different strategies for different situations is more customized than dieting, which ignores the reality of life and gives you a confining “no matter what” ultimatum.
Mini Challenges (optional): You can choose to do these fun and easy challenges on a case-by-case basis. These are like the situational strategies, but they involve movement instead of eating.
If you want, you can try making one of these into a standard mini habit if it’s attached to something you do every day. For example, if you watch TV every day, then you can implement the “TV Challenge” or the “TV Commercial Challenge” as a daily requirement. This is more difficult than a typical mini habit, because it can be triggered several times per day. If you watch three hours of TV, that might be 24 commercial breaks, which would mean you’re getting up and moving 24 times per day. That’s quite a lot to do on every day. It’s doable and easy in each individual case, but to have to do it that many times can be intimidating. That’s why I recommend these as optional in most cases.
If you have a stairs vs. elevator choice every day, maybe at your workplace, then you could make that into a mini habit by choosing one specific cue. Maybe you will decide to use the stairs as you go into and/or leave work, but use the elevator at lunch. Likewise, maybe you’ll choose to do a mini exercise routine before watching TV, but not during commercials. Whether or not you make these mandatory depends on how frequently you run into this situation, and your overall “mini habits load.” It’s not a good thing to have too many mini habits.
Be sure to manage your daily requirements and optional activities into something that’s comfortable. Your plan can challenge you slightly, but daily success matters more than “challenging yourself,” because it forms habits, and habits allow you to challenge yourself more often and in greater intensity without risk of total failure.
Habits set the floor for your worst days. For example, my worst writing day technically has a floor of 50 words. That’s just on paper as my mini habit. Since I’ve had this mini habit for more than two years and my writing habit is strong, my worst days are more like 1,000 words written. Others—including me before mini habits—start out aiming for something challenging like 1,000 words per day, and often fail to hit that mark or quit from burnout. Because I aimed for consistency and built the writing habit, writing 1,000 words a day is now an average or below-average day for me, when it used to be “an extraordinary accomplishment.” This is the power of habit, and don’t forget it.
The fun thing about these mini challenges (and also your daily mini habits) is that, whenever you take a small positive action, you’ll feel good about yourself. I can’t overstate how crucial this is to your success. When I take the stairs instead of the elevator in my apartment, I feel disproportionately good about myself. Someone should slap me and say, “Dude, you just went up some stairs. Calm down.” It sounds silly, but you’ll see what I mean. It’s addictive and rewarding to accumulate these small wins, which is what this whole strategy is based on doing.
You are now armed with strategies that can take you the distance. You will be able to apply these strategies seven years from now as well as today, because they are designed for lifelong use and success. If you’ve tried the frantic, motivation-driven push to lose weight quickly, you know how that ends. If you’ve tried to change your diet overnight, you know how that ends. Try this way, and you’ll see a different, happier ending.
To make real, lasting progress, you need to make changes you can sustain. And these changes are not going to become more difficult over time, but easier to do as your brain familiarizes with them. When they finally become habitual, they will be your new preferences, and then you won’t have to operate under any plan. You’ll just be living your new lifestyle.
Lasting weight loss is possible, not through dieting, but through small and consistent changes that mesh with the way your body and brain prefer to change. If a behavior is “too small to fail” and so easy that you can do it on your worst day, what can stop you from doing it? Nothing, and that means that nothing will stop you from changing your behavior and getting healthier.
Mini Habits for Weight Loss is success- and practice-driven. Too many people set goals they can’t reach. That isn’t fruitful. We get better by practicing hitting targets, not by failing to hit targets out of our reach. Imagine succeeding every day, not just when you’re motivated. Imagine growing in confidence every day. Imagine losing weight over the next year without having fear of regaining it because of how you’ve changed from the inside out, rather than from forced, conscious-only, willpower-draining, outside-in dieting programs.
This is your chance to try a weight loss strategy that can actually work long-term. I hope you take advantage of the opportunity before you. As the saying goes, once you go mini, you don’t go back. I wish you the best for your journey in weight loss and in life.
Cheers,
Stephen Guise
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Mini Habits
If you haven’t yet, I strongly recommend you read my first book, Mini Habits. Although you don’t need to read Mini Habits to benefit from Mini Habits for Weight Loss, it will give you more of the nuts and bolts of the original mini habits strategy.
Based on the science, Mini Habits is arguably the most effective habit formation strategy in the world. And, based on reviews, it’s arguably the most loved and the most successful! Many lives have been transformed as a result of adopting the mini habits strategy. It can change your life too!
Mini Habits Book: http://amazon.com/dp/B00HGKNBDK
Mini Habit Mastery
If you prefer video and want to learn the mini habits concept, you can take the Mini Habit Mastery Video Course. Use coupon code “MHWL55” for an exclusive Mini Habits for Weight Loss discount. Mini Habit Mastery is among the world’s most popular habit courses, with over 9,000 students.
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How to Be an Imperfectionist
My second book applies Mini Habits to the problem of perfectionism. If you struggle with depression, fear, and inaction, this book has a lot to offer. It’s the highest-rated product I’ve ever created.
How to Be an Imperfectionist book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00UMG535Y
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Notes
1. Merriam-Webster.com. Retrieved 26 August 2016, from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/diet
2. “The cycled animals required more than twice the time (21 vs. 46 days) to lose the same amount of weight during the second restriction compared to the first (food efficiency was increased 142%). One-third the time (10 vs. 29 days) was required to regain weight in the second refeeding. Food intake increased 25% and efficiency 52% in the second refeeding. The difference did not appear to be due to age, as efficiency decreased slightly over time in the age-matched Obese Controls while it increased significantly in the cycled animals.”
Brownell, K., Greenwood, M., Stellar, E., & Shrager, E. (1986). The effects of repeated cycles of weight loss and regain in rats. Physiology & Behavior, 38(4), 459-464. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0031-9384(86)90411-7
3. Bjorntorp, P., & Yang, M. U. (1982). Refeeding after fasting in the rat: Effects on body composition and food efficiency. Am J Clin Nutr 36: 444-449.
Walks, D., Lavau, M, Presta, E., Yang, M. U., & Bjorntorp, P. (1983). Refeeding after fasting in the rat: Effects of dietary-induced obesity on energy balance regulation. Am J Clin N, tr 37: 387-395.
Boyle, P. C., Storlien, L. H., Harper, A. E., & Keesey, R. E. (1981). Oxygen consumption and locomotor activity during restricted feeding and realimentation. Am J Physiol 241: R392-R387.
Boyle, P., Storlien, L., & Keesey, R. (1978). Increased efficiency of food utilization following weight loss. Physiology & Behavior, 21(2), 261-264. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0031-9384(78)90050-1
Levitsky, D., Faust, I., & Glassman, M. (1976). The ingestion of food and the recovery of body weight following fasting in the naive rat. Physiology & Behavior, 17(4), 575-580. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0031-9384(76)90154-2
Robinson, D., Hodgson, D., Bradford, G., Robb, J., & Peterson, D. (1975). Effects of dietary restriction and fasting on the body composition of normal and genetically obese mice. J Animal Science, 40(6), 1058. http://dx.doi.org/10.2527/jas1975.4061058x
Rolls, B., Rowe, E., & Turner, R. (1980). Persistent obesity in rats following a period of consumption of a mixed, high energy diet. J Physiology, 298(1), 415-427. http://dx.doi.org/10.1113/jphysiol.1980.sp013091
4. Mann, T., Tomiyama, A., Westling, E., Lew, A., Samuels, B., & Chatman, J. (2007). Medicare's search for effective obesity treatments: Diets are not the answer. American Psychologist, 62(3), 220. Retrieved from http://psycnet.apa.org/index.cfm?fa=search.displayRecord&uid=2007-04834-008#
5. Field, A., Austin, S., Taylor, C., Malspeis, S., Rosner, B., & Rockett, H., et al. (2003). Relation between dieting and weight change among preadolescents and adolescents. Pediatrics, 112(4), 900-906. Retrieved from http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/112/4/900
6. Pietiläinen K. H. e. (2016). Does dieting make you fat? A twin study. PubMed - NCBI. Ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. Retrieved 26 August 2016, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21829159
7. Tucker, T. (2006). The great starvation experiment: the heroic men who starved so that millions could live. New York: Free Press.
8. Taubes, G. (2016). Diet advice that ignores hunger. Nytimes.com. Retrieved 26 August 2016, from http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/30/opinion/diet-advice-that-ignores-hunger.html?_r=0
9. Callahan, M. (2016). The brutal secrets behind “The Biggest Loser”. Nypost.com. Retrieved 26 August 2016, from http://nypost.com/2015/01/18/contestant-reveals-the-brutal-secrets-of-the-biggest-loser/
10. Fothergill, E., Guo, J., Howard, L., Kerns, J., Knuth, N., & Brychta, R., et al. (2016). Persistent metabolic adaptation 6 years after “The Biggest Loser” competition. Obesity, 24(8), 1612-1619. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/oby.21538
11. Mann, T., Tomiyama, A., Westling, E., Lew, A., Samuels, B., & Chatman, J. (2007). Medicare's search for effective obesity treatments: Diets are not the answer. American Psychologist, 62(3), 220. p. 222 Retrieved from http://psycnet.apa.org/index.cfm?fa=search.displayRecord&uid=2007-04834-008#
12. Howard BV, et al. (2006). Low-fat dietary pattern and weight change over 7 years: The Womenʼs Health Initiative Dietary Modification Trial. Obstetrics & Gynecology, 107(4), 949. http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/01.aog.0000203661.68762.62
13. Bailor, J. (2013). The calorie myth. Harper Wave.
14. Hu, T., Mills, K., Yao, L., Demanelis, K., Eloustaz, M., & Yancy, W., et al. (2012). Effects of low-carbohydrate diets versus low-fat diets on metabolic risk factors: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled clinical trials. Am J Epidemiology, 176(suppl 7), S44-S54. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/aje/kws264
15. Hall, K. (2015). Prescribing low-fat diets: Useless for long-term weight loss? The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology, 3(12), 920-921. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/s2213-8587(15)00413-1
16. Lutes, L., Winett, R., Barger, S., Wojcik, J., Herbert, W., Nickols-Richardson, S., & Anderson, E. (2008). Small changes in nutrition and physical activity promote weight loss and maintenance: 3-month evidence from the ASPIRE Randomized Trial. Annals of Behavioral Medicine, 35(3), 351-357. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12160-008-9033-z
17. Gorin, A., Phelan, S., Wing, R., & Hill, J. (2003). Promoting long-term weight control: Does dieting consistency matter? Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord. http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/sj.ijo.0802550
18. The 21 days idea came from the surgeon Maxwell Maltz, who observed it took a minimum of 21 days for amputees to get used to their new condition. It’s no basis for making sweeping declarations on all human habit formation.
19. Lally, P., van Jaarsveld, C., Potts, H., & Wardle, J. (2010). How are habits formed: Modelling habit formation in the real world. Eur J Social Psychology, 40(6), 998-1009. Retrieved from http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ejsp.674/abstract
20. Norcross, J., Mrykalo, M., & Blagys, M. (2002). Auld lang syne: Success predictors, change processes, and self-reported outcomes of New Year's resolvers and nonresolvers. J Clinical Psychology, 58(4), 397-405. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/jclp.1151
21. Motivation is one of the top five most popular categories in nonfiction books, according to Amazon sales data.
22. Kahneman, D. (2011-10-25). Thinking, Fast and Slow (p. 62). Farrar, Straus and Giroux. Kindle Edition.
23. Kell, J. (2016). Diet industry struggles as consumers eat more fresh food. Fortune.com. Retrieved 26 August 2016, from http://fortune.com/2015/05/22/lean-times-for-the-diet-industry/
24. Some people intuitively realize the incongruence of “not enough desire” and “voluntarily suffering while paying $64 billion.” They think if motivation isn’t the problem, we just haven’t found the right diet yet. But the equation itself is flawed, because “wanting it enough” and finding “the right diet” are not the crux of successful weight loss.
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26. Researchers in the meta-analysis conducted at the University of Miami state: “Given the overall picture provided by our analyses, we conclude that the meta-analytic evidence does not support the proposition (and popular belief) that self-control functions as if it relies on a limited resource, at least when measured as it typically is in the laboratory. We encourage scientists and nonscientists alike to seriously consider other theories of when and why self-control might fail.”[1]
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33. The idea behind intermittent fasting is that the fasting period doesn’t last long enough to trigger this response from the body. One popular method is to eat in an eight-hour window every day. For example, you might eat all of your meals between 12 and 8 PM. How well it works is inconclusive and isn’t addressed in this book.
34. Attia, P. (2012). Do calories matter? The Eating Academy. Retrieved 30 August 2016, from http://eatingacademy.com/nutrition/do-calories-matter
35. A gram is a measurement of mass, which tells us how much matter is in an object. Weight is how hard gravity pulls on an object’s mass. Since we’re all on earth, an object’s weight and mass are going to be the same thing. On earth, the mass and weight of one egg is 50g. If you move an egg from earth to the moon, the mass will remain constant at 50g, but the weight will decrease to 8.3g.
I’ll use the term weight because it’s more commonly used and still accurate on earth. If you read this on the moon, please adjust accordingly (and invite me over for a basketball game so I can finally dunk on a 10-foot rim).
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Just an anecdote about MSG: I ate at an Asian fusion restaurant one time, and about 20 minutes after the meal, which was delicious, I got a headache. Headaches are very rare for me, so I went back and asked the restaurant if my meal contained MSG, and sure enough, it was in the sauce. Mystery solved. I stopped eating there.
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117. Note: Throughout this book, I state that calories don’t matter, but that’s only for lasting weight loss. Since I reference studies that use caloric input as a control, it’s important to understand that calorie intake is a viable short-term predictor of weight impact. Calorie intake is the most important short-term factor for weight change—evidenced by the fact you can starve yourself and lose weight rapidly—but it’s foolish as an eating guide in the long term. Calorie deficits and surpluses are a byproduct of your eating habits, movement habits, and food factors like satiety, calorie density, and nutrition, all of which affect your appetite and metabolic function over the long term.
118. Taheri, S., Lin, L., Austin, D., Young, T., & Mignot, E. (2004). Short sleep duration is associated with reduced leptin, elevated ghrelin, and increased Body Mass Index. Plos Med, 1(3), e62. http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.0010062
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121. Martínez Steele, E., et al. (2016).
122. Inspired by a quote from Derek Sivers (sivers.org).
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127. Bennett, G., Foley, P., Levine, E., Whiteley, J., Askew, S., & Steinberg, D., et al. (2013). Behavioral treatment for weight gain prevention among Black women in primary care practice. JAMA Internal Medicine, 173(19), 1770. http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/jamainternmed.2013.9263
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129. Laska, M., Murray, D., Lytle, L., & Harnack, L. (2011). Longitudinal associations between key dietary behaviors and weight gain over time: Transitions through the adolescent years. Obesity, 20(1), 118-125. http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/oby.2011.179
130. Dalle Grave, R., et al., (2005).
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132. Kolata, G. (2016). After ‘The Biggest Loser,’ their bodies fought to regain weight. Nytimes.com. Retrieved 6 October 2016, from http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/02/health/biggest-loser-weight-loss.html
133. Frankel, et al. (2011). Evaluation of extra-virgin olive oil sold in California. UCDavis.edu. Retrieved 6 October 2016, from http://olivecenter.ucdavis.edu/research/files/report041211finalreduced.pdf
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135. Morris, M., Na, E., & Johnson, A. (2008). Salt craving: The psychobiology of pathogenic sodium intake. Physiology & Behavior, 94(5), 709-721. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.physbeh.2008.04.008
136. Vander Wal, J., Marth, J., Khosla, P., Jen, K., & Dhurandhar, N. (2005). Short-term effect of eggs on satiety in overweight and obese subjects. J Am College of Nutrition, 24(6), 510-515. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/07315724.2005.10719497
137. Li, J., Zhang, N., Hu, L., Li, Z., Li, R., Li, C., & Wang, S. (2011). Improvement in chewing activity reduces energy intake in one meal and modulates plasma gut hormone concentrations in obese and lean young Chinese men. Am J Clinical Nutrition, 94(3), 709-716. http://dx.doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.111.015164
138. Vartanian, L., & Novak, S. (2010). Internalized societal attitudes moderate the impact of weight stigma on avoidance of exercise. Obesity, 19(4), 757-762. http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/oby.2010.234
139. Hoffman, B., & Blumenthal, J. (2012). Is exercise a viable treatment for depression? ACSM's Health & Fitness Journal, 16(4), 14. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3674785/
140. Matthews, C., Chen, K., Freedson, P., Buchowski, M., Beech, B., Pate, R., & Troiano, R. (2008). Amount of time spent in sedentary behaviors in the United States, 2003-2004. Am J Epidemiology, 167(7), 875-881. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/aje/kwm390
141. Boscia, T. (2014). Study: prolonged sitting jeopardizes older women’s health | Cornell Chronicle. News.cornell.edu. Retrieved 6 October 2016, from http://www.news.cornell.edu/stories/2014/01/study-prolonged-sitting-jeopardizes-older-women-s-health
142. Patel, A., Bernstein, L., Deka, A., Feigelson, H., Campbell, P., & Gapstur, S., et al. (2010). Leisure time spent sitting in relation to total mortality in a prospective cohort of US adults. Am J Epidemiology, 172(4), 419-429. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/aje/kwq155
143. van der Ploeg, H. (2012). Sitting time and all-cause mortality risk in 222,497 Australian adults. Archives of Internal Medicine, 172(6), 494. http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/archinternmed.2011.2174
144. Levine, J. (2005). Interindividual variation in posture allocation: Possible role in human obesity. Science, 307(5709), 584-586. http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.1106561
145. Calorie burner: How much better is standing up than sitting? (2013). BBC News. Retrieved 6 October 2016, from http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-24532996
146. Levine, J. (2010). James Levine, M.D., Ph.D. - Transform 2010 - Mayo Clinic. YouTube. Retrieved 6 October 2016, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6eIvxqaezE
147. Dahl, M. (2015). I am training for a marathon. So why am I getting fat? Science of Us. Retrieved 6 October 2016, from http://nymag.com/scienceofus/2015/10/on-the-mysteries-of-marathon-weight-gain.html
148. Boutcher, S. (2011). High-intensity intermittent exercise and fat loss. J Obesity, 2011, 1-10. http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2011/868305
149. Tremblay, A., Simoneau, J., & Bouchard, C. (1994). Impact of exercise intensity on body fatness and skeletal muscle metabolism. Metabolism, 43(7), 814-818. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0026-0495(94)90259-3
150. “The mean estimated total energy cost of the ET program was 120.4 MJ, whereas the corresponding value for the HIIT program was 57.9 MJ.” (Tremblay, et al., 1994)
151. Trapp, E., Chisholm, D., Freund, J., & Boutcher, S. (2008). The effects of high-intensity intermittent exercise training on fat loss and fasting insulin levels of young women. International J Obesity, 32(4), 684-691. http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/sj.ijo.0803781
152. Macpherson, R., Hazell, T., Olver, T., Paterson, D., & Lemon, P. (2011). Run sprint interval training improves aerobic performance but not maximal cardiac output. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 43(1), 115-122. http://dx.doi.org/10.1249/mss.0b013e3181e5eacd
153. Sim, A., Wallman, K., Fairchild, T., & Guelfi, K. (2013). High-intensity intermittent exercise attenuates ad-libitum energy intake. International J Obesity, 38(3), 417-422. http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/ijo.2013.102
154. Seventeen men were tested in four different exercise scenarios on different days. One day, the men rested for 30 minutes. Another day, they rode an exercise bike for 30 minutes at 65% of their aerobic capacity (which is said to be the optimal “fat burn zone”). A third session did one minute at 100% capacity, followed by four minutes of gentle pedaling for 30 minutes. The final session was a calculated 170% of their capacity for just 15 seconds, followed by gentle pedaling for a minute, repeated for 30 minutes. After each session, they were given bland, slightly sweetened porridge to eat. On the interval session days, they consumed significantly less than they did on the resting and moderate training days (the 15-second interval resulted in the least amount consumed, suggesting an inverse relationship between intensity and appetite). The results appeared to be due to chemical changes induced by exercise.
The men’s blood was tested, and showed lower ghrelin, higher blood lactate, and higher blood sugar on interval training days, all of which have been shown to lessen appetite. Surprisingly, this effect carried over to the next day and they consumed fewer calories in the following 24 hours. This is in stark contrast to the resting and moderate exercise days, in which the men voraciously consumed the porridge.
This was a short and limited study that was only done for young overweight males, but it’s promising nonetheless when considered alongside the other data we have on high-intensity exercise. Anecdotally, it completely matches my experience. When I was a teenager, I would play full-court basketball for up to six hours straight, and despite not eating at all during that time and desperately needing to eat after using so much energy, I would come home and be unable to eat for at least another hour or two. It would completely shut down my appetite!
155. Benito, B., Gay-Jordi, G., Serrano-Mollar, A., Guasch, E., Shi, Y., & Tardif, J., et al. (2010). Cardiac arrhythmogenic remodeling in a rat model of long-term intensive exercise training. Circulation, 123(1), 13-22. http://dx.doi.org/10.1161/circulationaha.110.938282
Pappas, S. (2010). Temporary heart damage may explain marathon deaths. Live Science. Retrieved 18 October 2016, from http://www.livescience.com/10211-temporary-heart-damage-explain-marathon-deaths.html
156. O'Keefe, J., Patil, H., Lavie, C., Magalski, A., Vogel, R., & McCullough, P. (2012). Potential adverse cardiovascular effects from excessive endurance exercise. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 87(6), 587-595. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.mayocp.2012.04.005
157. Wilson, M., O'Hanlon, R., Prasad, S., Deighan, A., MacMillan, P., & Oxborough, D., et al. (2011). Diverse patterns of myocardial fibrosis in lifelong, veteran endurance athletes. J Applied Physiology, 110(6), 1622-1626. http://dx.doi.org/10.1152/japplphysiol.01280.2010
158. Rognmo, O., Moholdt, T., Bakken, H., Hole, T., Molstad, P., & Myhr, N., et al. (2012). Cardiovascular risk of high- versus moderate-intensity aerobic exercise in coronary heart disease patients. Circulation, 126(12), 1436-1440. http://dx.doi.org/10.1161/circulationaha.112.123117
159. Melanson, E., MacLean, P., & Hill, J. (2009). Exercise improves fat metabolism in muscle but does not increase 24-h fat oxidation. Exercise & Sport Sciences Reviews, 37(2), 93-101. http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/jes.0b013e31819c2f0b
160. King, J., Wasse, L., Broom, D., & Stensel, D. (2010). Influence of brisk walking on appetite, energy intake, and plasma acylated ghrelin. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 42(3), 485-492. http://dx.doi.org/10.1249/mss.0b013e3181ba10c4
161. NWCR research findings. (2016). The National Weight Control Registry. Retrieved 18 October 2016, from http://www.nwcr.ws/research/
162. Willis, L., Slentz, C., Bateman, L., Shields, A., Piner, L., & Bales, C., et al. (2012). Effects of aerobic and/or resistance training on body mass and fat mass in overweight or obese adults. J Applied Physiology, 113(12), 1831-1837. http://dx.doi.org/10.1152/japplphysiol.01370.2011
163. Lally, P., van Jaarsveld, C., Potts, H., & Wardle, J. (2010). How are habits formed: Modelling habit formation in the real world. European Journal of Social Psychology, 40(6), 998-1009. Retrieved from http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ejsp.674/abstract
164. Benbrook, C., Butler, G., Latif, M., Leifert, C., & Davis, D. (2013). Organic production enhances milk nutritional quality by shifting fatty acid composition: A United States–wide, 18-month study. Plos ONE, 8(12), e82429. http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0082429
165. McGonigal, K. (2012). The willpower instinct. New York: Avery.
166. Monteleone, P., Piscitelli, F., Scognamiglio, P., Monteleone, A., Canestrelli, B., Di Marzo, V., & Maj, M. (2012). Hedonic eating is associated with increased peripheral levels of ghrelin and the endocannabinoid 2-arachidonoyl-glycerol in healthy humans: A pilot study. J Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, 97(6), E917-E924. http://dx.doi.org/10.1210/jc.2011-3018
167. Rao, M., Afshin, A., Singh, G., & Mozaffarian, D. (2013). Do healthier foods and diet patterns cost more than less healthy options? A systematic review and meta-analysis. BMJ Open, 3(12), e004277. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2013-004277
168. Ogden CL, Kit BK, Carroll MD, Park S. Consumption of sugar drinks in the United States, 2005–2008. NCHS data brief, no 71. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2011.
169. Ricard, M. (2004). The habits of happiness. Ted.com. Retrieved 18 October 2016, from http://www.ted.com/talks/matthieu_ricard_on_the_habits_of_happiness.html
170. Kell, J. (2016). Soda consumption falls to 30-year low in the US. Fortune. Retrieved 18 October 2016, from http://fortune.com/2016/03/29/soda-sales-drop-11th-year/
171. Jones, J. (2010). Holiday weight gain: A growing problem | November | 2010 | Texas Tech Today | TTU. Today.ttu.edu. Retrieved 18 October 2016, from http://today.ttu.edu/posts/2010/11/holiday-weight-gain-a-growing-problem
这本书是一本关于减肥的小册子,由Stephen Guise撰写。他在书中分享了他自己的经验和观察,并提供了一些简单易行的方法来帮助人们改变生活方式,达到减肥的目的。
在书中,作者提到了他的第一本书《Mini Habits》,这本书是他提出的迷你习惯策略的基础。他认为这个策略是最有效的养成好习惯的方式之一,而且被广泛认可和喜爱。如果你还没有读过《Mini Habits》,那么强烈推荐你先去了解一下。
在这本小册子里,作者提供了许多实用的技巧和方法,例如如何通过改变饮食习惯来减少卡路里的摄入量,以及如何利用身体活动来消耗更多的能量。他还强调了睡眠的重要性,因为缺乏睡眠会导致代谢率下降,从而增加体重。
此外,作者还提供了一些简单的迷你习惯,这些习惯可以帮助你在不知不觉中改变你的生活方式,比如每天早上起床后做一些简单的运动,或者每晚睡前喝一杯水等等。这些小习惯看似微不足道,但却可以积累起来产生巨大的影响。
总之,《Mini Habits for Weight Loss》是一本非常实用的小册子,适合那些想要改变生活方式,减轻体重的人们阅读。无论你是初学者还是已经尝试过多次但没有成功的人,都可以从中获得一些有用的建议和启示。如果你想了解更多关于迷你习惯的信息,可以访问作者的网站minihabits.com。
减肥小习惯
停止节食。养成新习惯。改变生活方式而不受苦。
通过
斯蒂芬·盖伊
史蒂芬·盖伊的减肥小习惯
版权所有©2016 Selective Entertainment, LLC,保留所有权利。
本书任何部分均不得以任何形式复制,但经作者书面许可的简短摘录除外。
法律免责声明
本书中的信息为作者观点,基于作者个人经历及观察。 作者不对本书中任何或全部信息的使用或无法使用承担任何责任,并且对于读者因使用本书中发现的信息而产生的任何损失或损害概不负责。请自担风险使用这些信息。
作者保留对未来的版本进行任何他认为必要的更改的权利,以确保其准确性。
请访问 minihabits.com 查看更多关于减肥的迷你习惯、工具和资源!
微习惯
如果你还没有,我强烈建议你阅读我的第一本书《小习惯》。 尽管你不需要阅读《小习惯》也可以受益于《减肥小习惯》,但它会让你对原来的“小习惯”策略有更深入的理解。
根据科学,Mini Habits 可能是世界上最有效的习惯形成策略。而且,根据评论,它可能是最受喜爱和最成功的!许多人的生活因为采用 Mini Habits 策略而发生了改变。它也可以改变你的生活!
迷你习惯大师
如果你喜欢视频课程,想学习迷你习惯的概念,你可以参加迷你习惯大师视频课程。使用优惠码“MHWL55”,即可享受减肥迷你习惯独家折扣。迷你习惯大师课程是世界上最受欢迎的习惯课程之一,有超过9000名学生。
迷你习惯掌握高清视频课程:https://www.udemy.com/mini-habit-mastery/?couponCode=MHWL55
如何成为一个不完美主义者
我的第二本书运用了“小习惯”来解决完美主义的问题。如果你正在与抑郁、恐惧或不作为作斗争,这本书有很多值得借鉴的地方。这是 我有史以来 最受欢迎的产品。
如何成为一个不完美主义者 书籍:https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00UMG535Y
周二消息
每周二,我都会写一些关于智能生活策略的文章,并通过电子邮件发送给订阅者。 人们告诉我这些内容改变了他们的生活。 当您注册时,您可以查看以前感兴趣的信息存档。 这些只针对订阅者且免费。 此外,注册意味着您可以了解我的下一本书或课程何时可用。
标题页
版权
更多来自斯蒂芬的内容
前言
第一部分
简介:饮食的两种定义
减肥与节食的不幸婚姻: 节食和果汁清洁法对增重有效。 等等……什么?
第二部分
简介:策略规则
8.微小习惯:直到体验到结果,每个人都会笑
谢谢。
更多来自斯蒂芬的内容
前言
小习惯和一次俯卧撑的故事
“成功很简单。在合适的时间,用正确的方法做正确的事。”
阿诺德·H·格拉斯瓦尔德
我更喜欢做最简单、最快乐的事,哪怕有时会损害到我的生活健康。我觉得我不是一个人在战斗。
我一生中的大部分时间,我都倾向于做有趣但不太明智的事。这让我无法成为我想成为的人。但我找到了一种方法来扭转乾坤。虽然听起来有点夸张,但是我的生活从 2012 年 12 月 28 日开始永远改变了。以下是发生的事情。
离年底只有三天了,我坐在床上想着要做出一些改变。具体来说,我想坚持锻炼身体——这是我以前从未做到过的事情。我会坚持一两周然后就放弃了。原因多种多样;总有借口。
我不喜欢新年决心,因为它有一个任意设定的开始日期:1月1日。所以我决定在那天通过在家锻炼30分钟来改变自己。问题是我做不到。我觉得自己昏昏欲睡、没有动力、身体状况也不好。实际上,运动的想法让我感到厌恶,而没有任何激励措施能帮助我。这种情况以前发生过,但我最近读的一本书给了我一个主意。
当月早些时候,我读了 迈克尔·米查科 的《思维工具箱》。米查科为读者提供了许多创造性的解决问题的方法,其中一个是“假面”。要使用这种技巧,您只需考虑与当前想法相反的想法。一个粗略的例子:如果你的想法是建造一个水上公园,也许相反的想法是建造一个沙漠主题公园。相反的想法并不意味着本身很好,而是为了打开你的思路,让你能够想到更多的可能性。
我的想法是锻炼30分钟,但我遇到了一个动力砖墙,所以我尝试了“假面”来解决我的问题。因为我觉得锻炼是一项艰巨的任务,所以我认为相反的事情应该是很容易做到的,比如做俯卧撑。
我嘲笑自己竟然会考虑这么一个毫无价值的想法。
谢谢你的帮助,米查科先生!你的小技巧没用!
一个俯卧撑?我可能已经输了,但我可以做得更好。最终,我决定做这件事来嘲笑自己,并对未能激发动力感到沮丧。
如果我不能做简单的 30 分钟锻炼,那么我就做一个俯卧撑。太棒了,史蒂芬。你能做一个俯卧撑。你的梦想现在肯定会实现。
当我弯腰的时候,我的关节发出吱吱声,手臂很无力,身体在尖叫着让我坐在沙发上……我只需要做一次俯卧撑。所以我做了,它改变了我的生活。
虽然我在俯卧撑的位置,做了一个俯卧撑似乎很傻,所以我做了更多,然后站起来。这时,我被迷住了。这就像我会开始一个30分钟的锻炼一样。我已经达到了并超过了目标,我的身体也热身了。我又设定了几个小目标,我的俯卧撑次数增加到了50次。之后,我抓起引体向上杠,做了同样的事情。经过整整20分钟的运动后,我面临着最终挑战。
我有个想法,想做一个十分钟的腹部训练来结束我的锻炼,但是我的大脑像职业飞碟射击运动员一样拒绝了它。史蒂芬,你可以玩得很开心,但我在这件事上划了一条线。去玩电子游戏吧。
阻力很大,但我学得很快。我使用了新的秘密武器,并确保赞美我的潜意识(阻力的来源)。我的思考过程如下:
哦,强大的潜意识啊,我连十分钟不敢练腹肌,但我敢把我的瑜伽垫子铺上吗?哦,传说中的大脑之神,现在我的垫子已经铺好了,我可以坐在上面吗?哦,巨大的脑颅主宰者,我在YouTube上找一个关于腹部锻炼的视频然后按播放键有错吗?
Bingo。它奏效了。十分钟后,我的腹肌灼热。我坐在床上,手里拿着一杯水,细细回味:我的一个俯卧撑不知怎么地变成了我之前无法完成的 30 分钟锻炼。我惊讶得几乎要从惊喜中爆发出脑浆来。我已经突破了一个我以前从未克服过的阻力。这种情况一直意味着失败,但这一次,我成功了。这对我未来意味着什么?
从那天起,我发誓每天至少做一次俯卧撑。当然,在接下来的六个月里,我有两天没有做到,但除此之外,我一直都在做俯卧撑。有时,它会像第一次那样引发全面锻炼。其他时候,我只做五到十个。偶尔,我会只做一个俯卧撑来满足我的要求。
一个愉快的惊喜
我已经对一个简陋的俯卧撑引发的全身运动和更多的锻炼感到高兴了;然后我注意到了一些更令人兴奋的事情。随着时间的推移,我对锻炼产生的阻力显著降低。当我考虑锻炼时,我不再感到厌恶。我怎么可能会呢?现在它已经成为我的生活的一部分,我每天都在做不同程度的锻炼。我知道我已经准备好迈出下一步了。
大概做了六个月的一天一个俯卧撑后,我开始去健身房。直到今天,除非我在旅行、生病或受伤,否则我会每周去几次健身房。我不愿意锻炼不再是障碍了。
当一个俯卧撑演变成了整个健身房的习惯,我本已很大的眼睛睁得像保龄球一样大(你应该看看照片)。正如我已经利用微小的进步带来了巨大的改变,我知道我可以利用这个概念来改善生活的各个方面。于是我立刻开始了每天的目标:每天阅读两页书,每天写50个单词。我的阅读和写作活动激增。作为一个长期的作家,在过去的一年里,我一直想写一本个人成长的书,但我无法决定主题。嗯,现在我当然有一个了!
我用每天 50 个单词的目标写了一本关于这个概念的书,叫做《小习惯:微小的习惯,巨大的结果》。没错:我用一个“微小的习惯”来写了《小习惯》。文字从我的灵魂中涌出。我很兴奋地想告诉别人这个发现,又担心没有人会读它或相信它。
因为这是一个荒谬的前提,但我知道它有效,所以我研究了习惯养成、意志力和动机,所有这些都融合在一起。这个疯狂的“每天做一个俯卧撑”的想法实际上有科学依据!这让我更加兴奋地分享它,因为如果我能准确地解释它是如何运作的,人们可能会相信我的故事,自己尝试并改变他们的生活。这本书于2013年12月22日出版,几乎正好是我做了那个改变了我生活的单个俯卧撑一年后的同一天。
幸运的是,很多人读了它。《小习惯》成为了一本全球畅销书,在短短两年内用十多种语言售出了超过 125,000 本,并在三个国家成为了最畅销的自助书籍。这是我出版的第一本书,它的成功也反映了读者们从中获得的成功。人们通过这个策略改变了他们的生活,并与他人分享。
“迷你习惯”策略与 99.9% 的自助内容不同,因为它强调一致性而不是其他任何东西。 其他正确推广一致性的书籍通常没有对其有深思熟虑的应用策略。 最重要的是,《迷你习惯》不仅仅说“保持一致”,而是将其融入了策略的内涵中。
这些与减肥有什么关系? 甚至比我刚开始写这本书时想象的还要多。 原来行为改变和生物变化在很大程度上是一致的,阻止人们改变行为的战略性错误也会阻碍他们减肥。 例如,当人们强行限制卡路里摄入量时,他们几乎总是会恢复体重,就像一个人在试图强迫自己达到雄心勃勃的目标后,回到了他或她的典型生活方式一样。
超重不是犯罪。它不会降低你作为一个人的价值。然而,体重可能会对你的健康产生影响。它可能会影响你做或享受活动的能力。它可能会影响你的自尊心。它几乎可以影响你生活的方方面面。
如果你想减肥,那就为自己而减。不要因为“你应该瘦一点”或者有特定的体重指数(BMI)而减肥。没有任何法律规定“你的BMI应该在18.5到25之间”。体重是衡量一个人健康状况的肤浅、不完整的指标。一些非常健壮的人实际上按照他们的BMI来算,都被认为超重或肥胖了。
当你说你想减肥时,其实你的真正意图可能是:想跟孩子玩耍不累着、对着镜子看自己满意、给某人留下深刻印象、健康长寿、提高生活质量或穿上紧身衣显瘦。只要你发自内心想要减肥,这些都是不错的理由。
这本书分为两部分。第一部分涵盖减肥:当前流行的方法,为什么它们行不通,大脑和身体如何自然地改变,减肥的工作原理,以及由此产生的最佳方法。
第二部分涉及基于第一部分结论的策略。我们将从减肥的理想心态开始第二部分。我们应该如何思考我们的减肥旅程?我们该如何面对食物和运动?一旦这些问题都彻底解决了,你就会对不仅最好的减肥方法,而且还有最佳的减肥心态有了扎实的理解。例如,你会知道加工食品是体重增加的主要原因,但你也知道不应该直接抵制它。
此时,您将准备好制定您的迷你习惯计划,并且有一个深入指南来帮助您创建适合您生活方式的计划。与节食不同,迷你习惯计划完全灵活,可以根据您的情况进行调整。一旦您制定了一个迷你习惯计划,我们将讨论一些情境策略,比如如何处理假期、零食、诱惑、同辈压力、外出就餐以及购买杂货。
有些书会教你如何烹饪。 有些书会给你一份(不要)吃的食物清单。 这本书教你的方法,可以让你永久地改变行为来减肥,这比世界上最棒的食谱或最准确的减肥食物列表更有价值。 当你能改变自己的行为时,你就能成为你想成为的人。
这本书中的技巧非常强大,能够改变人生,但它们又如此简单,任何人都可以成功掌握。
第一部分
简介:饮食的两种定义
在我们开始之前,为了避免混淆,我们需要定义人们使用“饮食”这个词的两种方式。
每个人都有饮食习惯(#1),但并非每个人都在节食。(#2)。第二个定义也被称为“节食”。最简单的理解方式就是,#1 是名词,而 #2 是动词。节食或“进行节食”是你可能也可能不会做的事情,但饮食是每个 人都拥有的名词。
我之所以提及这一点,是为了防止你在听我口头抨击“节食”(动词)的做法后,又建议一种特定类型的饮食(名词)来减肥。开始“节食”或“减肥”意味着你有意识地改变你的食物类型或数量。这是一种具体的(也是无效的)策略,可以改变你的饮食(名词),并减肥。如果你确定某种饮食最适合减肥,那么节食并不是唯一能让你这样做的方法。
《减肥迷你习惯》不是给那些无法坚持节食的人准备的帮助;这是进阶课程。这与节食完全不同,而且比节食更聪明、成功率更高。节食是为了暂时减重。我们的目标是真正的、持久的变化。
减肥与节食不愉快的婚姻
节食和果蔬汁排毒对增重有效。等等……什么?
“不是他们看不见解决方案,而是他们看不见问题。”
~ 吉尔伯特·凯斯特顿
准备好,因为这会让你震惊。
1986年,科学家们试图找出 瘦身与增肥交替进行 对新陈代谢的影响。为了模拟这种行为,即反复减肥又反弹,他们限制并增加了肥胖大鼠的卡路里摄入量。这些大鼠完成了两个完整的“瘦-胖”周期。
为了第一次减肥,研究人员让老鼠吃比对照组老鼠少一半的食物,直到它们减掉了131克。当老鼠恢复了体重,他们在第二次减肥周期中也使用了同样的50%的限制,结果老鼠们又减掉了133克。对吧?是的,但是减肥者通常关注的体重增加或减少的量——在这里并不是重点。相反,科学家们观察了在每个循环(使用相同的饮食)中老鼠减重所花费的时间。他们想知道这种“反弹式”节食法是否会影响老鼠的新陈代谢,即改变它们减肥(或增肥)的倾向。这确实发生了,并且不是什么好事。
老鼠第一次减重花了21天,减掉了131克。第二次——使用了完全相同的卡路里限制饮食——花费了46天,比第一次翻了一番多。周期中的增重部分的效果更糟。在第一轮减肥后,老鼠花了29天的时间才恢复到之前的体重。在经历了第二次减肥之后,它们只花了10天就又胖回来了。
骑自行车增重和减重增加了老鼠的食物利用率,这意味着老鼠的身体在摄入并储存尽可能多的脂肪时变得更加节能。这与一个人(或老鼠)试图减肥的目标背道而驰,但这是饥饿或半饥饿动物的自然生物反应。如果你生活在饥荒很常见的时代,这种食物利用率的提高可以拯救你的生命。但是对我们这些丰衣足食、人为限制饮食以减肥的人来说,这仍然会让我们的新陈代谢变慢,不要燃烧太多卡路里,因为据它所知,下一顿饭可能不会很快到来。
“由于几个方法学问题,这些研究很可能低估了节食的反作用程度,所有这些问题都会使研究倾向于显示成功的减肥保持。”
在研究结束时,男人们被允许恢复并吃到饱,他们每天吃掉高达10000卡路里的食物。这还能告诉你关于他们的身体反应什么呢?如果他们的身体在这项实验中能说话的话,他们会说,“饥荒!尽你所能地保存能量,并且当你有机会获得食物的时候,尽可能多吃点并且把它存储为脂肪以防饥荒持续!”事实就是这样。他们迅速反弹回了之前的体重,甚至更多。他们在研究开始前积累了50%以上的额外脂肪。啊!
《减肥达人》是一部热门美国电视节目,拥有数百万观众。它一直是最成功的真人秀之一。前提:哪个参赛者能在节目的最后减掉最多的重量?
在节目中,参赛者减掉了大量的体重,其中一些人减掉了超过100磅。接下来会发生什么?
当这项研究于 2016 年 5 月发布时,我看到《早安美国》节目对此进行了讨论,节目中的嘉宾表现得好像我们几十年来一直不知道这个概念似的。我的第一反应是,“他们为什么显得很惊讶?”
三十年前,我们看到同样的事情发生在老鼠身上。 之前的四十年里,我们在明尼苏达饥饿实验中看到了这一幕。(1944年) 我们已经知道,当动物半饿着时,它的身体会通过降低新陈代谢、增加食欲并尽可能多地储存脂肪能量来应对,以提高生存几率。 这不仅仅是常识——它也是科学。
更糟糕的是,我们产生了一种悲观的观点,即所有的减肥尝试都是徒劳的,因为人们会恢复体重。但这是因为我们对如何减肥的看法太狭隘了。这就像说每次你开始生火,它都会变成一场森林大火(因为你只在干燥的森林中间生火)。如果你做错了什么,你会每次都得到可怕的后果。
如果你想变胖,试试节食。购买那些承诺“X天减掉X磅”的书籍。科学明确地支持这些增重方法。什么?你想减肥?哦。要做到这一点,你需要不同的策略。
想象一下,你是那项研究中饮食周期性波动的老鼠之一。如果你亲眼目睹了饮食循环对你的影响,然后有人告诉你一种半饥饿的“清洁”果汁可以帮助你在 10 天内减掉 15 磅,你会有什么反应?
想象一下,你是明尼苏达饥饿实验中的一员。你会不会通过节食来减肥——就像之前几个月自己挨饿一样?爱因斯坦不是曾经说过,不断重复同样的事情却期待得到不同的结果是一种很深刻的想法吗?除了痛苦之外,在经历了数月半饥饿状态后体重飙升一定令人震惊!也许你已经经历过类似的不幸的增重效果了,那就是饮食周期性地增加或减少卡路里摄入量,但你可能把体重问题归咎于其他原因,因为你认为节食是唯一的解决办法。
让这些信息消化一下。任何说要节食的人有很大机会会因为节食而增肥。这不是我的观点。这是数据所显示的。短期减肥解决方案的真实成本不仅仅是浪费的时间、精力和暂时的痛苦,而是所有这些加上更多的体重增加。这些研究中的人类和老鼠都有一个理想的饮食场景——他们的热量被控制住了,所以他们不必强迫自己少吃,但这最终只会让他们变得更胖。所有的实验对象都是这样。女士们先生们,热量限制是全球最常用的减肥策略。唉。
卡路里限制并不是主要问题,这只是“节食”的更大问题的一部分。有一些高质量、营养丰富的饮食可以带来持久的减肥效果。但是,如果这么多人都在吃健康、以营养为基础的饮食,为什么肥胖率仍然继续上升?
简单来说。减肥的关键不在于你吃不吃蓝莓或葡萄。这也不是说你是低碳、低热量、古生代还是地中海饮食爱好者的问题。也不是说你是否能坚持健康的饮食习惯长达一个月。减肥的关键是能否长期保持健康的生活方式。如果你走错了路,不仅会浪费时间,还会破坏你的新陈代谢或者对健康食品的看法。 (如果你已经这样做了,你可以用正确的方法来逆转这种损害。身体和思想是有自我修复能力的) 。
让我们来找出问题的根源。
如果你搜索减肥书籍,你会找到什么?
“BLAH饮食” “新的BLAH BLAH饮食” “我们决定这个饮食法将持续30天,因为……原因!” “名人饮食#283:买它,因为她出名!”
减肥书籍充斥着市场。 亚马逊的类别名称甚至被称为“减肥与节食”,就好像减肥已经爱上了节食,他们要结婚了,其他追求者都来晚了。
有人反对这个联盟吗?我反对,强烈反对!
减肥和节食结合在一起真是令人悲伤,因为节食的整个概念是有问题的。就像有些夫妻一样,它不起作用。冒着在减肥书籍中提供关系建议的风险,健康的夫妇让彼此变得更好。尽管无效,但减肥行业每年仍然赚数十亿美元。有多少人认为他们不可能减肥成功,因为他们的节食失败了?由于这次失败的婚姻,有很多沮丧的人。
节食真的能长期奏效吗?
我们之所以陷入这种境地,是因为我们长期关注短期问题。 即使在消费者和个人层面,人们也会根据看到朋友在两周内通过喝蔬果汁减掉12磅来做出重大人生决定。 哎呀,人民!
你知道最有效的短期减肥方案吗? 不吃任何食物,每天锻炼两小时。 你会比以往任何时候都更快地减肥! 有了我的新饮食法,全新版无需节食减肥法™, 你的体重会下降得非常快(几乎要命)。 一周内减掉20磅! 它真的管用! 希望我的讽刺语气很明显。 请不要尝试全新版无需节食减肥法™。 有些人可能会嘲笑这个想法,好像这很荒谬, 当他们正在以较小的程度做着同样的事情(例如,限制卡路里的饮食或清洁餐)时。
短期解决方案对于减肥来说毫无价值,就像我们的围栏无法阻止我们家的狗希洛“魔术师”古伊斯跳过我们六英尺高的后院篱笆,在当地的湖里游泳一样。一个饮食计划只要声称可以让你在30天而不是一周内减掉体重,或者让你喝几杯绿色蔬菜汁而不是完全挨饿,这并不意味着它就更可持续了。 减肥计划对你来说要么是可持续的,要么不是——这是非黑即白的问题——几乎所有流行的减肥食谱都是不可持续的、肤浅的,并且是在浪费你的时间。
错误的关注点
你有没有注意到减肥行业唯一想要改变的就是我们吃的食物的类型或数量? 一本书接着一本书地告诉你,是因为碳水化合物、肉类、卡路里、小麦! 这就是公式。
一本新的饮食书籍出版了。书中解释了为什么其他饮食不起作用——碳水化合物太多,鱼油不足,水果太多或太少,宏量营养素比例不正确,苏打汽水摄入量不足,卡路里过多,运动量不够,小麦过多等。这本书提出了一种关于“理想饮食”的新理论。
这个过程本身没有错。质疑我们吃的食物,寻找对健康和体重有益的食物是有道理的。然而,这是一个错误的关注点。我们不需要完美的饮食公式;我们需要一个替代节食的方法。甚至那些关于如何通过“非减肥”方法来减肥的聪明书名也会把节食的原则纳入他们的“非减肥”之中。最常见的做法是给你一份该吃什么不该吃的清单,以及一些不可持续的应用计划(如果你幸运的话,可能还有个作弊日)。
我们把饮食(n)当成了需要解决的问题,这给一直很简单的事情增加了太多复杂性(吃真正的、完整的食物来减肥)。 我们有数百种不同的饮食(n),其中许多都认可基本正确的食物——但它们都有相同的饮食方式(v)。
节食的错误观念 是试图在短时间内 从一种饮食方式迅速切换到另一种,通常是(但并不总是)在一个特定的时间段内。
无论是为生活设计的计划,还是为10-30天设计的计划,通常都是:这样吃可以减肥。加油。去做吧。祝好运!
这是一个糟糕的战略,一直失败,人们尝试了所有方法来让它奏效。
有些人制定了饮食计划,没有规则,只要吃对食物就行了。这种方法更接近于真正的解决方案,因为它灵活,但不够有条理或策略性来改变行为。
其他人试图让你远离做决定的过程。这在一段时间内可能有效,但最终人们还是会自己做食物选择。剥夺你的选择自由很少有效,因为你可以随时收回你的选择权。改变做决定的方式会更好。
如果你已经停止节食,那么你可能告诉自己,这太严格、太复杂或太无趣了。这可能是真的,但这些想法背后的一个错误假设是你可能会找到“合适的饮食”。让我告诉你:下一本书不会比以前的书更好,因为它不会关注可持续性。
最好的减肥书籍会告诉你——尽可能有创意,有足够的曲折来让他们看起来“独一无二”——加工食品使我们生病、变胖,而全食有助于创造更苗条、更健康的身体。这种饮食( n ) 的改变对结果是必要的,但就像任何其他变化一样,实施策略决定了减肥计划的成功或失败。为了成功,我们必须温和地重新调整导致体重增加的习惯性饮食模式。
这些元分析说了算
元分析是一种“研究的研究”。 元分析是有用且可靠的科学数据的重要来源。 似乎任何一个单独的研究都能证实或证伪几乎任何观点,不同研究的数据可能会相互矛盾,但如果一个观点在该领域的几乎所有研究中都得到了验证,那么它极有可能是一个正确而真实的观察结果。
关于减肥饮食,已经进行了一些元分析。他们研究了不同的饮食方式来找出最有效的方式,但有一个问题使“最佳饮食”的问题变得毫无意义。这两项分析都发现人们不会长期坚持他们的饮食习惯。
为什么我们还要相信这个几十年来一直让我们失望的框架,而肥胖症却在没有挑战的情况下继续蔓延?我们找错了人!节食方案总是被指责并相互竞争。低碳水化合物阵营说低脂饮食不管用,低脂饮食阵营说古生代饮食无效,古生代饮食则声称低碳饮食才是问题所在。我们责怪球从破损的球拍中穿过。首先,我们应该找到一个能打到东西的球拍,然后再担心球。
减肥行业的失败并不是饮食(名词)的错,而是节食(动词)的错。许多这样的饮食如果坚持下去效果会很好,但你不能仅仅“不择手段”地坚持下去。我们需要一个更聪明的应用策略,像忍者一样渗透到我们潜在的习惯和生物系统中。这就是我们遇到另一个问题的地方:传统的习惯形成建议也是无效的(我们将在第二章讨论为什么),所以即使它被适当地整合到减肥解决方案中(事实并非如此),也不会起作用。
我们接下来要去哪?
这里不是要教我们不要减肥吗?如果你打算节食,那么,不这样做会更好。如果你试过一种饮食方法,那你基本上已经尝试了所有方法。但《减肥小习惯》并不是一本关于节食的书,所以关于节食令人沮丧的数据并不适用于它。很少有研究探讨持续、稳定的小变化对减肥的影响,因为这不是节食。不过我还是找到了一些很有希望的研究。
一致性不仅是行为改变的关键:它还是行为改变的证据。那些试图强迫自己以某种方式进食的人往往会犯错误,而且会有“作弊日”,在那一天他们可以吃任何想吃的。成功者通过习惯的力量改变了他们的基本食物偏好。
现在是时候换一种方法了。是时候用迷你习惯法了。我们将世界上最有效的变革策略之一应用于世界上最大的问题之一。这就是我们一直需要的婚姻。这是一种从根本上与减肥不同的方法,不是推荐吃什么食物(尽管我会讨论这一点),而是改变饮食和运动习惯的策略。
因为这几乎肯定是我唯一写的关于减肥的书,所以我没有理由用短期的成功来欺骗你。 我没有任何计划推出续集《Xtreme Smoothie Fat Blasting Slim Belly Ripper Detox Cleanse 2.0: Become Completely Weightless in Just 14 Days!》(除非我开始写讽刺作品)。 我的动力在于给你一个永恒的解决方案,这个方案可以持续一生,并让你以自然的速度改变你的身体和大脑。
成功的减肥需要一套新的习惯。 你的当前体重和过去体重都是由习惯造成的。 新的习惯可以带来不同的结果(理想情况下,是减肥)。
小习惯会帮助您为健康生活建立一个强大的新习惯基础。我不会保证一旦您用小习惯改变,就不会重新长胖,因为没有人能完全避免体重增加。与此密切相关的是,没有人能永远回到旧的习惯,因为即使在养成健康的菠菜瘾后,不健康的食物仍然很好吃。减肥策略就像堡垒:没有一个是无敌的,但小习惯的堡垒强大、可靠且有弹性。
持久改变的一个要求
持久的改变只需要一件事:随着时间的推移保持一致的行为。迷你习惯正是为了满足这一要求而设计的,不多也不少。这使得它成为行为改变最简单、最容易、总体上最终的方法。为了向您展示它的力量,以下是我在应用迷你习惯(截至撰写时)两年多以来的实际结果(所有这些都仍在继续)。
我已经坚持了两年多的健身习惯,现在是我一生中最好的状态。我写了两本国际畅销书和数百篇博客文章。连续两年每周都写一篇新博客文章,从未错过一周。我现在每年读12到20本书,而之前一年只读一本书。
这就是我得到的东西,相较于我的过去而言,这算是个例外,而且这是我得到它的可笑方式。
健身微习惯:每天做一次俯卧撑 写作微习惯:每天写50字 阅读微习惯:每天阅读两页
我一生中最重要的成就,都是通过每天不到五分钟的时间就能完成的三种行为取得的。 这就是微习惯。 有些人甚至在我写这本书之前就已经用微习惯减肥成功了,这似乎有点不公平,因为是我写了这本书。 开玩笑归开玩笑,听到大家的成功经历我还是非常开心的。 有些人甚至在我写这本书之前就已经用微习惯减肥成功了,这似乎有点不公平,因为是我写了这本书。 开玩笑归开玩笑,听到大家的成功经历我还是非常开心的。 有些人甚至在我写这本书之前就已经用 微习惯 来减肥了。 好样的!
为什么这么小的东西会变得如此重要?复利。
复利的神奇力量
想象一下,如果你有 选择在接下来的 31 天里,每天获得一枚硬币,而且数量会翻倍,或者一次性获得 500 万美元。令人震惊的是,你会发疯般地选择 500 万美元,因为,在 31 天内,你的那枚硬币的数量会增加到超过 1000 万枚。 (这个例子来自达伦·哈迪的《复合效应》一书)这一有趣的事实揭示了生活中所有问题的根本原因和解决办法。
生活的解决方案在于关注朝着期望方向积累的小选择。问题是我们看不到这个方案,因为我们很容易被 500 万美元这样高调的东西所吸引,自然对(反直觉地)更强大且可积累的小变化不感兴趣。
以每月增重或减重一磅来考虑。一年后,你的体重会增加或减少约12磅。这两种情况之间的差异是24磅。一个月内体重的变化很小,但我们的体重在一个星期内可能会有超过一磅的波动!
体重增加或减少仅表示线性增长。由于惯性、情绪和积累的经验,向前发展往往是指数级的。它会不断累加。用现实的语言来说,你现在比现在轻12磅是什么感觉?这会影响你对自己的看法吗?你觉得这会影响你的精力水平吗?你觉得这会影响你进一步前进的动力和意愿吗?取决于你走的方向,每月增重或减重一磅,在一年后,无论是在身体上还是心理上,都会让你远远领先于他人,或者远远落后于他人。
你的饮食和运动决定可能比每月增减一磅产生更大的影响。一个月只增加或减少一磅就能产生如此巨大的差异,这意味着每一顿饭的选择都很重要。最小的选择会产生最大的不同。
不要误解。这并不是说一个月减掉一磅。首先,这是个模糊的目标。复利是很棒,但它必须从某个特定的地方开始。如果你每天把一分钱翻倍31天,你会得到超过一百万美元。如果你31天里什么也不做,那你将一事无成。那枚硬币不仅仅是重要的,它是全部。
永久改进
如果你通过迷你习惯减肥成功,那就只是在过一种新的身份而已。 这种身份会自然而然地让你成为一个更健康的人。
这种内部变化比减肥更重要。明智的人会认识到,我们是谁比我们的外表更重要。没有人能逃避衰老带来的负面影响,所以如果你只关心自己的外表,时间就会毁掉你的计划。我并不是说你不应该追求梦想中的健康体型——去吧——我只是说从外到内的方法注定要失败。
通过节食药丸、手术或饥饿等表面手段减肥的人,可能会对早期的结果感到兴奋,但他们不会对自己的结果感到欣喜若狂,当他们不可避免地恢复体重时,他们会感到糟糕。当你真正持久地改善你的生活时,你会惊讶于外在的变化实际上退居二线,让内在成长的乐趣发生了变化,这改变了我们是谁。内在的成长影响着我们的身份。你现在可能不相信我,但最终这比秤上显示的数字更重要。
我们将在下一章讨论变化是如何发生的。在我们深入研究减肥及其原理之前,先确立我们的行为改变哲学是很重要的。如果你不能改变你的行为,那么无论你的计划是什么都没关系,所以让我们先解决这个问题。
大脑改变先于身体改变
激励自己?滚出去!
习惯比理性更强大。
乔治·桑塔亚那
这本书里,你看不到的是……
独家食谱 计算卡路里计划 “the one” 饮食法 永恒之王 使碳水化合物或脂肪成为肥胖的唯一罪魁祸首
这本书最大的“啊哈!”因素是其他减肥书籍所缺乏的:您将获得与您的当前生活方式相匹配的具体策略,以帮助您实现持久的变化。我将涵盖一些食物对营养和体重的影响,但如果您坚信某种饮食(n)最适合您,请随意将其与本书中发现的策略相结合,而不是“节食”。(丢弃他们的建议实施计划,而是创建一个微型习惯计划。)除了了解体重增加和减少背后的 基本机制 之外,减肥归结为是否可以永久改变自己的行为。
30天内有结果吗?
如果你在一本教科书上看到“X天减去X磅”,马上把它烧了(或者嘲笑它,如果它是电子版的话)。求你了,不要再制定一个为期7、10、21或30天的改变计划!用30天的计划最好的情况是你只有30天可活。在一个大约28000天的人生中,30天的变化就如看上去一样毫无价值。
此外,人们喜欢把 30 天挑战搞得很难,因为他们只需要坚持有限的时间。这使得习惯养成的可能性变得更小。上述研究发现,行为难度会极大地影响习惯形成的速度。大脑更容易接受早上喝一杯水(根据这项研究,这个过程大约需要 20 天)这样的简单习惯,而不是在每天晚饭后练习两小时的倒立功夫这样具有挑战性的习惯。
中国传奇军事家孙子曾经说过:“知己知彼,百战不殆。”胜利者先胜而后求战,败者先战而后求胜。变化不是在一个月内自己战斗;而是在开始之前就变得如此明智,以至于你已经赢了。对我们来说,减肥的关键是在尝试改变身体之前先改变大脑。
如果你的身体是你大脑状态的结果,那么你的大脑是如何改变的呢?
你的潜意识是老板,因为它直接驱动了大约一半的行为,并且不断影响着你的决定。人们总是试图对抗它,他们失败了。我们的策略是利用它的本性来改变它,而不是像“你只需要更想要,伙计!”这样的文化观念。
大脑的本质是什么?大脑是一个缓慢变化的机器,这是件好事。如果你的大脑可以一夜之间完全改变,你会变得不稳定。我们假设你的日常习惯是早上起床,喝着咖啡、百吉饼吃早餐,遛狗,看新闻。这是你的日常例程。然后有一天晚上凌晨三点接到电话,你要穿着内衣跑出去看看邻居是否安好。如果你的大脑坚持这种新的例程,每晚凌晨三点继续穿着内衣跑出去,那会怎样呢?没有人想要这样,所以我们的大脑需要比这更多的重复性,这是一件好事!让我们接受并感谢我们缓慢变化的大脑带给我们的稳定性。
理想的脑部变化过程如此缓慢,以至于您可能都没有注意到!这是件好事。改变越明显——比如从汉堡包和薯条变为“只喝绿色果汁”——大脑就越想把它关掉。 (为了澄清一下,蔬菜汁作为常规饮食的额外营养是可以接受的。甚至在接下来的一两天里禁食可能会带来健康益处,但这绝对不是可持续的减肥解决方案。)
改变尝试经常失败,而当它们确实失败时,其他人往往认为这是因为这个人懒惰或没有足够的动力来完成改变。但大多数计划之所以会失败,是因为它们没有被设计成适合大脑的改变过程。这就像说,“这里有一个阻止子弹的方法——只要把它们卡在你的牙齿里!”(只有超人才能做到)。解决方案的价值取决于它的可行性。“最伟大的想法”如果不能实现的话实际上毫无价值(例如,传送)。
大脑的变化必须先于身体的变化,否则变化不会持久。由于随着时间的推移,大脑会因持续不断的行动而发生变化,所以问题是:一个人如何保持持续不断的行动?我们可以推理出答案。
意志力和动机是我们有意识地采取行动(即不是出于习惯)的两种机制。动机是对行动的愿望(我们的默认选择)。意志力是在感觉不佳时仍决定去做的能力。几乎所有自助书籍(包括减肥书)都建议尽最大可能产生动机,并将意志力作为后备计划。首先依赖于动机是个坏主意。
《激励》之所以受欢迎
让我明确一件事:激励之所以流行,是因为它给人的印象是成功了,而不是实际的成功。 每当你读到一篇励志故事时,都会有更多的失败故事。 如果一个策略的成功率只有 2%,但剩下的 98% 被忽略了,我们对该策略有效性的看法(过去和现在都是)会极度扭曲。 失败者没有故事可言,但我可以告诉你一个:在试图“激励自己”的十年里,我几乎没有什么进步。
欺骗性的成功率不仅会在个人层面上发生。人们在微观层面的经历中也经历了同样的现象。正是在那些让你充满动力并追求目标的日子里,你会注意到并认为,“动力是行动的关键!”
关注什么有效是很自然的事,所以当你在为达到减肥目标而充满动力后吃了一顿健康餐时,你会把这种行为(吃健康食物)归因于你刚刚产生的动力。对过去成功的经验进行模仿不是很有道理吗?是的,但前提是你要考虑全部数据(不仅仅是其中的一个数据点)。
从个别事件中得出结论是很危险的。例如,如果你在轮盘赌上押了5美元买20号,球停在了20号槽里,你会赢175美元。但你会因此得出结论:球总是会落在20号吗?你会因此得出结论:球落在20号上的次数比其他数字要多吗?如果这样想的话,你在拉斯维加斯很快就会输光。同样地,如果你碰巧“有动力”去做了二十天中的某一天,甚至十天中的某一天,为什么你要假设这个策略是成功的呢?可能是因为你不了解其他方法,或者因为你过于相信自己有能力随心所欲地“获得动力”。
为了澄清,我不是反激励。我写这篇文章的时候觉得很受鼓舞!激励是一件完全积极的事情,对我们有益。我只是把它当作行为改变的一个糟糕的基础。基础必须可靠,而动机并不总是可靠的。仅此而已。那么我们为什么认为动力是可靠的呢?
熟悉,大骗子
成功的人往往容易把症状当成原因,说“我的欲望驱使着我”。真相是:成功和好习惯比相反的情况更经常地激发欲望。
我们想要吗?
为了完全理解动机,我们需要区分它的两种不同类型。
动机的两种类型
看这个句子:我有动力戒烟,同时也有动力抽完这根烟。
这些动机不仅仅是相互矛盾的,它们还是不同类型的动机。戒烟的愿望是一种普遍的愿望;抽一支烟的愿望则是一种短暂的愿望。
短暂的动力比一般的动力要复杂得多。 你此刻想做或不做某事的愿望会受到多种情境和一般性愿望的影响。 例如,你现在吃甜甜圈的选择可能受到你对...的动机的影响。
保持健康:不想吃! 吃点好吃的:想吃! 感觉良好:想吃! 跟吃甜甜圈的朋友打成一片:想吃! 避免体重增加:不想吃! 准备好去海滩:不想吃!
其他因素包括你的压力水平、内心对话和情绪状态。想想你的经历:当你心情不好时,做积极的事情的动力会发生什么变化?它会减少。在美好的一天,它会上升。你有没有过无缘无故地出现随机动机下降的情况?我也是。这是因为情绪驱动着许多短暂动力方程中的大部分。短暂的动力是混乱的、复杂的、不可预测的,因为它的变量总是在改变。
相反,你做事情的一般动机非常简单且稳定。虽然吃甜甜圈的瞬间决定是在特定情境下做出的,但你对吃甜甜圈的一般想法是超越情境之外进行计算的。你的总体动机就是你的理论观点。我一般不想要吃甜甜圈,因为它们不健康。但是,如果你给我5000美元让我吃一个甜甜圈,我会吃两个。
当你的完美理想掉下桥时
孤立无援且缺乏背景的情况下,我们总是会根据我们的普遍欲望做出选择。但是,我们强大的、完美的理想必须首先跨越一座摇摇欲坠的桥梁——即语境,才能到达我们称之为现实的彼岸,但它们并不总是能够成功抵达。
当甜甜圈上浆做得如此巧妙,你会饿了,你的朋友也享受着他们自己的甜甜圈,突然之间,你对吃甜甜圈的普遍厌恶似乎变得不重要了。它没有过桥。语境很容易抵消我们的普遍欲望,这就是基于动机策略的弱点。当“生活发生”时,它们就会失败。
你在生活中的一般动机与你的价值观和目标息息相关。 这是你想要的生活方式的根本原因,它们很少改变。 问题在于:人们往往认为,“我(即)不吃蛋糕的动力会激励我去(即时地)决定今晚不吃甜点。” 但这只会奏效,因为你的总体动力并不总是足以战胜其他你无法控制的动机因素。 享受美好生活的首要法则就是专注于你能控制的事情。 因此,最好是将这两种概念区分开来——我们能控制的东西(一般动机),以及我们不能完全控制的东西(一时冲动)。
当人们谈论“获得并保持动力”时,他们试图控制这些总是变化的混乱变量。 他们认为自己可以可靠地跨越语境的桥梁,将自己的完美理想带入现实生活。 从某种意义上说,这么多的人相信这一点真是令人捧腹或悲伤。 当你的狗死了,当你生病疲惫不堪,当你被以正确的方式诱惑,或者当你就是“感觉不到”,你不仅有可能输掉这场动力之战,而且可能根本没有打过!
有趣的是,整个“激励自己”的理论都假定我们会一直想要激励自己。如果我们不想要呢?那我们是不是应该尝试去激励自己以获得激励?当然有更简单的方法可以做到这一点,但在我们开始之前,了解为什么我们要经历这个过程是有用的。
为什么我们更喜欢用动机而非意志力
最后一个要点很重要:我们喜欢用动机来实现目标,因为有动力做某件事就意味着你想做这件事。在其他条件相同的情况下,做你想做的事比强迫自己做某事更好。当动机成为你的向导时,你会觉得所做的一切都是对的(即使事实并非如此)。
没有人会永远有动力去做正确的事情,如果你只在被激励时才行动,那就意味着麻烦。 奥运运动员如果只在自己想训练的时候才去训练呢? 如果人们只有在国税局让他们内心温暖的时候才纳税呢? 人们只有在对淋浴感到兴奋的时候才会洗澡吗? 这名运动员将会输掉比赛,逃税者会被处罚,而那些没有动力洗澡的人则会闻起来很难闻。 他们都会失败。 只依赖动机来采取行动是在冒险失败,这就是Mini Habits策略不包含它的原因。
人们会(正确地)说,做任何事都需要动力,甚至举手。这就是为什么我们把这两种动机分开。你需要有行动的理由。这一点毫无疑问。这很重要。如果你现在没有理由做十七个跳跃运动,你就不会去做。然而,这并不意味着你做某件事的理由必须比所有其他情境下的理由都要强烈。如果你有一个很好的理由去做一件事,但你就是不想去做,你仍然可以去做。
暂时的动力就像涡轮增压。当它存在时,它是有趣的,但不要把它作为你的主要燃料来源。如果没有动力呢?意志力。
让我们来做一个《小习惯》里的练习。如果我现在让你摸摸鼻子,你应该可以做到。 你做这件事的动力很可能是弱的,因为你做这件事唯一的理由是我要求你这么做,而你可能想尝试一下。你知道这样做没有任何实际的好处。 想要去做一些如此琐碎的事情,可能会令人恼火。然而,即使你不情愿地去摸你的鼻子,你仍然可以做到。
你可以利用意志力来对抗一时的动机。 意志力比动机更适合行动,因为即使你的背景桥梁倒塌了,你也仍然有工具可以越过它。 利用意志力意味着为背景桥可能坍塌做好准备。 但是你现在能强迫自己连续碰一百次鼻子吗? 或者一千次? 30000次呢? 可能不行,这就是意志力的极限。
所有改变(尤其是像减肥这样具有挑战性的改变)的有效策略不仅要在理想情况下取得成功,还要在最坏的情况下也取得成功。意志力可以在动机不那么强或完全没有时发挥作用,但如果我们想让它成为我们的主要策略,我们就必须研究它的弱点。
佛罗里达州立大学的 罗伊·巴蒂斯特教授 可以被称为意志力之父。他开创了许多实验,这些实验表明当我们用意志力去做一件事时,我们在其他事情上会失去一些力量。就像肌肉一样,意志力已经被证明会在使用中疲劳,并且通过训练会变得更强。在过去的几十年里,自我损耗模型一直是主要的意志力理论。已经有超过200项研究来验证它。
意志力是相对的
意志力与行动有关。你可以强迫自己随时摸鼻子,但你能强迫自己在一次坐下来就写完一本450页的小说吗?面对容易的任务,你的意志力似乎足够了,如果不是很强的话。对于困难的任务来说,你的意志力似乎是虚弱的。
人们往往关注“意志力储备”的概念,就好像他们的“意志力油箱”里有多少意志力决定了他们是否成功。你能看出这种心态的荒谬吗?与你的目标相比,任何给定时间里的基本意志力都微不足道。虽然你不能选择你的意志力有多强,但你可以选择你的目标,从而决定你的相对意志力强度。
如果你在任何时候意志力都会耗尽,或者它甚至可以耗尽,那么你就不必担心意志力是如何耗尽的。 相反,学会在所有情况下用小习惯取得成功。 小习惯在低动力、低意志力、高动力和高意志力的情况下都能很好地发挥作用。
小习惯最大化成功
对人类来说,最重要的两种场景是意志力低落和动机高涨。当你的意志力低下时,你会避免失败。当你充满动力时,你会最大化前进的机会。微习惯在这两种情况下都能茁壮成长。
微习惯是一种“强迫行动”,它小到即使一个意志力枯竭的人也能完成。与需要你“充满活力”才能采取“大规模行动”的以动机为基础的系统不同,你可以在生活中最糟糕的日子里(而不仅仅是达到)摧毁你的微习惯目标(击败)。想想这是多么强大。如果你能在生活中最糟糕的日子里继续前进,什么能阻止你?即使小行星撞击地球,你在来世也会继续做你的微习惯。
至于高动机的情况,一个微习惯没有上限。鼓励你超过你的微习惯要求(额外次数)。例如,如果你的微习惯是一分钟冥想,如果你想的话,你可以继续冥想两个小时。
想象一下,当你想做出重大改变时,你会感到无法阻挡。这与大多数人所经历的不同,因为大多数建议都是建立在实现你的吓人目标的基础上的。大多数建议都告诉你,你必须变得伟大,才能达到与你的目标平起平坐的地位。当你感觉不好或宠物鹦鹉毕加索死了的时候,你的目标会在你沮丧的时候压倒你,你甚至不会试图正视它们。有了一个微小的习惯,情况就不同了:你总是成功,永远是最坚强的人,总是在前进。没有什么比减肥更能频繁获得成功和鼓励的了!
不要相信那些告诉你“必须更想要”的书。 告诉读者他们不够想要某样东西,这难道不是有点侮辱吗?毕竟他们买了你的书是为了改变这一点。 我觉得这是,所以我毫不怀疑你真的想变得更健康、看起来更好。 很多人非常渴望减肥,让他们保持这种想法不落空的并不是他们的欲望程度,而是他们对主流激励策略(以及他们以前的经验)的接受度,让他们认为这不可能实现。 但这是可以做到的。 你需要的是小习惯、聪明的方法和一点点意志力。
减肥速度
小心反攻
"阅读健康书籍要小心。你可能会死于排版错误。"
马克·吐温
既然你在读这本书,我就默认你想减肥。但这里有个有趣的点子让你考虑一下:如果你的目标是增肥呢?请耐心听我说完,因为这会改变你对减肥的看法。
我在这里说的是变化的本质,因为增重是一种身体的变化,就像减肥是一种身体的变化一样。因此,这两个过程虽然目标相反,但在从先前建立的标准改变方面具有相同的成分。人们通常是如何发胖和超重的呢?
他们在元旦凌晨 1 点 1 分举拳说:“就是这样。我真要这么做了。今年我要增重 35 磅!”
他们在脸书上发帖说:“嘿,大家好。这次我是认真的。我的目标是在这一周内通过奶昔清洗来增重十磅。”
他们会在凌晨两点被启发去吃更多奶酪汉堡、薯条和苏打水吗?
他们发誓再也不离开沙发了吗?
总而言之,他们是否站在俗语中的山上宣布即将发生的改变?
还是说它就这样……慢慢来。悄悄地。偷偷摸摸地。披萨味儿地。
人们减肥的方式与成功增重的方式相同:随着时间的推移,看似微小且不重要的生活方式选择会累积成更大的变化。不管那些“快速减肥”的书籍告诉你什么,真正的改变不是通过行为的巨大和突然转变发生的。积少成多、循序渐进才是我们所有人随时间而改变的原因(即使并不总是有意为之)。这是我们养成所有坏习惯的方式,虽然它经常以强大的力量对我们造成伤害,但我们也可以利用这种力量来造福自己。
除了潜意识的抵抗之外,还有另一个需要克服的层次——生物性抵抗。减肥专家称之为身体的“脂肪平衡值”。平衡值指的是身体当前持有的脂肪量,并且会努力保持在该水平。
主流减肥策略让我们与脂肪设定点斗争,但不是明智地!我之前提到的关于卡路里限制和节食反弹的研究就是一个很好的例子,说明通过引发饥饿反应来加重脂肪设定点。 脂肪设定点如此顽固,以至于甚至手术也无法改变它。
手术抽脂不靠谱
人体需要平衡
让我们从宏观的角度来看,关注一下这里的运作机制。平衡。下面是一些身体为保持平衡而做出的努力的例子。记住这些事实背后的原理,并想想你自己之前的一些极端减肥尝试,在这个背景下思考。
当你摄入不足的糖或碳水化合物时,你的身体会将脂肪转化为葡萄糖以维持适当的能量和身体机能。这被称为酮症。当你摄入糖或碳水化合物时,你的身体会产生适量的胰岛素将一些葡萄糖能量转移到细胞中并使血糖水平恢复正常。当摄入大量胆固醇时,肝脏会减少它的产生以进行补偿。当摄入较少时,肝脏会增加其产量。这就是为什么鸡蛋等高胆固醇食物仍然可以非常健康(而不会导致胆固醇升高)。当抽血时,你的身体会产生更多的红白血球和血小板,直到数量恢复正常。当你锻炼更多(消耗能量)时,你会更饿(摄入能量)。当你半饿的时候,你的荷尔蒙会让你更饿,直到你吃东西,然后你就更容易过量进食。当你半饿着肚子快速减肥时,你的身体在静息时燃烧的卡路里更少(食物利用率)。当你消化食物并将其储存为脂肪时,你的脂肪细胞会释放出一种叫做瘦素的激素,让你有饱腹感。你体内的脂肪量决定了瘦素的分泌量。因此,你体内的脂肪越多,瘦素就越多,你就会感到越饱。这是调节食欲的关键方式(除非这个人对瘦素产生抗性,这样会阻止“我吃饱了”的信号)。
我们的身体是平衡机器。我们对身体的所有了解都表明了一个明显的生物模式,即稳态或自我稳定趋势。 这使得减肥变得有趣,因为目标是彻底改变不想彻底改变的东西。
如果你长胖了,你的身体会努力保持。了解这一点后,是否应该用“震惊”的方式让身体适应新的生活方式呢?我们必须完全停止进食一段时间才能让身体明白吗?当然不是。这就像困住了一只危险的动物。如果你这样做,你会激起它最强有力的反击。它会竭尽所能让你回到原来的体重,并且可能会过度补偿,使你增加更多的体重。就好比银行错误地为了保护你而关闭你的账户一样。令人沮丧,但这是身体在履行职责。
“当然,我试试抽支烟吧,” 开始养成终身嗜好的烟民说。 “加点薯条和饮料只要多花5毛钱?” 不想错过“好买卖”的那个人说。 结果在接下来两年里体重增加了30磅。 如果我们能用这个技巧来培养良好的习惯就好了! 我们可以。
坏习惯很容易养成,因为它们回报丰厚且容易做到。好习惯很难养成,因为回报推迟了,而且我们使它难以实现。逻辑上讲,应该让坏习惯更难养成,而让好习惯更容易养成。
慢慢来
你有没有和别人打过恒温器之战?你想凉快,所以把温度调低了三度。但其他人却觉得冷,于是又把它调高了三度,还多调了几度。聪明的老手们会一次只调一度来避免让那些对寒冷敏感的室友反应过度。
微小的变化不会触发身体的“防御机制”。在《迷你习惯》(Mini Habits) 一书中,我谈到微小的行为变化微妙到足以避免潜意识的抵抗(或者至少大大减少它)。微调饮食和锻炼习惯也以同样的方式避免了生物上的抵抗。这就是为什么迷你习惯——行为改变之王——也是减肥之王的原因。
偷偷摸摸做某事
减肥最好是秘密进行。你想要达到的变化就像一个高安全建筑中心的钻石。在这个类比中,你的身体就是这个高安全建筑,而脂肪是你想去除的钻石。主流减肥方法会告诉你,在建筑里乱跑。然后呢?猜怎么着?你会很快得到钻石!但什么?你刚刚触发了17个警报,大楼被封锁了,警察已经被通知了,紧张的保安人员正对着你举枪。这就是你的身体对极端减肥措施的反应。
你得到了钻石(减肥),但在离开大楼之前,你还得把它(体重)再长回来。
这个类比并不极端。这恰恰是人们试图迅速改变时发生的事情。身体内置了“报警器”,防止变化。它的座右铭是:“如果它没坏,就不要(你敢尝试)去修。”你的身体会说,“我们有卡路里赤字!严重卡路里赤字!派些巧克力蛋糕游说者来,在中午引发四级渴望!”
你的失败不在于得到钻石(减肥/减脂),而在于没有退出策略(持久的去除)。你看,这同样也描述了节食行业。他们强调最快的结果,很少考虑之后会发生什么。有些人认为他们可以很快减肥,然后回到原来的生活方式,不会反弹。我希望这是真的,但研究表明事实并非如此。其他人相信快速减肥开始会激励他们做得更多,但是就像长跑比赛一样,极端的开始会导致疲惫的结束。
聪明的小偷会花一些时间在进入大楼之前制定计划。你觉得结果是什么?盗窃会在晚上进行。缓慢地。小心地。外科手术般精确。稳定地。偷偷摸摸地。他会避开传感器穿过大楼,然后拿到宝石并逃跑。没有人知道他在这里。
如果你能减肥而不让身体过度纠正,那么奖品不仅仅是体重计上的数字变小。 奖品是在支持新体重水平和更健康的身体的同时永久改变你的行为方式。 这比任何钻石都值钱。
当你使用这种方法时,你也获得了我们在开头提到的复利的好处。当您将其放在一起时,您就有了一个可靠的方法来降低您的脂肪设定点,也可以叠加更大的进步、信心、幸福、希望和继续前进的勇气。这不仅是最好的方法,而是减肥的最佳方式。让我们跳出理论,具体谈谈迷你习惯策略。
既然我们已经讨论了大脑和身体在自然缓慢的速度下如何改变,我想给你一个迷你习惯策略的简短解释。
什么是微习惯?
“迷你习惯”是指你每天做的“愚蠢的小事”。我称之为“愚蠢的小事”,是因为它们听起来绝对荒谬,而且通常花一分钟或更少的时间就能完成。
每天做一次俯卧撑 每天阅读两页书 每天花一分钟打扫家里的某个区域(或特定区域) 每天弹奏一首曲子,或者敲击乐器上的一个音符 每天拉伸身体的一个部位 每天吃一份新鲜蔬菜 每天用牙线清洁牙齿
在纸上,微小习惯看起来似乎并没有什么用。我们的直觉通常是,“但我还能做得更多!”,当然我们通常的确可以做得更多。但关键在于把要求降到“总是”那个程度。“总是”意味着不可阻挡。当你总能做成一件事时,你是不可阻挡的。当你通常能做成一件事时,那就说明你可以被阻止,如果你想要的是持久的改变,那就不够好。判断你的微小习惯是否定得过大的最好方法就是它是否能在你最糟糕的日子里进行。如果你能在一生中最糟糕的日子里取得成功,你就不会失败。
除了每天做这个小行为,我也会鼓励你去做我所说的“附加练习”,它来源于第一个习惯——俯卧撑。 附加练习就是对你习惯的额外锻炼。 所以,如果你的习惯是每天跳一支舞,那么在你觉得特别起劲的时候,你可以选择在某一天多跳一两支或者在音乐停止后多跳几秒。 如果你的习惯是在午餐时吃一份新鲜蔬菜,也许有一天你会在午餐时多吃一份,或者在晚餐时加餐。 附加练习可以是任何额外的事情,无论多少都不为过。 我每天写 50 字这个习惯有时会扩展到 100 字或爆炸式地增加到 5000 字。 这两种情况都是很好的!
额外的练习永远不是必须的,但总是可以选的。你可以一直做你的小习惯,并坚持下去,因为一个小习惯必须保持小。即使你已经连续做了57天的额外训练,你也可以在小习惯那里停止。低要求、高天花板对于连贯性来说是最完美的,还有无限向上的潜力。
小习惯是我们策略的基础。它确保你会养成一个新习惯(这个习惯会对你有益终身)。额外的练习次数是你在某一天可能有的任何多余的动力或毅力的出口。 这个系统每天都在适应你。
其他任何计划都会给你设定一个平坦、高目标。 例如,传统的营养饮食包括一份你可以吃的清单和一些不能吃的食物。 如果幸运的话,每周你会有一天可以放纵。 但是如果你不需要“放纵日”呢? 如果你需要两个呢? 你必须适应它,而不是让它来适应你。
减肥计划的传统结构让你每天都必须面对挑战,如果你做不到这一点,你会感到挫败和失败。节食可能是所有追求中放弃率最高的,这说明了很多问题,但对尝试的人却很少有了解。
在传统的追求目标的过程中,开始标志着动机的最高点。随着时间的推移,它会慢慢消耗殆尽,并且一旦第一次失败就会被摧毁。小习惯策略与此相反。它植根于积极主义,并为每天的成功设计。当你每天都成功时,你的信心、自我效能感和动力不会随着时间的推移而减少;它们会增长。
每个人都是错的
减肥不是关于碳水化合物、脂肪或卡路里
彼得·阿蒂亚,医学博士
既然我们已经讨论了大脑的变化和身体的变化,现在是时候来谈谈营养。 这是一场关于减肥原理的科学讨论。 在这一章中,我们将试图回答“什么才是最好的减肥方法?”的问题。在我们开始之前,我必须澄清一件事。
观察不是建议。
我将要讲的是减肥是怎么回事,这意味着我会说或暗示一些“加工食品会导致体重增加”的话。大多数人(和作者)会立即假设“加工食品导致体重增加”意味着答案就是“禁止食用加工食品”。这并不明智。
策略是我们最好的武器,而禁止某些食物只是达到减肥目标的许多可能策略之一。 禁止吃东西是你能采取的最愚蠢的策略,因为它利用了我们的弱点(稍后我们会深入讨论)。
“超加工食品”
这一章我将会经常提到加工食品。从技术上讲,所有的食物都在某种程度上经过了加工。水果和蔬菜在出售前通常会被清洗,甚至这也可以被认为是加工的一种形式。动物肉类的加工程度差异很大(烤鸡比热狗的加工过程要少得多)。在这本书中,当我说“加工食品”时,我的意思实际上是超加工食品,正如医学博士、公共卫生硕士卡洛斯·蒙蒂尔(Carlos Monteiro)所定义的那样。
“超加工食品” 用来指用从整体食物中提取的成分制作的产品,通常没有或几乎没有整体食物。在原料的制备和产品的制造过程中,通常会使用一系列处理过程,这些产品通常还含有某些防腐剂和化妆品添加剂。它们被设计得非常美味、耐储存,并且通常是预先包装好的即食产品。它们利润很高,而且营销力度很大。它们是一系列生产过程的最终产物。”
食物比较
“凡是可以做到的事,就应尽其可能使之简单,但不能过于简单。”
~ 阿尔伯特·爱因斯坦
减肥行业最大的问题之一是过度简化的要求。下面的声明在某些情况下可能是正确的,但不能作为普遍适用的原则:
“碳水化合物让我们发胖。” “热量摄入=热量消耗。” “脂肪让我们发胖。”
这些流行的关于人体增重或减肥的解释很简单。不幸的是,它们违反了爱因斯坦的法则,因为它们提供了不必要的简化解释。体重的生物机制极其复杂,虽然可以被简化到一定程度,但(远远)不足以准确描述。
只有当你彻底理解问题时,你才能想出简单、真实和有效的解决方案。这就是为什么这是一本书,而不是一条信息——“嘿,减肥只需要迈小步!”减肥迷你习惯策略需要深入的研究和分析。
有效简洁解决方案的获取过程
当我们对挑战有一个基本但不熟练的理解时,我们会想出复杂的解决方案,正如这句话所描述的那样:
“我本可以写一封更短的信,但是我没时间。”
~ 布莱斯·帕斯卡
简单、简洁而有效的解决方案往往需要花费最多的时间和精力。电脑就是一个很好的例子——一台电脑曾经占据整个房间!计算机编程最初是在物理“穿孔卡片”上进行的。为了告诉这台与房间一样大的计算机该做什么,你会在卡片上的特定位置做标记,并制作一个供计算机读取的牌组。我们的计算方案之所以笨重复杂,是因为我们还没有掌握这项技术。
随着我们对技术的理解提高,计算机也随之发展。它们更小、更强大、更直观,并且更容易使用和理解。我们对该技术的深刻理解使计算机变得更容易使用。
随着理解的加深,解决方案会越来越接近爱因斯坦的“尽可能简单”的理想。但如果理解是完全错误的,人们就会创造出看似简单而正确的解决方案,但往往过于简单以至于不正确,这就是减肥行业所面临的情况。尽管我们投入了研究和资金,肥胖率却在恶化,这表明我们对问题的理解并没有改善。
“碳水化合物让我们发胖”
如果碳水化合物会让我们发胖,那么为什么哈佛大学教授两个月吃大量加工食品(被戏称为“ twinkie饮食”)就能减掉27磅呢?为什么许多文化中的人们能够靠高碳水化合物饮食保持苗条身材呢?这个想法很容易就被推翻了,因为几千年来人们一直食用碳水化合物,但从未出现过与体重有关的问题。
然而,低碳水化合物饮食似乎在短期内减肥效果很好(如果坚持的话)。碳水化合物真的会让我们发胖吗?这是一个错误的问题,因为“碳水化合物会让我们发胖”的概念比必要的要简单。
卡路里入,卡路里出。
当然,如果只是卡路里摄入量的话,为什么许多研究(我们在开头讨论过的)提供了令人信服的证据表明现在限制卡路里的摄入会在未来让我们增加更多的体重呢? 研究已经证明限制卡路里可以降低你的新陈代谢并使你的身体更容易储存脂肪。
我们摄入的热量显然在一定程度上影响体重管理。但是,卡路里过剩会让我们发胖吗?卡路里不足会让我们变瘦吗?这是一个错误的问题,因为“消耗的卡路里等于摄入的卡路里”的概念过于简单。
“脂肪让我们发胖”
然而,脂肪通常不如碳水化合物或蛋白质令人饱腹感更强、每克热量更高,并且可以吃更多的脂肪。 脂肪会让我们发胖吗? 这是错误的问题,因为“脂肪使人发胖”的概念过于简单化了。
这些解释没有从宏观角度看待问题。短期内减肥的方法有很多,也就是说,即使是最糟糕的想法(参见 朱古力蛋糕减肥法)也能得到“证实”。朱古力蛋糕减肥法并没有证明热量摄入量是唯一重要的因素:它表明如果你不吃足够的食物,也许可以在两个月内减掉体重。我们已经知道了这一点。除非你只关心夏天减肥,否则持续性才是最重要的。
非热量减肥因素
调节体重的饮食因素包括:食物营养、卡路里密度、胰岛素抵抗、瘦素抵抗、炎症、增重基因倾向、饱腹感和满足感(即快乐感)。这并不意味着解决方案很复杂——别忘了,这本书是关于做简单的微习惯的——它只是表明计算卡路里是错误的,因为它认为只有卡路里才重要。我们摄入的卡路里的数量确实很重要,但它并不是唯一重要的事情,也不是最重要的事情。
热力学第一定律表明能量可以从一种形式转移到另一种形式,但不能被创造或破坏。对我们的身体来说,如果你摄入的能量比消耗的多,那么你的体重就会增加。这是显而易见的,比如如果一些小狗离开了房间,那间满是小狗的房间里剩下的小狗数量就少了。说到减肥,关键问题在于什么策略能让你的脂肪“永远离开”。
许多人试图的明显解决方案是少吃多运动,以制造热量赤字。这在短期内有效,但一直感到饥饿并破坏新陈代谢却不是永久性的解决方案,对吧?即使你愿意永远保持饥饿来变得更瘦,这也是一种持续的诱惑和沮丧;只有超人的意志力才能赢得这场战争。
减肥真相
食物可以分为三类:整体食品、超加工食品,以及介于两者之间的所有食品。减肥最简单(但并非不必要的)事实是,超加工食品是我们体重增加并无法减掉的主要原因。
高度加工食品可以进一步分解为碳水化合物、脂肪或卡路里,但到那时,我们遇到了问题。并不是其中任何一个因素导致加工食品增重——而是所有这些因素加起来,再加上营养不良、发炎成分和缺乏饱腹感。因此,我们不能把“超加工食品会导致体重增加”和“未经加工的整体食物有助于减肥”这两个概念简单化。当你审视加工食品的热量或宏量营养素,并得出总体结论(如许多人所做的那样)时,你会错误地将许多健康的、对减重有利的食物包括在内,而这些食物碰巧富含脂肪、卡路里或碳水化合物。
我们来谈谈宏量营养素,然后再谈谈卡路里。
如今,许多减肥讨论都是围绕宏量营养素(碳水化合物、脂肪和蛋白质)展开。例如,美国心脏协会多年来一直推荐低脂饮食。这很糟糕。以下是它开始的方式。
在二十世纪中叶,科学家们疯狂地寻找美国肥胖症和心脏病发病率急剧上升的原因。 然后,在1955年,美国总统德怀特·艾森豪威尔(Dwight Eisenhower)遭受了前降支心肌梗死(即心脏病发作)。 这进一步加剧了这种狂热。
营养学家安瑟尔·凯斯引领我们走向饮食脂肪是问题根源的大门,因为他研究了七个国家的饮食习惯和心脏病数据。他的数据显示了脂肪摄入量与心脏病之间的相关性。有人说他只选择了支持他的假设的国家,而排除了像挪威这样的国家,那里的饮食富含脂肪但心脏病却很低,或者智利,那里的饮食低脂但心脏病却很高。
然而,低脂革命诞生了。食品行业很喜欢它,因为他们有一个新的、聪明的营销角度:低脂食物。他们只有一个问题:脂肪使食物味道更好。为了抵消低脂食物较差的味道,他们添加了更多的糖。他们解决了口感的问题,但同时也让人们变得更胖。近年来,人们逐渐接受了一个观点,即脂肪并不都是坏东西,而糖(以及碳水化合物)则受到了各种专家和新饮食的高度审查。
很少有人认识到专注于宏量营养素这一更广泛的问题。许多人从妖魔化脂肪转向了妖魔化碳水化合物。我们现在有了一场脂肪与碳水化合物之间的战斗,以及一场宏量营养素与卡路里之间的独立战斗。这些都是错误的战斗!
脂肪和碳水化合物,哪一个导致体重增加,阻止减肥?都不是。对于减肥来说,有好的脂肪也有坏的脂肪,有好的碳水化合物也有坏的碳水化合物。
宏量营养素既不是问题也不是解决方案。 这种理念把一个煮土豆、炸薯条、一堆糖或糙米等同起来,因为它们都“含有碳水化合物”。 它还把椰子油、猪油、反式脂肪、饱和脂肪、不饱和脂肪、大豆油和鱼油等同起来,因为它们“都是脂肪”。 这毫无意义。
我不是阴谋论者,但是……
如果食品加工业能够操纵肥胖论点,从健康与不健康的争论转变为宏量营养素或卡路里的辩论,结果会怎样呢?——请注意,我半开玩笑地说这句话是为了引发一些思考。
食品加工业非常狡猾。如果他们以某种方式操纵了这种宏量营养素的关注,那么他们不仅仅是狡猾,他们是(邪恶)天才。 他们设计并精心测试食物使其在质地、味道和口感上令人上瘾的方式令人印象深刻,但要操纵我们对减肥的看法以维持强劲的销售,这将是一种腐败的智慧——应该拍成电影。
就像计算卡路里一样,关注宏量营养素把“加工食品”变成了食物。它简化了食物,分为碳水化合物、脂肪和蛋白质,无论是加工过的还是未加工的食物都包含这些成分。基本上,当人们关注宏量营养素时,就不会区分加工食品和未加工食品。
如果牛油果和无脂纸杯蛋糕之间的唯一区别是它们有不同的宏量营养素,那我们可以吃任何一种更符合我们饮食的东西。或者更好的是,由于纸杯蛋糕非常美味,我们可以选择我们想要的任何类型的纸杯蛋糕,而不必担心我们认为在当时是邪恶的任何宏量营养素的影响。食品科学家可以制作低脂肪、无糖、低钠和无麸质的纸杯蛋糕,并且通过吸引如此多基于不同宏量营养素的饮食,这将转化为更多的产品、销售和收入。(是的,所有这些纸杯蛋糕种类确实存在)
什么比欲望更有动力?恐惧。人们害怕发胖,就会选择脱脂酸奶(其实糖分很高)。如果他们担心碳水化合物,他们会购买人造甜味剂制成的点心,而不是“可怕的”含天然果糖的完整水果。 一个人出于享乐而吃普通纸杯蛋糕所带来的利润,远不如因恐惧而吃一种特殊纸杯蛋糕的人多。
对宏量营养素的普遍关注与改良食品相结合,最终成为了在更多食品细分市场引发销售的终极恐惧武器。由于加工食品是在实验室里制造出来的,在工厂里生产的,因此可以操纵其宏观营养素组成,使其具有科学家想要的任何成分。去除脂肪?没问题。去掉糖?很容易。去掉钠?完成了。另一方面,天然食物不能像这样变形。蓝莓是世界上最有效的减肥食品之一,它总是含有少量糖(果糖)。
把加工食品的优势置于天然食物之上,这仅仅是巧合吗?可能是巧合,但看看肥胖症的数据。你会在许多研究中看到,加工食品的痕迹遍布肥胖症现场,数百万人死亡,数十亿人超重,并伴有健康问题。这让人们不禁要问,我们为什么还要关注宏量营养素呢?尽管加工食品的崛起与全球肥胖症的飙升(像一对同步游泳运动员)相吻合,但太多的人仍然关注“脂肪和碳水化合物”。
考虑一下:脂肪和碳水化合物自食物出现以来就被食用了(那是一段很长的时间)。在关于肥胖真正原因的辩论中,常识必须发挥作用。 肥胖没有随着碳水化合物和脂肪的引入而急剧增加;它是在这些新类型的超加工碳水化合物和脂肪被引入后才急剧增加的。
亚洲文化传统上以高碳水化合物饮食为主(白米饭),而且总体上保持健康。 白米饭比糙米营养价值低,但它仍然是一种单成分食品。斯堪的纳维亚国家死亡率较低,肥胖率相对较低,饮食中脂肪含量很高。 这并不是因为他们吃了很多脂肪或碳水化合物; 而是因为他们经常食用的脂肪和碳水化合物的质量更高,而不是像许多其他肥胖国家那样。
说到质量,我们来谈谈卡路里,数量是常见的,但错误的关注点。
你摄入的每一卡路里都会对你的身体产生独特的激素和新陈代谢影响。相同热量的两种食物在生物满足感、感知满足感、饱腹感、胰岛素反应、营养成分(会影响我们器官的健康与功能)以及能量分布上都有所不同,这些都可能影响到你在短期甚至长期的饮食行为和体重。虽然“热量平衡”的理念认为这些因素并不重要,但它们实际上会影响到你的饮食选择,包括你觉得有必要吃多少卡路里。
说清楚,暴饮暴食正确的食物可能会导致体重增加——这是可能的——但由于它们通常具有高饱腹感与卡路里比、营养价值以及对身体有益的化合物,这很难做到。此外,我们也不应该极端地对待饮食。目标不是在吃正确食物的同时吃得过多。饥饿程度从饿到饱再到撑,再到“皮带崩开”。我们的目标是平稳持续的饱腹感,而不是从极端的热量限制跳到暴饮暴食(忽上忽下的节食)。如果我们吃到饱就停止吃好的食物,我们可以减肥,感到满足,而不必处理因摄入不足带来的问题。
芒果狂欢
有一天晚上,我吃了一整袋重达10盎司(约284克)的切片冷冻芒果。水果很多,而且很好吃。我以为“我真是吃得太多了”,直到我看到那袋芒果只含有200卡路里!一块重52.7克的士力架就有250卡路里。芒果的重量是士力架的五倍多,但士力架的热量还是比芒果多了25%!
你也无法仅仅把卡路里差值归咎于士力架的高脂肪含量。鳄梨有82% 的热量来自脂肪,但一份 150 克的鳄梨只有 240 卡路里的热量,几乎是三倍重的士力架,而且它几乎全是脂肪,但还是比士力架的卡路里少。这个差异是由卡路里密度和水分含量造成的。从心理上来说,吃掉整整一袋芒果可能比吃一根士力架感觉更放纵,但它含有的卡路里更少,营养也更多。
除了计算卡路里来确保自己挨饿之外,这是不必要的。全食物总是具有最高的饱腹感与卡路里比例,这意味着如果你吃对了食物,就不需要计算卡路里了。(如果你认为零卡路里的“减肥食品”拥有最大的饱腹感与卡路里比例,那是因为你没有考虑到它们对食欲的中长期影响。)
卡路里计数法已经成为假装不健康饮食是一种有效的减肥方法的主要方式。他们说只要你消耗的热量低于你的标准,就可以吃垃圾食品。由于加工食品通常热量高且不易产生饱腹感,因此以卡路里计数作为手段来证明不良饮食习惯的人最终可能会挨饿,而节食则会导致体重增加。
计算卡路里摄入量就像对一个更强壮、更大的对手出其不意地进行一次便宜的攻击。 你可能会让他措手不及,让他暂时目瞪口呆,但一旦他恢复了镇定并弄清楚发生了什么,你就完了。
跟踪自己吃了多少食物、保持正念、适量饮食 是计算卡路里的有益方面,但是与之相关的所有卡路里都相等 的想法非常不准确并且对进步造成破坏性影响,我们需要抛弃整个概念。你可以 在不计算卡路里的同时实践适量饮食。饱腹感是 大自然为你计数卡路里的方式。
饱腹感 是一种满足的感觉;在非专业人士看来,就是不饿了,也没有吃东西的欲望。
饱腹感会自行推翻卡路里计算的观点,因为如果卡路里的摄入量与我们的饱腹感直接相关的话,我们吃下的卡路里数量就会决定我们感觉有多饱。但事实并非如此。有些食物实际上会增加我们的食欲,而有些食物则可以让我们感到满足。卡路里计数法之所以失败是因为它没有考虑到饱腹感的问题,如果你总是吃不饱并且又可以吃到食物,那么你最终还是会弥补差额(我敢打赌!)。
有人可能会说,饱腹感在减肥中最为重要,因为如果你吃了导致体重减轻的食物,并且你在生物学上完全感到满足,那么你在长期内获胜的机会就很大。有其他因素会影响我们的食物摄入量,但首要、最基本的目标就是感觉饱足。我们怎样才能既吃得饱又减肥?这是可能的吗?是的,我稍后会用一些例子来解释原因。
由于饱腹感很难直接测量,因此我们可以从食物量开始,因为饱腹感在一定程度上取决于食物在胃中所占的空间。这就是减肥手术背后的原理,它会让你的胃变得更小,这样你会更快地感到饱足,吃得更少。让胃变小的一个更安全的方法是吃能填饱肚子的食物,但卡路里含量较低。为了好玩,让我们比较一些食物的卡路里含量和重量。这可以让你对自然食品的饱腹感有一个大致的了解。
计算卡路里
与其吃那半包薯片,你可以吃 224 克鸡肉,这会让你有很强的饱腹感,并且比薯片多出两倍的食物。你可以试试 483 克糙米(超过一磅)。或者花椰菜呢?哦,我觉得你可能还不准备好接受花椰菜。如果你觉得与薯片相比,鸡肉和米饭已经是极端了,那么这个会震惊到你。
与其吃半袋薯片,你可以吃 1000 克(2.2 磅)西兰花来获得相同的卡路里。我在开玩笑。当然不是 1000 克西兰花,因为这个数量太低了!这大量的西兰花——比薯片重十倍多——仍然无法与半袋薯片的热量相比;1000 克西兰花只有 340 卡路里!为了达到半袋薯片的热量,你需要摄入 1576 克西兰花。没错,3.5 磅西兰花等于半袋薯片的热量。祝你好运,在五天内吃完 3.5 磅西兰花,更别说一顿饭了。
但是草莓里的糖分有问题吗?呃,其实不是,因为每磅草莓只含有 79.6 克糖。这比一瓶 32 盎司的汽水少得多,而且你需要吃掉 3.6 磅草莓才能摄入这么多糖。
CICO教你认为,“哦,这包薯片只有160卡路里。”这是一个错误的观点,因为它把加工食品作为减肥的一个可行选择,而它其实是全球肥胖流行的主要原因。说到你的卡路里花得值不值,自然食物比加工食品更胜一筹(我们稍后会讨论低热量加工食品)。
我们不需要研究来告诉我们鸡蛋的热量令人饱足;我们也可以从它们是一种单一成分、最少加工的食物的事实中推断出来。
饱腹欺骗
当我们比较加工食品和天然食品的体积,并得出“天然食品不如加工食品饱腹”的结论时,我们欺骗了自己。这恰恰与事实相反。每卡路里摄入量来看,天然食品比加工食品要更饱腹很多倍。
“我会吃沙拉,但我还是饿。”我相信你们以前听过或说过这句话。问题在于:你刚吃的那份沙拉可能只占你一顿饭热量的20%。这就像是说,“我宁可吃一份塔可饼也不吃三份,但这样不饱。”如果你饿了,说明你吃得不够。如果还饿的话,多吃点沙拉或其他食物吧。
半磅鸡肉(227 克):542 卡路里
1磅水煮土豆(约454克):395卡路里
两磅菠菜(907克):209卡路里
三磅绿叶生菜(1360克):204卡路里
6.5磅食物(2948克)总共:1350卡路里
不要误解这些数据。几乎所有天然食物单位热量饱腹感都显著高于加工食品,这自然会导致摄入更少的卡路里,但这还不是全部故事。我们不是在用“只有卡路里重要”来代替“只有 单位热量饱腹感 重要”。单位热量饱腹感比仅仅卡路里更重要,但高脂肪、高热量的天然食物也可能因为其他原因对减肥有益。
未经加工、天然、真实的食物对于减肥至关重要,我知道你们之前也听过这个说法,但我要解释一下其中的生物学原因。这些因素会影响体重调节,并且与卡路里含量无关。
发炎
发炎并不是发生在我们身上的坏事。它是身体对已经发生的坏事,比如感染或受伤的反应。这是身体对抗入侵者或修复受损组织的方式。当你扭伤脚踝时(打篮球的时候我每次都会扭到),血液流向脚踝会增加,白细胞和其他免疫细胞涌入以修复损伤,导致肿胀。自身免疫性疾病(如过敏症)会导致炎症,因为身体认为它需要攻击不需要被攻击的东西。这就像在体内拳击自己。
发炎会导致肥胖,还是相反? 发炎和肥胖会相互影响,所以这不是先来后到的问题; 而是如何打破这个循环。
如果炎症直接或间接地损害了瘦素敏感性(这似乎是事实),那么它可能是肥胖的主要原因。 如果一个人不知道什么时候停止进食,那就有问题了。
这是一次针对加工食品的大规模罢工,这些食品中包含以添加风味、色素、脂肪、乳化剂、甜味剂和防腐剂的形式存在的炎症成分。
精制碳水化合物如白面包、披萨、汉堡包和大多数谷物也一样,它们很快被转化为葡萄糖并进入血液。 精制谷物的问题在于加工,基本上“夺走了食物的生命”。 它们去除了营养成分,分解了食物,使其更像是葡萄糖注射液而不是需要消化的东西。
在加工食品中,可能含有多种导致发炎的成分。不要因为“健康狂热者”的讨论而对味精或反式脂肪等流行语麻木不仁。有很多证据表明这些物质对我们来说是有毒的。虽然加工食品引起的慢性炎症不会立即让我们倒下,但它会偷偷地使我们变胖、生病和不健康。这也是一种双重打击,因为我们本可以吃的未经加工的新鲜水果和蔬菜中含有抗炎化合物。
当你选择吃一个添加了人造香精、色素和乳化剂的糖果棒,而不是美味的芒果时,你不仅摄入了一些发炎成分,还错过了强大的抗炎化合物。
维生素、矿物质与黄酮类化合物
天然、完整的食物富含可利用的微量营养素,使整个身体更好地工作。 食物加工得越多,这种微量营养素就越少。
难道你不能只吃一种复合维生素吗?它可以帮助补充水果蔬菜饮食中缺失的一些营养,但复合维生素中的营养物质生物利用度不同(即身体吸收和使用某种物质的能力)。
你在商店购买的许多维生素都是人工合成的,而不是来源于食物。这并不一定是坏事,但它确实引发了关于它们质量和适用性的其他问题。比较一下添加了维C的人工“橙汁”,服用一颗维C药片和吃一个真正的橙子。即使从论点的角度来看,您设法从饮料或药丸中吸收了维C,但您仍然会错过真正橙子中的黄酮醇、酶和矿物质。您还错过了协同作用!
水含量
大多数水果和蔬菜都含有超过80%的水分,其中许多水分含量超过90%(黄瓜、番茄、西瓜、草莓、西兰花、生菜等)!由于其含水量高,水果和蔬菜体积大、饱腹感强且低卡。
相比之下,许多加工食品的含水量与水果或蔬菜正好相反,有些甚至低于10%。食物中水分含量越少意味着它越不饱腹感,也不容易补水。如果你想增加卡路里摄入量并增加体重,那么加工食品是最好的选择。否则,吃天然食品才是减肥之道。
我知道“相关性不等于因果关系”,因为两个完全不相关的变量也可以相关。火鸡的出生率可能与亚利桑那州奶昔的消费量完美重合,但这并不意味着一个导致了另一个。然而,当一种饮食与体重变化相关时,情况就不同了,因为我们知道饮食会影响体重。瑞典加工食品消费量的增加确实是该国肥胖率上升的主要原因。你可以认为这是这些食物中的卡路里,因为加工食品含有大量卡路里。你也可以说,这是因为这些食物高碳水化合物或高脂肪的特性,这两种都与暴饮有关。但为什么要如此复杂化这样一个清晰而简单的事实呢?这就是加工食品。
当你说是卡路里时,它让狡猾的企业制造了低卡路里的超加工食品,扰乱我们的激素并引发渴望。 当你说这是脂肪,嗯,我们已经尝试过了,低脂、加工食品革命使每个人都变得更胖。 当你说这是碳水化合物时,这消除了大多数问题加工食品,但它也消除了许多伟大的整体食物,并将一些糟糕的人工甜味剂高糖食物放在最高位置。 但当你说这是高度加工食品时,你会把所有让我们在上个世纪变胖的东西都列为靶子,同时避开肥胖率变得极端之前我们吃的健康食物。
我们对宏量营养素的关注不仅范围太广,没有用处,而且限制了错误的食物摄入,并且难以维持。我没有“健康燕麦棒”可以卖给你,所以我没有理由粉饰太平,事实就是几乎没有健康的燕麦棒。
遗传学的作用
有些人吃加工食品多却仍保持瘦的原因,跟那些吃健康食物却仍保持胖的人一样,都是基因使然。这些人的比例很小。
像瑞典分析、肥胖随西方饮食如影随形的事实,以及加工食品消费与肥胖之间的不断关联,使我们很难不相信加工食品就是罪魁祸首。 说“这不是加工食品”会为食品公司提供了足够的空间来设计他们的食物成为健康饮食的一部分。 是时候停止这种疯狂了。
食物质量的决定性因素是加工程度。鳄梨含有 82% 的脂肪,不会导致肥胖。水果含有糖,不会导致肥胖。你可以通过添加盐和糖等添加剂来制作更肥沃的鳄梨酱,但不要责怪鳄梨。你可以在连锁餐厅点一杯加了糖或糖浆的浆果冰沙,但别怪浆果。你可以把健康的沙拉淋上含糖的大豆油酱汁,但别怪莴苣。
我们之所以要避开脂肪和碳水化合物,是因为它们当中存在一些糟糕的东西会让我们发胖。需要避免的那些东西只存在于加工食品中。
如果加工食品对这么多人造成伤害是如此明显,为什么公司不转而营销和销售天然食品呢?钱。公司存在的目的是为了盈利,如果他们能生产出美味、可口、上瘾、成本低廉且供不应求的食物,为什么不呢?美国是全球加工食品之都,因为我们非常重视商业。一般来说,食物越加工,利润就越高。
补贴作物提高盈利能力
政府补贴种植某些作物的农民。这会增加这些作物的供应,并降低价格。与非补贴作物相比,生产补贴作物对农民来说有更大的经济激励。
在美国,三大补贴作物分别是 玉米、大豆和小麦。 也许不是巧合的是,市面上 几乎找不到不含这三种成分的食物。 几乎所有高度加工食品都含有 大豆、玉米或小麦成分。 你知道吗?许多常见食材 都是从玉米、大豆或小麦中提取出来的。 《国王谷物》这部纪录片探索了 玉米在美国的地位,以及它在我们饮食中的地位。 如果我们只吃玉米棒子的话,可能还勉强能过得去, 但是由玉米制成的成分对身体的影响 远远超过了真正的玉米本身。
你知道大豆油已经接管了吗?
你知道有人在家用大豆油做饭吗?我也不。但如果你查看任何加工食品的成分,肯定会发现大豆油。在有机杂货店,我找不到不含大豆油的沙拉酱,所以我不得不分开买橄榄油和醋做酱汁。
在20世纪初,许多其他植物油被引入市场,但由于大豆是一种补贴作物,因此大豆油已成为加工食品中不可或缺的油脂。
添加糖分:肥胖最好的朋友,而且它会一直存在下去
美国还有一种重要作物得到补贴,那就是甘蔗。
巴里·波普金教授说,超市食品中75%含有添加糖。我在一家大型有机食品商店购物,那里应该有很多健康食品,但如果我想避免吃含有人工甜味剂的产品,选择余地就非常有限了。沙拉酱、面包、番茄酱、冷冻餐点、燕麦片、谷物棒等食物都含有糖及其衍生物。如果你想挑战一下自己,试着找一找不含人工甜味剂的谷物棒或燕麦片吧。这并不容易。更好的办法是,试着找一找不含人工甜味剂的面包吧。这出乎意料地难。
如果商店里的食物有 75% 都含有添加糖,其中大部分以高果糖玉米糖浆的形式存在,那就意味着数十亿美元的利益会受到威胁,各大公司都有利害关系,他们希望保护含糖的产品,即使这意味着现代人健康状况每况愈下。没有哪家公司会为了人类牺牲自己。这不是盈利公司的目的所在。
世界上许多社会现在都习惯了偏爱含糖量高、高度加工的食物,而社会动态是这样的:我们更关心别人是否在吃,而不是食物对我们有什么影响。我们也往往认为如果别人都吃了,那它就一定是安全的。不幸的是,“其他人”已经变得超重且易患病!具体来说,到2014年有19亿成年人——约占世界总人口的三分之一——超重。在美国,近70%的人超重或肥胖。这使得社会影响力失衡,因为一个超重的社会通常会做出导致他们超重的行为。
看看你的周围,你会发现一种对加工食品普遍的纵容态度,甚至是近乎崇拜。如果我的一个朋友发了一张精美的加工食品照片,大家总是会给予积极的评价。考虑到这些食物给人类种族带来的伤害,它们居然还保留着这么多善意。
如果你关注金钱,你就知道为什么加工食品会大量营销。 如果你关注金钱,你就知道为什么大豆、玉米和小麦会被添加到许多食物中。 如果你关注金钱,你就知道为什么在杂货店找到的所有食物中有75%含有糖。
商业决策主要受金钱驱动。这就是为什么食物变得越来越不健康但有利可图。这就是为什么我们种植某些作物的数量不成比例。这就是为什么肥胖率上升,而且可能还会继续上升。这不是阴谋论。很明显公司对股东忠诚而不是现代文明的健康。别忘了,人类喜欢吃这些损害健康的食品。
我们仍然有能力改变。我们可以继续选择食物,随着时间的推移,我们的选择会塑造未来的食物。你可能做出的最重要的饮食决定是你对添加糖的消费。它们对我们的体重和健康有害,并且存在于大多数食品中。
20世纪50年代前:6.5 盎司
1960年:12盎司
1990年代:20盎司
这只是标准尺寸。如今,电影和快餐杯可以大到64盎司(相当于192克糖)。在上世纪80年代初,大多数软饮料经历了另一场不幸的变化——从用糖甜味剂变为高果糖玉米糖浆。虽然添加糖对我们的健康和体重有害,但这种实验室制造物似乎更糟糕,尤其是当涉及到我们的体重时。
高果糖玉米糖浆(HFCS)
普林斯顿大学的研究人员对大鼠进行了高果糖玉米浆(HFCS)和蔗糖的实验。以下是他们发现的:
我们的身体必须更努力地消化天然食物。想象一下这是内部锻炼。它燃烧更多的卡路里,同时让我们的系统有时间适当地吸收营养。糖比大多数食物更容易被吸收,但它的吸收难度会随着时间推移而增加,比高果糖玉米糖浆要难一些。
人工甜味剂
人工甜味剂也不是解决方案。它们对健康的影响尚未完全了解,一些研究没有发现任何不良影响,而另一些则将它们与癌症等严重疾病联系起来。如果你只想相信那些说它们安全的研究,那是你的选择。但你应该知道,它们破坏我们新陈代谢的能力是已知的事实。
当我们摄入人造甜味剂时,我们会欺骗身体,但不是我们想要的方式。没有办法欺骗你的次要奖励系统,它是基于食物的能量影响的。
零卡路里含糖饮料听起来似乎太好以至不真实,因为事实的确如此。 它试图在没有卡路里的情况下获得甜味带来的愉悦感。 说真的,这是一个绝妙的想法,但是我们的身体知道它不是糖,因为它不能被消化并用作能量。 当我们想要得到某样东西(糖)时,如果用零卡路里的甜味剂来引诱我们,我们会更加渴望它。
没有奖励?那就没生意。
人造甜味剂在生物学上没有奖赏作用,这是个问题。替代的概念对于行为改变是有价值的,但是新行为需要提供类似的奖赏,因为奖赏强烈地指导着我们的行为。 人造甜味剂作为糖的口味替代品,不含卡路里,但它们只激活了两条食物奖赏通路中的其中一条,这实际上对试图减少摄入含糖食物的人来说是有害的。
人工甜味剂不仅仅是比糖甜一点;它们比糖甜上几百倍。想想看。如果某样东西尝起来比糖还甜,它会对人们产生更大的期待,期望得到更多的奖励。当最终的结果是几乎没有奖励时,会有什么影响呢?失望和沮丧。即使你不自知,可以放心的是,你的身体会有这种感觉。当你感到没有获得奖励时,你的身体会微妙地(或不那么微妙地)寻找方法来获取这些奖励——通过渴望和“就这一次”的例外处理——它会利用任何手段让你日后放纵。
他们所指的结果是超重和肥胖,这意味着摄入人工甜味剂最多的人体重增加得最快。对大多数人来说,这个结果似乎令人费解,但我和你现在都知道,摄入人工甜味剂会让人欲罢不能。
其他甜味剂
甜菊糖可能比人工甜味剂更健康,因为它来自天然。它非常甜,热量很低,并且似乎比人工甜味剂有较少的长期健康问题。问题是它也不能激活大脑中的整个奖赏通路,这也会导致与人工甜味剂相同的健康问题。这是一个行为问题,也是一个健康问题——食用代糖会增加你对糖的需求。
木糖醇、麦芽糖醇、山梨醇和赤藓糖醇等多元醇比糖所含热量更低,甜度也相似。它们在一些食物中自然存在,但通常会被提取出来用在各种加工食品中。如果你一定要用代糖,它们通常是最佳选择之一——但是要小心,因为它们会引起肠胃不适。
在亚马逊上,一袋重5磅、用木糖醇甜味的哈比糖果熊引发了许多搞笑评论(如果你需要一次开怀大笑,那就看看这些评论吧)。看来有些人低估了木糖醇的泻药效果,并为此付出了代价。一位评论者称其为“果冻熊排毒”。大家要小心啊!
总的来说,如果你想吃甜食的话,最好先吃水果,再吃真正的糖。否则,你会毫无意义地承担风险,这实际上会让你体重增加。此外,真正的糖不会给你假象的安全感,而人工甜味剂则会。
如果糖对我们的健康有害,但未经加工的食物对我们的健康有益,那么水果和含果糖量高的未加工食物呢?
低碳水化合物理论让一些人避开了水果,这是一个大错误。 许多水果和许多蔬菜都含有大量的碳水化合物,在现代世界里,由于选择性育种和农业科学,它们发生了一些变化,但这种变化不能解释全球范围内的体重急剧增加。
我所看到的所有关于水果的研究都一致认为,水果是减肥食品。任何说不是的人会引用两个理论——水果的热量或含糖量/碳水化合物含量。这些都不是事实,尤其是因为有很多数据——其中很多都在这本书中引用过——反驳了它们。
长期吃水果的影响
减肥行业的短期思维在短期内对短期减肥研究给予了过多的关注(我的双关语总是故意的)。这里有一些非常长期的减肥研究值得我们关注。
他们发现花青素(一种类黄酮)的摄入量与体重减轻程度呈正相关。研究中,以及大多数食用者的主要来源是蓝莓和草莓。
类黄酮含量可以解释为什么人们通过增加水果摄入量来减肥。关于果糖的研究关注的是它在非水果形式中的消费,比如加工食品中含有的高果糖玉米糖浆。因此,不能说所有含有果糖的食物都会导致体重增加,就像我们不能假设所有含有类黄酮的食物都能减肥一样。例如,如果我们在加工食品中添加类黄酮,那么这些食物很可能仍然会增重。
重要的是,这些关联并不是保证水果可以减肥的证据,因为相关性不代表因果关系。然而这很有可能是真的,因为水果有很多对减肥有益的特点,众所周知饮食选择会导致体重增加或减少,而且它是一种“古老”的食物,在肥胖危机出现之前很久人们就已经在吃了。多项长期研究表明,吃水果与体重较轻之间存在联系。只有当你被误导认为100卡路里的零食包是减肥的关键,或者“所有碳水化合物都会导致发胖”,这样的数据才会让你感到惊讶。很多流行节食法都将水果妖魔化,但它们始终是长期研究中最能减肥的食物之一。
眼见为实
想象一下,听一个人在 有说服力地 讲述蜂鸟飞行不可能的原因。演讲者用详细的科学解释说明了蜂鸟的翅膀太小,无法支撑蜂鸟的身体重量。但是就在他的头后面,你可以看到一只蜂鸟在飞。它就停在那里不动,偶尔飞向后方,只是为了炫耀一番。你还相信那个演讲者吗?我们应该问的问题不是“水果会导致体重增加或减少吗?”而是“为什么我们看到人们吃更多的水果时会减肥?”演讲者也应该这样做,并且应该质疑为什么他看到的是蜂鸟在飞,而不是对他讲解蜂鸟为什么不能飞。
要明白为什么高果糖食物对腰围无害,反而有益,我们就必须着眼于整个水果,而不仅仅是它的果糖含量。那么它的高水分和纤维含量呢?它所含生物可利用的维他命和矿物质呢?消化酶呢?它对抗炎症的效果比几乎所有其他食物都要好,包括许多蔬菜——这又如何解释呢?花青素呢?你不能忘记花青素!热量计和反碳水化合物者认为这些因素无关紧要,因为他们把食物简化为宏量营养素。人们吃水果减肥的事实似乎很简单,但这在我们还没有完全理解的食物面前仍然是一个统计显著且相关的观察结果。以下是水果作为减肥冠军的几个原因。
水果味道(真的)很好。
这不是玩笑。这是很重要的!水果是目前人们吃的许多高热量甜食的健康可行替代品。我们来面对现实吧。你们不可能通过吃羽衣甘蓝就戒掉冰淇淋的习惯。但是,你们有没有吃过芒果?这是我最喜欢的水果。它的味道和甜度都完全令人满意。你们吃过冷冻香蕉吗?它尝起来像冰淇淋。试试看。
我们的舌头配备了味蕾,以充分欣赏大自然的甜美。如果我们接受水果会让我们发胖的观点,尽管科学表明它会让我们变瘦,我们可以打赌我们会寻找其他地方的甜味(很可能是在人造甜味剂或加工糖中,这实际上确实会导致我们体重增加)。水果是你甜蜜欲望的重要出口——当你渴望甜食时,水果就在那里拯救你的日子!
水果是最好的消化酶来源之一。适当的营养物质消化和吸收会减少腹胀,让你感觉更满足、更有活力。我最喜欢的两种水果菠萝和猕猴桃含有能帮助你分解和消化蛋白质的强效酶蛋白酶。最近的一次航行中,在自助餐上提供了新鲜菠萝,我在每顿饭后都吃了它;我很惊讶我的消化有了积极的变化,整个旅程都没有胃酸反流。
类黄酮化合物似乎被低估了,人们并没有完全理解它们。水果实际上比其宏量营养素含量表明的要健康得多。水果也富含生物可利用的维生素和矿物质——我们的身体需要这些微量营养素才能正常运作,包括控制体重。
如果你的目标是少吃糖,那么你可能会想不吃水果。除非你的身体状况不允许吃水果,否则不要不吃。与加工食品相比,水果通常含有较少的糖分。一罐20盎司的汽水所含的糖比一个香蕉、一个苹果、一个橙子和一个猕猴桃加在一起还多。
水果很甜,但它仍然可以降低血糖。
高果糖食物如何降低血糖听起来不合常理,但让我们再次看看数据,而不是理论。在墨西哥进行的一项研究中,参与者被随机分为两组,一组食用低果糖饮食(每天少于20克),另一组食用中等天然果糖饮食(每天50-70克)。两组人的血糖、胰岛素抵抗、胆固醇和血压都有所改善。两组之间最大的区别在于体重减轻——吃天然果糖的一组人减掉了多出50%的重量(4.2公斤比2.8公斤)。从饮食中剔除所有或大部分果糖会带来一些好处;如果你也去掉水果,效果就没那么好了。
还记得我跟你说过 我吃了一整袋冷冻芒果吗? 那个10盎司(284克)装的冷冻切片芒果 只有200卡路里, 而一粒52.7克的士力架就有250卡路里。 尽管芒果热量低,但它在胃中占的空间 比士力架多五倍,并且还能提供 更多微量营养成分。
警告:果汁不等于完整的水果!
整个水果可以调节你的饮食量,以及身体吸收果糖的方式。果汁,即使是百分之百的果汁,也会让你发胖。当你这么想的时候,这是有道理的。研究发现果糖会让人发胖,而从水果中榨取果汁会使果糖脱离果肉,并且丢失了所有的纤维素。比果汁更好的替代品是水果水,我们将在应用部分讨论这个话题。
既然我们已经讨论了什么食物对减肥有益,什么食物不利于减肥,现在是时候看看你目前的饮食习惯了。有些人认为他们已经尝试过“吃健康食品”的计划并失败了,但实际上他们从未尝试过。如果你对健康饮食的理解有误,你会发胖,因为你认为你在做正确的事情。
“健康食品”比大多数人想象的要狭窄得多。健康减肥食品 不包括 低脂酸奶、有机燕麦棒、无糖任何东西、有机玉米片、有机糖果、低卡路里饮食食品、100%果汁、有机或传统加工食品,基本上任何加了糖(占杂货店食物的75%)的东西,或者 淋上高果糖玉米糖浆和大豆油酱 的沙拉。
有人每天可以喝一瓶苏打水,觉得自己很健康,只是因为他有个朋友一天要喝三瓶。告诉你的胰腺不要担心它分泌的所有胰岛素,因为吉米的胰腺必须每三小时做一次。或者,在人工甜味剂的情况下,让你的多巴胺通路不要太沮丧于缺乏奖励,因为吉米的奖赏系统已经更糟糕了。
看看你的厨房。 你的台面和冰箱里有新鲜或冷冻的水果和蔬菜吗?如果没有,通常也没有。如果你没有的话,那么你的饮食可能不健康。
食物(不)健康几乎完全取决于加工程度。一般来说,食物越加工,热量密度就越高,营养成分就越少,每卡路里提供的饱腹感就越低。未加工的食物中哪些最适合减肥还有细微差别,但你的减肥进度不会因为吃桃子而非葡萄而取得或失去。它将由你摄入的真实食物与加工食品之间的比较所决定。加工食品会导致体重增加。如果你超重,最少加工的食物会大大帮助减肥,或者如果你不超重,它可以维持健康的体重。
死物
植物叶子含有叶绿素、抗氧化剂等化合物,使它们保持健康活力。当你吃掉植物时,这些活性成分仍然在起作用,在你的身体内发挥类似促进生命的作用。你有没有试过把鳄梨保存起来以后再吃,结果发现它很快就变棕色了?这就是氧化作用。氧化会杀死并破坏细胞功能。脂肪氧化是指为了能量而分解脂肪细胞的过程。氧化对脂肪有益,但对我们体内大多数其他细胞则不然!
加工食品已经过时了。加工会破坏食物中最有益的部分。例如,许多人认为谷物“健康”,因为它含有大量添加的维生素,但它几乎不含活食中的有益化合物。
食物秤
除了蔬菜,人们争论几乎所有其他食物如何影响体重。了解何时查看大局以及何时查看细节是有用的,这就是我们需要查看大局的原因。随着我们从实验室而非农场生产并消费更多的食品,全球肥胖率急剧上升。当加工食品消费量激增时,卡路里摄入量也增加,肥胖率也随之攀升。
大多数减肥书籍的作者都相信他们必须对每一种食物都有一个明确的立场,但这是完全不必要的。如果你掌握了基础知识,吃简单、真实的食物,并停止食用明显的增重食品,你就成功了。
不要担心吃不吃有争议的食物,比如土豆、肉、全麦面包和乳制品。这些食物已经吃了几个世纪了,而且没有带来任何体重问题。所有这些食物中可能有一些会把你的体重推向错误的方向,但是吃煮熟的土豆不会像经常喝苏打汽水或牛角包那样破坏你的减肥努力。一旦你养成了吃健康食品的习惯,也许你可以挑剔一下乳制品或全谷物面包之类的东西。节食文化让人们在每天吃快餐时担心全麦面包。当你主要吃新鲜水果蔬菜时,你就掌握了健康饮食的基本技巧。然后你可以继续讨论是否应该吃有争议的食物。在此之前,你的任务是追求健康的食物,而不是担心其他食物。重复一遍,获得健康饮食的正确方法是对健康食物感兴趣,而不是对不健康食物感到厌恶。
请勿使用下面的食物清单来节食。 这只是为了让你知道哪些食物适合减肥。 了解哪些食物适合减肥固然重要,但更重要的是不要(试图)一下子改变饮食习惯。 食物清单并未包含所有内容。 尝试理解这些食物背后的概念。
当你读完其他人的之后,再回过头来重新阅读这份清单,因为这才是最重要的。这不关乎避免什么,而是追求什么。在你考虑到它包括 所有水果和基本上所有蔬菜 之前,这看起来像是一份简短的清单。西红柿有4000种品种,这只是其中的一种水果。还有数千种不同的水果和蔬菜,它们的味道、质地和用途都不相同。
水(这是被低估的减肥工具之一。我们稍后会讨论这一点)所有水果几乎所有的蔬菜种子、豆类和坚果鱼(不油炸)芥末醋鸡蛋所有香料所有草药(香料和草药让食物美味,而且它们对你有好处。这几乎是不公平的。)发酵食品如全脂酸奶、泡菜、酸菜、克非尔、康普茶等橄榄油椰子油
椰子油对减肥很有好处,因为它含有丰富的中链甘油三酯(MCT),可以快速被吸收并转化为能量(而不是以脂肪的形式储存)。除了椰子油、橄榄油或黄油之外,无需使用任何其他东西来烹饪。椰子油和橄榄油既多才多艺又美味健康。橄榄油也适用于冷食,如蘸酱或调味品。
注意:只喝蔬菜汁或奶昔是营养宝库。它们对于抗炎和吸收营养有很多好处,但是请记住这只是锦上添花的作用。不要挨饿或者强迫自己去喝绿色果汁。这很时髦,但不持久。
全谷物:糙米、全麦意面、藜麦、大麦、小米、燕麦等都是健康的食物(不包括饼干或大多数面包,因为它们通常含有多种加工成分)。
最少加工的肉类:我知道。现在很多人把矛头指向肉类,但是我们作为杂食者已经存在了很久,而且也没有什么体重问题。此外,我认为素食或纯素食很难长期维持下去。话虽如此,如果你喜欢吃素或者纯素的话,那就尽情享受吧!
许多全谷物面包都含有额外配料,所以如果你打算选择一种小麦来源,那就选 全麦面食(只含一种成分)。有些人对小麦过敏,但如果是这样,我不必告诉你不要吃。由于大多数意大利面酱都含有添加糖,我喜欢用橄榄油、香蒜沙司和奶酪来调味。它健康又美味!你也可以很容易地自制意大利面酱。
全脂或脱脂乳制品是否有益健康,这并非可以争论的问题。对于牛奶、酸奶油、黄油、酸奶和其他乳制品来说,选择全脂。
鉴于我们讨论过的一切,这些数据在逻辑上是非常完整的。这使得那些以单一维度看待复杂食物的人大吃一惊,并得出结论认为“脂肪是有害的”。请再次阅读这句话,看看研究结果,理解其中的意思:全脂牛奶所含热量几乎是脱脂牛奶的两倍,而且还是同等份量的情况下。
你会相信流行的理论(它们让肥胖人数飙升)吗?还是会考虑哪些理论能最好地解释观察性科学?这里有一个关于乳制品的解释,它确实符合数据,明确地说全脂牛奶比脱脂牛奶更有利于减肥: 全脂牛奶没有经过太多的加工,是一种完整的、天然的食物。 脱脂牛奶是全脂牛奶的一种加工版本。 这不是一个特别有力的论点,因为它要求你首先接受“加工食品更糟糕”的想法,但这个想法是对的: 如果你喝的是脱脂牛奶,相比于全脂奶,你不会感到那么饱足。 用脱脂或低脂牛奶来勾兑食物,每份食物所含的热量可能会更低。 四盎司的全脂牛奶可能比八盎司的脱脂牛奶更能给人带来满足感和饱腹感。 如果我们只看喝牛奶而不考虑其它因素,那么当然,脱脂牛奶的卡路里含量低于全脂牛奶,这意味着体重增加较少。 但是我们现在吃的食物会影响我们以后吃的食物的数量和类型。 另外,牛奶中的脂肪会减缓糖的消化速度。
你的身体不会想,“哦,还是同样的牛奶,但只有半数卡路里!”脱脂牛奶只是欺骗喝它的人(而不是他们的身体)。人体不能被愚弄来减肥。如果你想减肥,就尽情享受全脂乳制品吧。我不需要为你提供任何证据或关于牛奶的理论建议。看看数据吧。当然,生奶比超市买的奶更好,因为它没有经过巴氏灭菌法(加热到高温杀死所有细菌)和均质化处理(高速搅拌以防止奶油分离)。生奶是有生命的。它含有有益酶,但在巴氏灭菌过程中会被破坏,但它并不总是容易获得。在美国,实际上不允许出售用于个人消费的生奶。宠物可以喝。生奶有感染沙门氏菌和李斯特菌等细菌的风险,所以请谨慎食用。
蛋白粉:如果你要喝蛋白质奶昔,最好在早上作为早餐喝,并且选择添加剂最少的(我用的是Promix和Solgar)。与其他蛋白质相比,我更喜欢乳清蛋白,因为它含有完整的蛋白质。这是一种加工食品,但如果你选对了原料,这也是更好的一种。蛋白质可以显著地饱腹感,有助于增肌或保持肌肉质量。因此,好的蛋白粉可以帮助你把体重从脂肪转向肌肉,尤其是当你在锻炼的时候。还有什么比早上喝一杯奶昔更好的呢?整个水果、蔬菜、鸡蛋、最少加工的肉类或酸奶。
汤:通常是个不错的选择(含水量高),但取决于它是由什么做成的,以及里面有什么!
超级淀粉蔬菜:土豆、豌豆和玉米之所以被列入其中,只是因为它们与上述研究中提到的体重增加有关。许多人妖魔化土豆,但事实上它看起来很完美。它是世界上最饱腹的食物之一,富含抗氧化剂、维生素和矿物质。 土豆在历史上一直是许多国家的主要食物。肥胖症和超重是现代现象,有现代原因。这并不意味着吃土豆会让你发胖——研究结果喜忧参半——但这确实意味着你可以毫无顾虑地吃土豆。如果你像大多数人一样喜欢吃土豆,那就尽情享受吧。
白米:它不是你能吃的最糟糕的食物,而且比超加工食品强得多。此外,许多文化都能通过以白米为主食保持苗条健康。话虽如此,如果你可以换成糙米,那就换吧!精制大米经过加工,去除了糙米的胚芽和麸皮,这意味着纤维含量较低,营养成分也少很多。如果只能在白米和白面包中做选择,那么白米完胜,因为白面包的加工过程更为极端(通常含有十几种配料)。白米只含有一种成分,这是个很大的优势。话虽如此,如果你在餐馆吃到白米饭,别指望它只含一种成分。它经常是用油和钠烹调而成。
低脂或无脂乳制品:有益脂肪被去除,使其不如全脂乳制品有饱腹感。而且与全脂乳制品不同的是,研究发现它还与体重增加有关。记住,在 20 世纪 30 年代,人们用脱脂牛奶来喂猪。
水果冰沙:如果你在连锁店购买了水果冰沙,那么它几乎肯定含有添加糖或/和以水果味的糖浆代替真正的水果。即使你在家里用真水果做冰沙,你也无法真正摄入水果中的纤维,因为研究发现,搅拌水果会改变纤维的消化方式。这使得它更接近果汁——一种绝对会让你发胖的饮料!
高度加工食品:薯片、饼干、曲奇饼、馅饼、蛋糕、冰淇淋、煎饼、华夫饼、白面食、披萨、白面包、果汁(对,即使是百分之百的果汁)、苏打水、拿铁咖啡以及糖果。如果你看到这个列表就流口水了,别担心,健康食物也能让你垂涎三尺!
任何油炸食品,以及大多数用植物油烹饪的食物:大豆油和其他大多数植物油都是体重增加的主要原因,在美国要避免它们非常困难。
伪健康食品:包括有机燕麦棒(含糖)、有机干果(通常含有添加糖,而且缺乏重要的水分)、水果味酸奶(总是含有添加甜味剂)、有机谷物(高度加工且含糖)。
最常见的酱汁:大多数酱汁都含有大豆油、糖或盐,因此它们会让人发胖。我见过的几乎所有商业沙拉酱都含有大豆油。
高度加工过的肉类:比如腊肠、热狗等,这些肉都经过了高度加工,已经很难再称之为“肉”了。
健康饮酒
最有效的减肥方法之一很明显,我们都忽略了。喝水!它不含卡路里,还能帮助调节食欲(苏打水也不含卡路里,但它会损害你的新陈代谢,而水可以改善它)。
如果你习惯性地喝任何东西,但水除外,要怀疑它对你的腰围的影响。苏打、果汁、酒精以及任何其他含糖饮料(包括咖啡和茶)都会阻碍你的减肥目标。牛奶则是个疑问号。
咖啡和茶呢?少量咖啡因对提高新陈代谢有好处。事实上,作为最常用的前驱补充剂成分之一,咖啡因最好用于增强锻炼效果。当然,如果你“需要”咖啡因来获得能量,那就不是最好的选择。我不喝咖啡,因为我见过太多人因为依赖它而获得能量。
关于健康和体重,咖啡和茶最大的问题在于添加了甜味剂。如果你必须选择一种,蜂蜜、生褐糖和甜菊似乎是最不坏的选择(我会选择蜂蜜)。有一点可以肯定的是,普通咖啡和茶比含糖拿铁和其他咖啡店里的“招牌”饮料要好得多。如果是在一杯咖啡和焦糖拿铁之间做选择,那么咖啡会大获全胜。
我可以告诉你一件事:如果你能够把饮料和甜味分开,那你绝对走在了前面。这都归功于训练。对每天喝苏打水的人来说,水尝起来味道淡薄。而对每天喝水的人来说,汽水和拿铁咖啡尝起来太甜了。
液体可以解渴,而这种满足感是与生俱来的。所有的饮料都是以水为基础的,这意味着喝水也可以成为一种习惯,即使你现在并不特别喜欢它。我们可以学会享受能满足我们需求的东西。
酒精
我们已经谈了很多关于食物的事情,但运动呢?它真的能帮助我们减肥吗?
那些告诉你运动不必要减肥的书,犯了四个错误。
他们没有考虑到一致运动对代谢的长期积极影响(只看短期研究运动和减肥)。 他们认为饮食和锻炼加在一起“太多”,因此,非常依赖更重要的部分(饮食);只有节食才是“太多”。 他们没有提到运动和活跃之间的区别。 他们没有考虑到运动作为减压的好处,减少情绪进食、降低皮质醇水平和改善睡眠。
运动对减肥的效果具有讽刺意味地成为了有争议的话题。短期研究表明,大多数饮食有效,而运动对减肥没有帮助,但长期研究表明,大多数饮食无效,而运动是成功且持久减肥的关键因素之一。所以我们面临一个选择——我们强调短期研究还是长期研究?长期研究表明真正的、持久的变化。短期研究表明,“果冻熊清洁法”是最有效的减肥方法。一位评论者声称仅在一天内就减掉了四磅。这是一个结果!
如果你根据一年或更短时间内的短期研究得出结论,那么你会倾向于选择那些在长期内几乎总是失败的短期策略。为什么有人会对一个十天的减肥计划没有持久效果感到惊讶呢?才十天!就像潜艇不能飞一样,它并不是为此而设计的。
运动不是为了“燃烧卡路里”
减肥不如减脂
如果你现在不锻炼,那可能意味着你不享受它。我知道这很痛苦,但没关系,因为微小的习惯可以改变你的偏好。每天做一次俯卧撑让我从抵制运动变成享受运动,并且每周都会做几次。任何人都能做到这一点。
锻炼不是为了减肥而做出的牺牲;它是许多人无法享受的生活乐趣之一。当你身体不好时,运动并不好玩,而且感觉不舒服,但一旦你开始体验到好处并变得更强壮,你会上瘾的。有了这本书,你就有了达到这一点的最佳策略。
食物和运动与减肥讨论的主要因素,但还有其他一些因素值得考虑。这些因素会直接或间接地通过改变我们的饮食方式和运动方式来影响体重。
睡眠
为了支持这些研究的结果,你的经历是什么?你有没有注意到当你缺乏睡眠时,你会吃得更多吗?我注意到了。我记得一些缺觉的日子,我的胃好像一个无底洞,总是感觉饿。
由于持久改变的关键在于使成功比失败更容易,因此睡眠不足对减肥来说是一个严重的障碍。与充足的睡眠相比(共识为7-9小时),这会让你在生物上处于严重劣势。
压力水平
皮质醇 是当我们感到压力时释放的激素,过量会导致 腹部储存脂肪。 这不是我们想要的结果, 所以答案就是减压。 这说起来容易做起来难, 但其实并没有你想得那么难。 如果你积极地尝试减少生活中的 压力,那你一定可以成功, 但是很少有人会计划如何减压。 我最喜欢的放松方式之一 就是冥想、按摩、打篮球 或者使用感觉剥夺隔离舱。
有趣
同时改变
肠道健康
肠道健康是一门不断发展的科学,包括它与减肥的关系。科学家发现超重者(和老鼠)的肠道细菌与体重正常者的差异。发酵食品(如酸奶、泡菜、克非尔、泡菜、红茶菌)之所以有益健康是因为它们能再次为胃部补充有益的细菌。
虽然这些边缘因素可能看起来不重要,但它们可能会产生很大的影响,所以请记住这一点。
微习惯的副作用
小习惯直接改善了其中三个隐藏因素。首先,它们很有趣。它们比你以前尝试过的任何减肥计划都更有趣。这个策略不会禁止你吃任何食物;它植根于积极和日常成功,并且相比行为本身是多么容易,它提供了不成比例的结果。与节食不同,小习惯就像一个主题公园。
小习惯也可以让你在不精疲力尽的情况下,同时改变你的运动和饮食习惯。 用传统的方法来改变,即使像这样的两个协同变化也很难维持下去。 因为你可以一次维持几个小习惯,所以你可以在这两个领域同时取得进步,并从它们的协同作用中获益。
最后,微小习惯可以降低你的压力水平。当你对自己要求较低但仍然取得成果时,生活会变得更容易、更轻松。这进而能改善你的睡眠。
我解释了体重增加和减肥是如何运作的。
经过数百项研究并分析了他们的数据,唯一一致的发现是加工食品会导致体重增加,而不是碳水化合物、脂肪或卡路里。我们从存在开始就一直拥有这些东西,每个减肥理论背后的潜在核心理论都是我们现在吃的太多。他们说我们吃太多的碳水化合物,太多的脂肪,或者太多的卡路里。
如果你碰巧与我意见不同,没关系,因为这只是减肥行业面临的第二大问题。最大的问题是人们被教导如何实施营养均衡饮食。《减肥之道》不是一种新的饮食方法,而是一种新的减肥方式。如果你认为有一种特定的饮食或饮食习惯最适合你的长期利益,你可以调整这些原则来更有效地实施它。
第二部分
简介:策略规则
欢迎来到本书第二部分,我最喜欢的部分。第一部分讨论了成功减肥的关键;第二部分把我们从第一部分学到的知识转化为一个可行的战略计划。接下来的三章分别是总体战略、食物策略和健身策略。
在接下来的部分,我们将讨论我们的减肥策略。也就是说,我们应该如何考虑我们整体的减肥尝试?把你自己想象成“正在努力减肥”理想吗?还是把目标定为保持体重更好?
接下来是食物策略部分,它会解释如何思考食物。 它将回答诸如“我应该禁止垃圾食品吗?” 、“什么时候知道该停止进食?” 、 “如果我不喜欢蔬菜怎么办?” 这样的问题。
然后,我们将讨论健身策略,并回答诸如“减肥最好的运动形式是什么?”、“我应该锻炼多久?”以及“追着孩子满屋子跑算不算锻炼?”等问题。
《小习惯》在哪里?
由于减肥涵盖了你的整个生活方式,因此在选择每天的小习惯之外,还有其他需要考虑的因素。策略包括我们如何思考某件事以及我们实际做了什么。有许多重要的心理倾向可以决定你的尝试成功与否。在本章最后给出一些具体的小习惯建议之前,我们将讨论这些小习惯的优势,并涵盖一些重要心理倾向。练习你的小习惯会逐渐改变你的思维方式,但如果你有正确的心态来配合你的小习惯,你会更有可能成功。
总体策略
“若要变革具有任何真正的价值,就必须持久且一致。”
托尼·罗宾斯
锻炼和健康饮食是一条艰难的道路。运动几乎使所有内部身体过程和功能都更有效率:它提高了胰岛素的功能,以更好地为细胞供能;增加了血液流量,以便更容易地分散营养,并优化激素水平。好的、真正的食物提供了微量营养素和独特的化合物,以改善器官功能并减少炎症。
除了健康生活带来的“实际好处”,你也会通过走艰难的道路变得更强。如果你每天爬山,上楼梯就是小菜一碟。但如果你整天坐在车里,上下班,上楼梯可能就会很费劲。走艰难的路对我们来说是有益的,因为它会让其他事情变得更容易。人类是很聪明的,我们意识到了这一点,但是很多人没有考虑到自己的意志力有限,更倾向于选择捷径。即使是在努力走上更艰难、更有益处的道路时,我们也常常屈服于捷径。只有真正地走了艰难的路才是有益的!但我们该如何始终如一地走下去呢?
其他书籍会告诉你咬紧牙关,坚持下去,或者更糟的是,他们会告诉你你需要“更加渴望”。基本上,他们会让你把所有的东西都投入到你的目标中。不惜一切代价走艰难的道路,吃蔬菜,去健身房。如果你失败了,那是你的错。多愚蠢啊。最明智的做法是将我们天生的偏好(容易走的路)与我们独特的选择能力相协调。
如果你需要走艰难的道路,但你喜欢走容易的道路,你就必须让艰难的道路变得更容易,而把容易的道路变得更难。现在你能明白为什么小习惯是一种强大的策略吗?小习惯让你很容易走上人生中最艰难(也是最有益)的道路。
感知难度的重要性
在健身自行车上做30分钟中等强度的运动需要一定的努力,这是无法改变的。然而,你可以通过策略来改变骑车的可能性,这可以改变你的观点,而你的观点会影响任务的感知难度。
想象一下吉姆和山姆这两个人能力相当,试图完成相同的挑战。他们的能力和任务难度在客观上是一样的,但是山姆觉得这个挑战很有趣,而吉姆觉得很无聊。你觉得谁会发现这项挑战更容易? 山姆会,因为他认为这很有趣。你的观点足以让一项困难的任务变得简单或一项简单的任务变得困难。
在实践中,微习惯通过创造新的预期来改变你与行为的关系。练钢琴自然比看电视难,所以微习惯要求你每天弹一首曲子,甚至坐在钢琴前打开歌本。锻炼比读报纸要难,所以微习惯让你只需做一次俯卧撑(如果你愿意的话可以多做)。吃西兰花比吃蛋糕难,所以微习惯让你只吃一片西兰花就能轻松做到。
通过让艰难的道路变得更容易,你就破坏了维持不健康行为的基础,并使健康行为成为“将来”的梦想。 不健康的习惯之所以如此普遍,不仅是因为它很容易做到,而且因为社会让它看起来很容易做到。 健康的行为实际上并不比不健康的行为更具挑战性,但当这样描述时就变成了这样。
为什么一个人会心甘情愿地坐下来观看 一分钟 的YouTube 视频,却不会因为“这不是完整的锻炼”而在原地跑步一分钟?坐一分钟没问题,但跑一分钟却不够?这就是为什么人们每天坐八个小时,却不怎么运动。为什么吃沙拉是一种特殊的饮食决定,而吃汉堡包则是正常的?这需要改变!我们所推崇的稀有行为往往是最不可能影响我们的生活。你的微小习惯可以将这些“特殊健康行为”转变为可能成为习惯并改变生活的正常行为。
这是迷你习惯策略背后的思维框架。 你会设定一些简单且可以做到的小目标,来养成在高影响力领域的习惯。 因为我们专注于减肥,这也涉及到许多非习惯性的选择,所以你也会学会把健康的非习惯性选择变成你可以做出的最简单、最随意的选择。
没有人会责怪短跑运动员直线冲向终点线,因为那是最快速、最容易的方式。没有人会责骂篮球运动员灌篮,他本可以后退一步,尝试更困难的后仰跳投。捷径总是最聪明的选择,除非有副作用(比如体重增加),或者艰难路线本身就有值得追求的好处(比如举重来增强力量)。
整天坐着比站着容易,但它与死亡和新陈代谢减慢有关。吃快餐很容易,但它与炎症和体重增加有关。让成功变得比失败更容易并不侮辱你的自尊;这不是软弱的表现,也不是“艰难的方式”的渺小。这只是更聪明的做法。
这些是一系列关于减肥的一般性心态。 有些似乎不合常理,而另一些则显而易见。 我会解释为什么每一种都是有效的。 如果你把这些搞错了,你就输了。 如果你把这些事情做得对了,你就赢了。
你的主要目标不是减肥:而是改变行为。
当你想减肥时,你不应该关注你的外表或体重计上的数字。当然,这些事情对于衡量客观进步很重要,但它们并不是成功的衡量标准,因为它们不是你要改变的主要事情。这就像用杠杆移动重物一样。你可以直接推着物体,也可以利用杠杆的力量使移动变得容易得多。
减肥的关键在于改变行为。因此,成功的衡量标准与任何其他试图改变你的行为一样:要成功减肥,你必须变成一个体重较轻的人。如果你做到了这一点,结果就会随之而来。
这意味着,如果你在旅途中没有减肥,但看到行为改变的迹象——无论是对吃沙拉越来越有偏好、运动抵触感减少或自我控制感增强——你就已经在走向明显的成果。 行为改变总是比体重变化更重要。
如果你认为人们会在跑步机上每小时永久、即时、明显地减掉一磅脂肪,你会感到惊讶吗?当然不会。看到这种立竿见影的效果就足以激励大多数人通过几次马拉松来减肥。
那些认为自己需要结果来激励自己采取行动的人,恰恰把事情弄反了。这就是速食节食存在的原因。一周减掉十磅应该会激发继续减肥的动力。这不是一个糟糕的想法,因为结果确实能激励人,而动力是一件好事。然而,这是完全不可持续的减肥方法,当你这么做后,你会恢复一些或全部体重,并且在恢复过程中感到受挫,这会让你比以前的状态更糟。成功的真正秘诀在于坚持行动。一致性可以养成习惯,给你带来成果,让你有动力继续前进。结果是在过程的末尾出现的,而不是开头。只要你保持这个过程,就会得到结果。这就是为什么我们要掌握这个过程,不断推动我们的结果。
你说了算
以前减肥的努力可能让你在战场上成为一个可怜的小卒。 营养专家已经给你发了指令,如果你想减肥的话,你就必须遵循这个饮食方案。 无论这个饮食方案有多么好的效果,它剥夺了你的自主权,可能会导致你产生逆反心理。
通过微小习惯,你将设计自己的战斗计划。我提供给你成功所需的信息、材料和想法,但具体风格和执行计划完全由你自己决定。你可以选择不同的策略,所有的策略都能让你处于优势地位,在未来的时间里可以利用你的轻松选择养成习惯(这是胜利的关键),同时立即获得结果(这是士气的关键)。我会告诉你我最喜欢的策略和建议,但你知道自己和生活的情况比我知道得更清楚,所以你要做最后的决定。
人们可以受益于指导,但他们不需要被控制。没有人通过放弃对自己的选择的控制来减肥并保持体重。最终,他们会做出自己的决定。有了微习惯,从一开始就由你自己做主,所以没有过渡。你不会失去自我统治的感觉。
我用现实世界中的术语来解释:你会决定哪一天你要通过饮食和锻炼超额完成,哪一天你要休息并完成最简单的任务。 这并不会影响你的进步,因为即使在糟糕的日子里,你也会每天这样做。 这完全适合您的生活和喜好,这就是为什么小习惯是保持一致性的王者,也是世界上最强大的变革策略。
不要着急
每个人的大脑和身体都是独一无二的,因此减肥的速度也会有所不同。大多数减肥书籍都试图向您推销他们的方法速度,利用人们对“终于减肥”的渴望。如果一个方法不考虑永久性行为改变,它总是会让你回到原点,减去一本书的成本和这段时间内真正改变的机会。
重要的是:目标不等于策略
这是学习的一个最重要的概念,不仅对于减肥,而且对于任何你想追求的目标。许多人设定目标时会把他们的策略与他们的最终目标相同。例如,一个想戒掉汽水的人可能会制定“停止喝汽水”的策略。他们认为这是最好的,因为这是最明显、最明显的策略,但还有其他策略!
你选择的每一种策略都应该是深思熟虑的结果。 如果对你来说最好的策略碰巧与你的最终目标相同,那就这样吧。 在我的经验中,最好的策略很少是最明显的策略,因为行为改变有一些反直觉的因素。 直接反抗的徒劳性 是显而易见的道路是劣质的一个很好的例子。
为了说明我的意思,这里列出了你可以单独或结合使用来停止喝苏打水的 8 种方法(!)。策略类型在括号中。
停止喝苏打水(直接抵制) 限制饮用量,逐渐减少直至完全戒掉(“断奶”)。 不要再买苏打水(切断来源/改变环境。也有一些关于如何做到这一点的子策略。)
为喝苏打水创造一个后果(负强化) 选择一种相似的令人愉快的替代饮料,并使其随手可得(替代法) 延迟喝苏打水十分钟(建立控制,减少诱惑并等待欲望消失) 创建一条不同的途径,并与奖励联系起来(神经通路绕行结合正向强化) 在喝每一罐苏打水之前都强迫自己先喝一杯水(健康的障碍和半替代品)
这难道不令人耳目一新吗?停止喝苏打水的方法至少有八种。您不必每次都尝试并失败于同样的方法。理论上,它们中的任何一种都可能有效。在实践中,有些会更有效,而有些则取决于个人。
既然你的策略(而不是欲望)最终决定了你的成功或失败,所以花时间去思考它是值得的。我已经在本书中推荐了我所建议的战略,但不要认为我的想法就是对你来说绝对完美的战略。
加法优于减法
减肥最困难的一点之一就是,你普遍认为自己必须放弃所有东西。 你觉得你应该少看电视。 你觉得你应该戒掉所有最爱吃的垃圾食品。 这看起来无聊、乏味又艰难。
如果你不是试图减少吃的所有零食,而是要求自己吃更多的健康食物呢?吃得越健康,你就越容易吃。问题不在于人们吃了不健康的食物;问题是他们被训练得这样做了。我偶尔也会吃不健康的食物,但我对它的渴望有限,因为我已经练习了很长时间的健康饮食,并且现在更喜欢它。我曾经几乎每天都吃快餐,但这只会让我想吃得更多。你所做的每一个选择都为下一次你在这种情况下的选择奠定了先例。
节食就是禁欲,所以我们不节食也是件好事。成功的减肥更应该是在你的生活中增加新的、更好的事物,而不是减少。
不要害怕食物
当人们节食时,他们会“害怕”某些不属于他们饮食的食物,不管是面包、加工食品还是肉类。他们担心自己会受到诱惑并吃掉它们。当你害怕某件事时,你就承认它在某种程度上比你更强大。我们不害怕蝴蝶,因为我们知道它们不会伤害我们。
用恐惧作为动力似乎很强大,但它会让你处于弱势地位。它还会产生非黑即白的心态。所以,如果你害怕甜甜圈(但真的很喜欢它们),你会尽可能长时间地避开它们,直到你的意志力耗尽,然后又回到吃甜甜圈的习惯。你越经历这个过程,就越会强化对无法抗拒诱惑食物的恐惧。
当事情进展不顺利时,恐惧带来的全或无赌注会损害你的自我效能。不要害怕吃甜甜圈。 战略性地、冷静地想办法少吃一些(我们将在《情境策略》这一章中讨论这个问题)。有策略地戒掉某样东西比情绪化地戒掉要容易得多。
延迟满足感。
明天并不存在。我们拥有的只有今天。我们都知道这一点,经常被提醒是有好处的。但这里有一个可以付诸行动的小贴士,很容易被忽略,那就是要改变你的倾向。与其说“我现在喝苏打水,明天喝水”,不如说“我现在喝水,明天喝苏打水”。这完全没有问题,即使你第二天真的喝了苏打水。
投资自己是一件令人满意的事,因为你知道迟早会有回报。 期待奖励有时比实际获得奖励更令人兴奋。 拖延满足感可以增加预期奖励的时间和强度。 最后你会发现自己比计划的做了更多有益健康的事情。 对于不健康的食物,它同样有效。 人类擅长拖延,这是健康的拖延方式。
延迟满足是指,“我知道我现在可以享受这个,但我会期待以后享受它。”暴饮暴食(通常是超加工食品)会让你立即享受到你能承受的所有奖励(字面意思)。由于边际效用递减法则,这实际上是一种优化快乐的较差策略。
我第一次了解边际效用法则是在经济学课上,我的教授用一个简单的例子解释得很好:“你会比吃第一片披萨更享受第二片,比吃第五片更享受第二片。” 你可能已经注意到这种现象了,不仅在你的饮食中,在生活的各个方面都是如此。如果你真的想最大化食物奖励,最好是不要超过饱腹感。当你吃到饱腹感之外的食物时,你得到的唯一回报就是食物的味道。当吃饱的时候再吃东西,消化起来可能会让人感到不愉快甚至痛苦。我可以详细说明一下胀气和腹胀的问题,但让我们跳过这部分吧。
我要求你们吃得更聪明,以不同的方式享受食物,而不是为了减肥而受苦。 这个建议(不要吃太多)通常是以这样的方式给出的,让你觉得这样做很亏,好像这是你必须做出的牺牲才能减肥一样。
人类需要奖励,我们会想尽办法得到它们。为了取得持久的成功,我们必须努力过一种能够减肥的生活方式。当你更好地延迟满足感时,你现在就会做出更多正确的决定,并因此获得回报。然后,额外的满足会以你曾经拖延过的快乐、更健康、更有吸引力的身体的形式出现。
不要把这当作一条铁律:只需尝试推迟满足感,选择更健康的做法。直接抵制与延迟满足之间存在细微差别,但必须站在正确的一边。你会根据自己的阻力水平知道你所处的位置。如果你感到很大的阻力,那是因为你的抵抗力太大了。放松一下。降低风险。
现代思维
减肥最困难的部分之一就是摆脱过去。如果你超重已经有一段时间了,你可能会对自己的生活方式或体重感到羞愧。我邀请你放下这个负担。你不配也不需要它。它对你没有好处,而且让它影响你是不合逻辑的。
从现在开始,认为一切尚未书写,因此它是客观中立的。你可以以无数种方式生活,这就是为什么纠结于过去不仅浪费时间,而且会阻碍前进的步伐。
共同基金经常给出免责声明称,“过去的业绩并不能保证未来的表现。” 这同样适用于我们的生活,无论我们过去取得过优秀或糟糕的结果。 对于那些有着遗憾和糟糕选择的过去的人来说,这是一种自由。对于一直表现良好的人来说,这是一个不断前进的提醒。 你无法改变过去,所以不要担心它。
你在训练。
几乎所有试图减肥的人都会犯的一个最大错误在于他们的视角。如果你想尝试用微小习惯来减肥,你会有不同的做法,并且你会爱上这种改变!为什么?
你没有在受罚。 你不是为了减肥而“牺牲”。
那些都是失去目标的人。顶级运动员会做什么?训练。顶级作家呢?写作。任何成功人士为了达到目标都会做什么?一直练习直到成功。
就像有些人天生就拥有运动基因,有些人从小就开始学习高尔夫球一样,我们中的一些人被赋予了瘦削的基因(无论生活方式如何),或者学会了控制体重。许多人则是在“西方生活方式计划”下长大的——这是一种非常有效的增重系统。你将重新训练你的大脑和身体变得更健康、更轻盈。
如果你不喜欢现在的体重,但喜欢现在的生活方式,那么你就必须做出选择,因为你的生活方式 就是你的体重。 生活方式和体重就像白米饭和冰一样。 它们永远结合在一起,不可分割。 生活方式并不意味着一切或全无。 仅仅因为你已经改变到一般吃得好并保持活跃,并不意味着你也必须不吃巧克力松露、不喝酒精饮料或者不狂看电视剧。 告诉你这些“与减肥无关”的人,他们在多个方面都是错误的。
健康的生活方式非常令人愉快,我在这里说的不是对健康或体重的好处。为了说明我的意思,这里有一个健康生活方式积极链条的例子:更好的营养带来更好的睡眠,导致更少的欲望,进而导致更好的饮食习惯,从而带来更多的能量,导致更活跃的生活方式,进而改善身体和精神表现,导致更多自信和成功,进而获得更多的钱,最后买了一辆法拉利。更好的营养能带来一辆法拉利吗?这不太可能。尽管如此,健康生活的影响在许多方面都令人惊讶地强大。你也许无法通过吃蓝莓就买到一辆法拉利,但你会注意到一些意想不到的间接变化,当你开始过上更健康的生活时。
运动员有着最严格的饮食和训练计划,他们中的许多人非常喜欢每一分钟。人们沉迷于去健身房。人们对沙拉垂涎三尺。这并不是对任何人来说都是不可能的,只是大多数人不习惯而已。
选择界限而非规则,身份而非奴隶制,“不要”而非“不能”。
当一个人试图减肥时,他们首先想到的是什么?
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我不能吃垃圾食品。 我必须多吃蔬菜。
听起来似乎很正确,也很无辜。 但这是对减肥极其错误的一种看法。 首先,请注意语言中的失控感。 我不能,我必须。 当我们别无选择时,我们会使用这些短语; 这些是我们小时候父母告诉我们晚上不能在朋友家过夜时用过的短语。
"对不起,詹姆斯,妈妈说今晚我不能睡在那儿。"
~ 年轻而悲伤的斯蒂芬(我还爱着你,妈妈)的真实引述。
相比之下,当不吸烟者被递上一支烟时,他们会说什么?
“不,谢谢。我不抽烟。”
孩子无法控制自己的处境。大人可以。
请记住,“不能”更多地是一种对权威的呼吁,而不是个人做出改变的决定。就像孩子的情况一样,他想睡在朋友家过夜,但他不能这么做,因为他的父母不允许。当成年人用节食尝试这种“不能”的策略时,他们意识到自己仍然是决策者,这很容易打破这个规则。
然后,参与者被转移到他们认为与研究无关的研究中,在交出他们的问卷后,他们可以得到一块巧克力棒或“健康”的燕麦棒。水果更适合作为健康的零食,但无论如何,这项研究的结果还是非常有趣的。
他们发现“我不会”的组有64%的人选择了燕麦棒,其余人选择了巧克力棒。只有39%的“我不能”的组选择了燕麦棒。
结论:基于身份的决定能够赋予权力于你的长期目标(比如减肥);遵循无根据的“不能”的规则会削弱你并激发叛逆的一面。
如果你决定不吃蛋糕,有人推着你说“来一点吧”或者问你为什么不吃,千万不要说你在节食。不要说“我不能吃”。这样会让你看起来和感觉好像在挨饿。相反,你应该说“我不想要”,这样你会显得很强大。看出来区别了吗?
听起来可能令人惊讶,但拒绝不健康的食物完全没问题,因为你不想要它,并不是因为你“在控制体重”。社会对我们施加了很大的压力,让我们屈服于加工食品,但当你考虑到它的成分以及它们对你的身体的影响时,加工食品就不再那么吸引人了。你可能还没有以这种方式看待加工食品,但是当你通过一些小习惯来享受真正的食物时,你会感觉更好、看起来更好,你的偏好也会改变。吃低质量食物的人并不知道吃健康食物会让他们感觉有多好。
这并不是说,你就再也不吃薯条了。 我就是那个古灵精怪的人, 当朋友们来我家时, 我会给他们提供胡萝卜条 作为零食,新鲜水果做甜点。 我还是会像以前一样吃薯条、 汉堡、葡萄酒、啤酒和披萨。 偶尔我也会喝苏打水, 尽管我很讨厌它对人类健康的影响。 对于人工甜味剂和反式脂肪, 我完全戒掉了。 我没有规定什么能吃什么不能吃。 我不经常吃不健康的食物, 因为我已经改变了自己。 你也可以做到。
不要给你的食物选择贴上道德标签
一旦把食物变成道德问题,你就输了。 吃某种特定的食物不会让你变好或变坏,也不会使你高人一等或低人一等。 我们吃东西是为了生存。 有些食物比其他食物更有营养,但归根结底都是为了让我们活着。 你知道吗?有个人 多年来只吃披萨。
我吃的健康食品比大多数人要多,但这并不意味着我和别人不一样。这并不意味着我现在比大学时吃快餐的时候好多少。我现在更有活力了,我的饮食改善了我的健康状况,但我们作为人的价值与我们吃什么无关。
你知道人们在吃掉整个巧克力蛋糕之前会说“哦,我太糟糕了”吗?这是把食物变成了道德之战。 这是在说你在做错事。 你能猜到这会产生什么情绪吗? 羞愧感和羞耻感。哎呀。
食物没有好与坏之分。它们对你的健康、幸福和减肥目标有益或有害。当你吃甜甜圈时,你不必觉得自己背叛了最好的朋友。你不需要觉得自己是个坏人。相反,你要意识到你选择以娱乐而非生存的方式进食。你要知道,你很可能在自己的肚子上加了一点脂肪。这没什么大不了的,但也有后果。
忘掉一致的心态,大吃健康食品
你有没有想过为什么你会更有可能暴饮暴食薯片而不是西兰花? 你可能会认为,这是因为薯片更好吃,而且更容易大量食用,从某种程度上来说这可能是真的,但还有一个更加危险的原因。
人们不太可能因为心态问题而吃掉大量的健康食物。众所周知,薯片是一种增重食品,因为它富含碳水化合物、脂肪和卡路里,而且很容易饱腹。因此,当一个人开始吃薯片时,他们会认为这是一种“糟糕的选择”。由于我们往往渴望一致性,而过度食用薯片则是两种减肥错误(吃增肥食品和吃得过多)的结合,所以与“坏标签”保持一致在心理上是有满足感的,尽管后来会令人失望。我们都可能想过,“嗯,我已经犯了这个错误,所以我最好还是把它做完。”
当我们吃西兰花时,我们知道我们正在为我们的身体做一件好事,吃得过多的食物似乎与我们的良好决定背道而驰。既然我们在“做好事”,我们就不会想过度饮食并破坏我们的好行为。但是,很难过度食用健康食品,并且人为地限制它是不明智的。如果你现在人为地限制你可以吃的西兰花的数量,那么以后你会吃更多的其他东西。这并不是说你必须吃很多西兰花。这是为了说明为什么你不应该害怕过度食用健康食品。
加工食品比真实食物更容易产生饱腹感的一个原因是,有一种叫做感觉特异性厌倦的概念。感觉特异性厌倦是指在吃了一定量的食物后,对这种特定食物的欲望会降低。对我来说,蛋奶酒和巧克力软糖能迅速引起我的感觉特异性厌倦。它们味道很好,但它们的味道太浓烈了,我无法承受太多。
食品科学家们对这种现象了如指掌,他们找到了解决办法。如果食物或饮料具有不同的风味,我们可以消耗更多的它。你知道汽水的味道经过设计是为了令人愉快,但微妙且不过分强烈,以避免引发你的感官特异性饱腹感,这样你会喝得更多吗?没错。
我经常把芒果和蓝莓等冷冻水果(通常用肉桂粉)作为甜点狂吃,通常只摄入 200 到 300 卡路里就会感到饱足。
不要减肥,而是要不增肥。
有些想法会因它们对行为的影响而几乎自动增加体重。如果你想减肥,就不要去想这些想法。
我们想要融入社会。我们不想冒犯任何人。我们认为别人会以一种合理的方式照顾自己。
想象一下,你在吃晚饭,每个人都点了一个芝士蛋糕来分享。在这种情况下,你其实并不想吃芝士蛋糕,因为你知道它含有人工成分,加工过头了,而且现在它的味道对你来说不值得。如果只有你自己,你会轻易地拒绝。但是每个人都在鼓励你尝一口,他们都很享受,看起来他们都很健康,很开心,所以有什么问题吗?
伤害不是吃一小块芝士蛋糕的个别情况。 是你在允许你的决定被外部的东西所控制。 如果你吃了芝士蛋糕或任何其他东西,确保你是做出这个决定的人,不要害怕说不。
比起总是彬彬有礼,更重要的是坚守自己的价值观;如果你是在捍卫自己的价值观,那么有时候表现出粗鲁是可以接受的。有些人会不同意这种观点,因为他们认为社交礼仪才是最重要的。如果有人因为你不吃芝士蛋糕或者不跟他们一起喝酒而对你感到很生气,那你应该对他们表示不满:因为他们不尊重你的愿望和价值观。真正的朋友会支持你成为一个更好的人,在你拒绝和他们一起吃不健康的食物时也不会生气。能够说“不”是非常重要的,因为你不能说“不”,就会任由别人的观点摆布你的生活。
在美国,人们每顿饭都喝苏打水是很“正常”的。在一个70%的人口超重的国家里,要保持健康的体重,你就必须与大多数人不同。我们受身边人的影响,这其中蕴含着一条很好的建议:如果你能找到的话,尽量和那些过着健康生活的人待在一起、花时间陪伴他们。
即使有了我将要教给你的策略,如果你周围都是不健康习惯的人,他们总是吃不健康的食物,改变仍然是非常困难的。环境是我们生活中最强大的力量之一。如果你发现自己在挣扎,请仔细看看你的环境是如何驱动你的行为的。
是的,运动很重要。是的,它能帮助你在长期内减肥。但不,你不必在30分钟内锻炼得很出色。把运动变成一件平常的事,在吃零食的时候扭动几下身体。微波炉转完时你可以做几个俯卧撑(或者几个)。低门槛可以提高参与度。现在,站起来活动一下,十秒钟就好。只要十秒。如果你在机场,你没必要打太极。你可以起身拉伸或走动十秒。如果你能做到这些,你就能通过小习惯成功。读完这篇文章,请继续努力。
如果你还没有做,而且感觉有阻力不做,那就探索一下你的感受。你的反对意见可能是觉得这还不够好,不方便且没有回报,或者在不同的情况下你会这么做,可能还有一种模糊的感觉,就是你不做会更好。这是因为你还没有练习过这种小行为,并看到它的回报。当你不熟悉某件事时,你的潜意识会抛出这些“烟幕弹”借口。这一次,强迫自己去做一个实验。它只需要十秒钟。完成后,把经历与你之前的想法进行比较。最坏的情况是,你会把它当作中性体验。
你有没有感觉到心跳或警觉性有所增加?这很好。即使是一点点运动也很好,因为比静坐十秒要好得多。它不会阻止你做更多的事情,但它确实会让你更有可能现在或将来采取更多行动。每次你证明自己有能力迈出一小步时,你现在或以后对进一步采取行动的阻力就会减少。
财务上取得成功的人往往不是那些获得意外之财的人;而是那些有条不紊地存钱、投资,让自己的净资产稳步增长的人。同样的道理,那些减肥成功的人也不是在十天内瘦下来的;他们逐渐改变了自己的行为方式,身体状况也逐渐改善。就像富人一样,单日的进步不会令人兴奋,但总体结果会。
要减肥,你需要有富足的心态。想想:我有足够的食物吃。这些食物很满足我的需求。我已经吃饱了,下一顿饭马上就要到了。这会让你在饱腹感时停止进食,而不是因为觉得食物稀缺而吃到肚子撑到裤腰带都要断掉的程度。
当你为做某事感到羞愧时,你更有可能再次做出同样的行为。 羞耻感循环会给人带来毁灭性的影响,并且会长期持续下去,因为羞耻感能削弱自我。 当你处于弱势时,你很容易在将来对自己感到羞愧的决定上做出让步。 这与典型的指挥官、船长、国王或女王形成鲜明对比,他们从自己的优势地位出发,坚定而自信地做出决定。
当我因为玩电子游戏而感到羞愧,并让它发酵时, 优雅地说,它让我感觉像一堆狗屎。 然后我想做一些有趣的事情来让自己好受点, 把注意力从自己的情绪上转移走, 比如说,玩电子游戏。 所以,我越是因为玩电子游戏而感到羞愧, 我就越有可能会去玩电子游戏。哎哟。
羞耻是一种痛苦
羞耻是一种情绪上的痛苦,就像所有的痛苦一样,它的目的是阻止引起它行为。 羞耻很少按预期工作,因为它削弱了我们。 你越弱,你就越痛苦,当这变得难以承受时,就会导致最初引起你羞耻的行为,从而开始一个循环。 因此,羞耻对防止可耻的行为并没有太大作用。
羞耻会削弱我们,使我们变得更能适应环境,这样一个人就能通过羞耻心成为另一个团体(或饮食系统)更愿意的傀儡,但除了在比体重更重要的方面伤害个人之外,这并不能提供任何保持减肥的机会,因为必须来自个人内在的力量和选择。当羞耻感是由自己造成的,比如你在吃东西之前、期间或之后感到它时,它只会伤害你自己、你的自信以及你的自我价值感和自尊,所有这些都比最肥沃的食物对减肥目标更有害。羞耻驱使我们避免进一步导致羞耻的行为,在理论上是有用的,但它是一种更强大的自尊杀手,这就是为什么它看起来是对的,但实际上却是错的。
我们需要尽可能减少羞耻感,而即将推出的策略正是为此设计的。
喜欢运动的人和把运动当作“15天减15磅训练营”的一部分的人有什么区别? 自由。
心理学中的自主性是指根据自己的自由意志做出选择。这是自我提升和设定目标的一个关键因素,但却经常被忽视。自主性之所以重要,是因为我们都想(也确实会)掌控自己的人生。有时候,我们会为了期待得到某种结果而放弃自己的自主权。这样做有一个严重的问题:你可以失去对自己的控制感,但无法真正失去自主权。
当你被告知必须运动到筋疲力尽,少吃东西才能减肥时会发生什么?你会失去自我决定的能力,但并非真正的自主权。随着时间的推移,你会像以前一样休息和进食。
虽然你可以暂时抑制自己的自主性,跟随系统一段时间,但最终你会重新掌控。这就是我们计算错误的地方,不是吗?我们会承诺进行一项艰难的锻炼或节食计划,并认为我们可以“坚持下去”,直到得到我们想要的结果,但在某个时刻,我们将正式收回我们假装放弃的控制权。
这也不仅仅是我们从他人那里读到的想法。 你可以失去对自己设定的目标的自主权。 比如,假设简决定在新年决心中每天锻炼两小时来减肥100磅。 十天后,因为她的小腿疼得厉害,她几乎动弹不得,所以简想休息一下,但是她觉得在餐桌上喝完第二杯香槟后向公众宣布的禁令控制着她。 简会完全放弃她的计划。 当时她的感受是什么? 安慰。 自由。 在经历了如此令人失望和失败的事情之后,为什么简会感到安慰呢? 因为她恢复了自主权。
当人们停止节食时,他们往往会受到不公正的批评。有人说,“你应该坚持下去。” 他们暗示瘦弱不幸比肥胖自由更好。但我们永远不会坚持节食计划,因为我们的自由比任何事都更重要。
自治的两个层次
最好的目标策略不仅能保护你的自主感,还能增强它。这很棘手,因为自主性存在于两个层面:意识层面上和潜意识层面上。自主性的对立面是奴隶制,在这两个层面上它是什么样子的。
意识奴役的例子:你想减肥,决定不吃蛋糕,但你看到一块蛋糕并吃了它。你的意识愿望(减肥、不吃蛋糕)被你的潜意识愿望(吃蛋糕)控制了。你会感觉自己成为了蛋糕的奴隶。
潜意识奴役的例子:你想减肥,决定不吃蛋糕,当你看到一块蛋糕时,你会抵制。现在你的潜意识愿望(吃蛋糕)被你的意识愿望(减肥、不吃蛋糕)所控制。因为你想吃蛋糕,所以你会感到剥夺。
这看起来是不是一个两败俱伤的局面?无论你吃不吃蛋糕,你的某些部分都会感到受控制。 任何试图减肥的人都熟悉这种困境,因为节食可以为人们提供一种临时的方法来做出健康的选择,以获得他们想要的结果。 只要他们的动力和意志力没有耗尽,他们就可以过上减肥的生活(这是他们有意识的愿望)。 但是我们的潜意识很强大,它不会允许自己长期被控制。 你会变得渴望。 你的抵制能力会减弱。 意识层面可以在短期内取得胜利,但潜意识会在长期内取得胜利。
解决这个困境唯一持久、永久的方法是让你的意识和潜意识想要同一件事。如果你在意识上想减肥,但又不那么想吃蛋糕呢?那现在就是一个双赢的局面了,因为你两都不想吃蛋糕。这会让我们进入习惯形成领域,即塑造你的潜意识来模仿你的意识偏好。
要成功养成习惯或改变旧习惯,你需要在很长一段时间内保持一致。 即使你已经连续 10 天只喝蔬菜汁而完全不吃蛋糕,一个长达 16 年的吃蛋糕习惯也不可能在一夜之间消失。 在短短一个月内,你也未必能从一个沉迷于电视的人变成一个终身健身爱好者。 这两种策略虽然很受欢迎,但却限制了你的潜意识对自由的渴望。 我们之所以选择这些计划,是因为它们符合我们的显性兴趣。 但无视你的潜意识需求可能会危及你的目标,因为如果你反抗它,你会失败。 你可能可以在 10 或 30 天内取得胜利,但正如我们之前所讨论的,暂时减肥是行不通的。 要想成功,就得改变自己的潜意识偏好,而不是与之抗争。
减肥迷你习惯策略旨在保护你的意识和潜意识自由。当你掌控一切,当你的策略足够灵活以适应你的生活和潜意识的需求时,你逐渐做出的变化可以持续一生。
改变的最佳策略取决于你自己。最糟糕的变化策略是,如果你想取得成果,就坚持下去,遵循指示。如果你在寄信,当然要按照指示去做,但如果你试图改变自己生活了几十年的方式,你需要的不仅仅是食物清单、锻炼计划和一个赞。你需要一种能够潜意识地迎合你的需求,并尽可能无缝地将变化融入生活的策略。
现在是时候深入研究这个策略了。我们将从食物开始。
食物策略
这里有一些食物要吃,也要避免。
开玩笑。让我们做点聪明的事吧。
“刺激与反应之间存在着空间。在这个空间里,我们有能力选择我们的反应。在我们的反应中,我们成长并获得自由。”
~维克多·弗兰克尔
如果你想尝试这种方法,你可以想什么时候吃就什么时候吃。没有限制。没有任何食物是禁止食用的。你可以吃不健康的食物。不用计算卡路里。全凭你的意愿。
我们采用的是促进健康食品策略,而不是常见的对抗不健康食品策略。当你依赖于食物禁令规则时,你的意志力和动力去遵守它们几乎肯定会失败,然后事情就会变得尴尬。一旦你失败了,你会立即恢复规则吗?还是尝试另一种计划?许多人一旦“打破封锁”,就会比平时吃更多的禁忌食物。
实际上,禁食会让被禁止的食物在长期内更具吸引力,因为我们会在心理上渴望那些我们无法得到的东西。正式的禁令也表明这种食物如此美味以至于唯一的办法就是强迫自己远离它。这是一个错误的方法,因为它提高了低质量食品的价值。
真正的目标是吃健康的食物。 吃东西基本上是一种零和游戏,如果你整天都在吃健康的食物,你就没有空间容纳其他食物了。 有些人害怕吃健康食品,认为他们将继续吃同样数量的不健康食品,因此摄入更多的卡路里。 这在很大程度上不是真的,因为健康食品会在你的胃中占据一定的空间,并且每卡路里的饱腹感很强。
此外,对大多数人来说,百分之百不吃不健康的食物或食物不是可持续的,也不是可取的。这听起来可能很疯狂,但最好还是完全允许吃垃圾食品,这样你可以长期少吃它们。
你可能对这种方法有一些疑问,比如:这与典型的非节食者有什么不同?他们已经允许吃不健康的食物,并且吃得过多。
在禁食与无意识饮食之间生活
为了控制饮食,人们首先尝试禁止饮食,导致他们循环在完全禁食和失控暴饮之间。 你会通过找到这两个极端之间的可持续位置来控制你的饮食。 无论你试图做什么来改善你的身体,都必须绝对和无可争议地保持可持续性。 尝试做太多会适得其反。
不加蛋糕却以狂吃蛋糕告终,其增重效果远超完全不吃蛋糕。另一方面,持续选择少吃蛋糕或少食甜点可以带来显著、持久且积极的变化,并进一步改善。此外,当你有意识地并精心挑选自己食用的蛋糕时,事后回想起来,你可能会觉得这么做并不值得,这可以帮助你在下次做出不同的选择。从一个总是吃不健康食品的人变成一个允许但通常不会吃这种食品的人,这是一个先要培养正念然后养成新习惯的过程。
养成小习惯的一大“副作用”就是 你每天对食物和运动选择更加留心。 对自己的行为保持觉知 就意味着你能更好地控制它。 你会知道你的触发点是什么。 你会意识到自己需要做什么。
即使你每天只做一分钟的原地慢跑, 你会更关注锻炼。 即使你每天在固定的时间只喝一杯水, 你会更加关注自己接下来的饮料选择。 早餐习惯中的一个微小改变会让你更加关注其他的饮食。 如果一个人只能为减肥做出一件事, 那就是提高自我意识。 它帮助我们把坏习惯变成可以控制的行为,并且不断寻找进步的机会。
当你把对食物选择的正念与向前推进的动力结合起来,就会产生朝着正确方向的一小步一小步的变化。 这种变化的力量比看起来要强大得多,因为与暂时的变化不同,可持续的变化会随着时间的推移而积累起来。
没有限制意味着更明智的选择
我允许自己随意吃不健康的食物,但很少选择这么做。由于我逐渐改变饮食习惯,我现在通常更喜欢未经加工、纯天然食物的好处和味道。
有一天,我在一家希腊餐厅吃饭,我的配菜选择是炸薯条或沙拉。这是在食物两端之间做出的经典减肥决定。(我不需要减肥,但我对健康的渴望与那些想要减肥的人一样强烈,所以情况类似)我吃了一段时间非常健康的食物,所以我决定放纵一下,点了炸薯条。然后我开始幻想沙拉。这不是玩笑,这是一个真实的故事。我本来打算点炸薯条,但最后却点了沙拉,现在这种事经常发生在我身上(而且我要提醒大家,我曾经是个糖果和快餐上瘾者)。
这不就是典型的坏饮食习惯的人所做的事情吗?他们试图点沙拉,但幻想炸薯条并选择后者。 这与我的沙拉故事没什么不同; 只不过习惯使然罢了。
如果我告诉自己绝对不能吃薯条,因为它们不健康,那么我对薯条的渴望会大大增加。这对我来说就是个选择:要么吃那些“应该吃的”无聊沙拉,要么吃美味但禁止食用的薯条。看到这个视角是如何把我们引向错误的方向了吗?
不要低估习惯改变你的品味的能力。注意,我上面说的故事并不是关于战胜对薯条的贪得无厌,而英勇地选择了沙拉。我说我比大多数人懒惰、意志力低,并不是在骗你。我没有克服任何东西,我也不是一个英雄,我只是更喜欢沙拉,这说明成功的减肥并不是靠意志力。
你可以计划吃垃圾食品,也可以在时间到来时渴望更健康的食物。如果人们能够充分理解并体验到改变他们的习惯比与自己斗争更容易、更有效,那么他们就会放弃节食和排毒,并把养成习惯放在首位。我希望这本书能帮助实现这一点。
习惯是我们偏爱的东西,如果我们足够聪明的话,我们可以把它们塑造成对我们有利而不是不利的习惯。与通过纯粹意志力来取胜的人相比,习惯驱动的行为毫不费力——他们压抑自己的食物选择和卡路里摄入数天、几周甚至几个月。那些试图通过野蛮力量取得胜利的人要付出更多的努力,但利用习惯的人工作更聪明,走得更远。
我们今天所依赖的所有系统正在扼杀自我负责。 我们吃着由现有食品体系生产的食物。 在尝试减肥时,我们会吃标有“减肥”标签的东西。
这些系统剥夺了我们的控制权,限制了我们对自己生活的责任感。如果一个系统能带来正确的结果,那么跟随这个系统并没有错。如果一个系统不能产生正确的结果,那就有责任摆脱它,重新获得控制权和责任感。
理想情况下,我们总是应该对所有事情负全部责任,但是为某件事承担全部责任需要时间和精力(这两者都是有限的资源),所以我们最终只能选择性地关注一些事情。
如今,如此多的人超重是因为他们依赖高度肥胖的世界食品系统。 那些旨在“解决”这个问题的饮食和减肥系统甚至更糟糕、更无效。 在这两个失败的系统中,我们需要百分之百地承担责任来获得健康并减肥。
重新承担责任的方法就是质疑一切。 食用色素安全吗? 钾苯甲酸在人体内会有什么作用? 油加热到高温会发生什么? 这种减肥产品真的能帮到我,还是只是给我一个短期的结果和错误的希望? 这杯水果冰沙真的是百分之百的新鲜水果,没有添加任何东西吗? 这些都是普通人不会问、不想问或者没有时间、精力或专业知识来回答的问题。 这些问题很重要,不仅是为了身体健康,而且是为了减少患病风险。
许多人认为健康是一流生活的最重要部分。那些已经处于良好或良好健康状态的人可能不会这么说,但那些身体健康状况不佳的人会明白这一点的重要性。这就是说,无论你现在在体重和健康方面所处的位置如何,这个特定领域都值得负起全部责任。
想想这个:节食通过遵循一套规则来训练人们放弃责任。 本书将为您提供策略,并要求您在日常微习惯之外,对自己的食物选择负全部责任。 那些收回责任、不再强迫自己吃得很完美的人,反而会寻找小的、可持续的、合理的改变,他们会成功。
从现在开始,对自己的体重和健康负责,并且永远不要放弃。如果我们能相信那些标榜低卡、节食、低脂、无碳水等标签的东西,那我们就不必再为食物发愁了,而且我们都会很瘦。下一部分叫做“他们是如何欺骗你的”。你会明白为什么那些信任食品公司的人会生病变胖。
有些人看到食品上印着“减肥”字样,就认为它能帮助他们减肥,并立即放弃责任。他们会继续增重。没有任何规定可以给产品贴上“减肥”的标签,即使有,也很可能是基于产品的卡路里含量,而不是对整体体重的影响。
健康生活现代挑战
目前过上健康生活方式的困难,是全球许多社会正在成为或已经成为的结果。特别是美国社会,它要求方便和品牌胜于简单的健康饮食。我们和公司一样要为此负责。不含糖的产品通常不如含糖产品畅销,这就是为什么这些产品现在很难找到的原因。这表明整个社会都没有为自己的食物选择负责,因为如果味道是最重要或唯一的因素,那么高糖产品会卖得最好(事实也的确如此)。
虽然让生活变得更好是我们策略的基础,但对你自己负全部责任是你必须做的事情,这是不能变得更简单的事情。没有人能为你做到这一点。你必须对你的饮食负责,也必须为自己的活跃程度负责。如果他们把健康食品当作最重要的事情,谁还能不吃健康的食品呢?许多人把自己的健康和个人福祉的责任委托给了杂货店、餐馆和政府——他们太忙于赚钱和治理,以至于没有时间为个人健康负责。
如果你承担起责任(这在大多数情况下,就像对食物普遍持怀疑态度并查看成分以了解自己吃的是什么一样简单),并养成一些小习惯,那么你会成功。但你需要知道你在面对什么。食品行业是大生意,因此欺骗猖獗。让我们来谈谈他们是如何欺骗我们的。
如果食品公司使用看似健康的措辞,但可能有潜在漏洞,那么他们的产品几乎可以肯定不健康且需要避免。有时,实际上会列出一些健康的品质,但这并不意味着这是一种健康的产品,因为加工食品可以从多个角度对人体造成伤害。在这一部分,我将给你一些例子,这些例子是为了欺骗消费者,让他们认为一种食物比实际更健康。
如果你在包装上看到这些任何一项,拉响警报,因为一个公司可能正试图诱使你做出错误决定。每次你拿起一件食品时,请跳过正面的品牌,把它翻过来,看看配料表。这里有一些你不应该相信包装上的所有信息的原因。 这些例子远比下面列出的要多得多,但它们会让你大致了解我们面临的挑战。
百分之百小麦!
人们可能会这样想:百分之百的全麦!太好了!这是我应该吃的健康小麦制品。
它的意思:该产品不含小米或藜麦(无用信息)。100%小麦并不意味着它是全谷物,没有其他成分,并且没有被精炼到遗忘。
多谷物!
一个人可能会想:对!对我有很多健康的谷物!
这意味着:使用了多种谷物。它们仍然可以被加工,没有营养,并用焦糖色素染色,使它们看起来像全谷物。一家非常受欢迎的三明治连锁店有九种谷物面包,前两种成分是“全麦面粉”和“强化面粉”。强化面粉是指精制白面粉。然后它列出了其他八种在2%或更少的谷物中的谷物。基本上是全麦面包和白面包的组合,含有微量的其他谷物。从技术上讲,它含有9种谷物,但除了少量全麦外,它含有的白面包含量超过了其他8种谷物的总合!这是穿着健康肤色的白面包。
用全谷物做的!
人们可能会这样想:这个产品是百分之百全谷物!
这意味着:全谷物位于配料表中的某个位置,可能就在精制谷物(占食物的主要部分)之后。说到面包或意大利面时,寻找“100%全谷物”这个神奇短语。这才是你要找的东西。其它都是漏洞。当然,任何超加工食品,甚至是用100%全谷物制成的,都不理想。
用(100%)真奶酪制作!
人们可能会这样想:这种产品基本上都是真正的奶酪。
“小麦” 的意思:真正的奶酪被使用,但它可能占总产品的 2%。这是奶酪饼干的常见做法,其中含有少量奶酪和大量精制面粉。
低脂!
人们可能会这样想:这个产品健康,而且有助于减肥。
它(可能)意味着:高糖!高钠!含防腐剂多!高度加工!极度不健康!非常有利可图!
特级初榨橄榄油!
橄榄油在脂肪中是顶级健康食品,它是减肥的理想选择。如果你想追求健康效益,你应该只考虑购买特级初榨橄榄油,这种油是由压碎橄榄制成的(其他油通常是加热的,并用化学物质加工)。由于特级初榨橄榄油已成为一种高需求的大生意,它已经吸引了腐败行为,所以你的特级初榨橄榄油瓶可能并不那么纯净。而前几种情况虽然误导了人,但技术上是正确的,这是一种纯粹的欺骗案例。
根据这些结果,我决定购买一瓶加利福尼亚橄榄园特级初榨橄榄油。它的味道与我尝过的任何其他橄榄油都不同——非常浓郁且芳香,显然是正宗的。我之前尝试过有机地中海混合油,但它没有那种丰富的香气。我强烈建议您选择上述品牌之一作为您的橄榄油。我没有与加利福尼亚橄榄园或任何推广他们或其他橄榄油公司的利益关系。诚实的企业值得被谈论。
当一个足球运动员想要提高他的踢球技巧时,如果他把球踢偏了,他不会扇自己一巴掌;他会练习如何正确地踢。如果他能学到正确的踢球技术,并继续练习下去,那么这个新养成的习惯会比他之前所有糟糕的技术都要强大,而他也提升了自己在比赛中的表现。这是一个简单、明显且直接的过程。但是有多少人在节食的时候试图用内疚感和惩罚来激励自己吃对健康的食物?有多少人把食物选择变成了一场“好”与“坏”的道德之争,而不是只是去培养健康的饮食习惯呢?
也许很难看到,饮食和其他行为一样,都与习惯过程有关。改变饮食的方法是练习你想吃的健康饮食,而不是禁止某些食物并希望你能抵制住诱惑。这一点再强调也不为过。通过练习健康的饮食来改变你的饮食,而不是禁止不健康的食物。
假设你现在是个吃糖狂、喝可乐上瘾、快餐大王。真的认为避免这些食物就是答案吗?这样做只会让你饿肚子,感到沮丧。相反,如果你学会享受健康的食物,你会开始喜欢它们。我们的饮食偏好并不像我们想象的那样根深蒂固。它们是可以改变的。
无规则习惯反转法
要打破不良饮食习惯,我们必须再次将其变成有意识的选择。 这与养成好习惯的过程相反,即让有意识的选择变为无意识的不选择。 与重新做出决定相比,大多数人更倾向于采取节食策略并“禁止他们的习惯”。 禁止行为框架的核心部分并不明智。
如果我的规则是我不能吃冰淇淋,这会给我一些动力去吃它。 吃冰淇淋可以证明我的自主性,表明我比规定更强大,让我感觉自己处于控制之下,并且我可以吃到美味的冰淇淋。 签我! 这对于本应劝阻我的事情来说非常有吸引力。 设计不当的规定可能会引发我们对控制力的需求并对我们产生反作用。
正如加工食品在被禁止时变得更受人欢迎,健康食品在成为“必须吃”的食物时也难以引起人们的兴趣。重要的是要理解以下概念:长期吃健康饮食的人不需要禁止自己吃不健康的食物或强迫自己吃健康的食物。他们只是更喜欢健康的食物。这对你来说也是可行的。
在遵循迷你习惯计划的同时,你可以吃奶酪汉堡、披萨、薯条和糖果,喝苏打水或无糖汽水。与此同时,你会有一些小习惯来改变你的偏好。对局外人来说,这可能看起来很荒谬,但这是因为我们忽视了表面的变化,而是着眼于根源——你习惯性的饮食偏好。
一旦你减肥成功,吃上健康的食物感觉更好,你会对高度加工食品的看法改变。 你的味蕾会适应营养食物美味的香料和风味,你会奇怪为什么以前当你有很多美味的选择时,你会纠结于不吃某些特定的食物。
Pimento Cheese 的灾难
一天晚上,我躺在床上时突然坐了起来,俯身探出上铺的床沿,把所有的东西都吐在了下面我最喜欢的底特律雄狮队枕头上。 你可能以为我在评论他们在足球场上的表现,但不,我当时食物中毒了。 那是我噩梦般的一天的开始。 那天早些时候,我吃了胡椒芝士三明治。 它没有我希望的新鲜。
直到今天,我仍然不喜欢辣椒芝士酱。在那晚之前,我不认为辣椒芝士酱是最好的食物,但我喜欢它。由于联想的力量,这次事件改变了我对辣椒芝士酱的喜爱。我把辣椒芝士酱与食物中毒联系在一起。影响我们对食物偏好的其他因素包括:质地、外观、气味、记忆、信仰、健康影响、能量影响、胃肠道影响(有人吃豆子吗?)以及社会影响力(饮酒的一个常见诱因)。我们的食物偏好涉及的因素远不止味道。
偏爱是先天还是后天习得?
世界上大部分地区的人至少半数对盐上瘾。加工食品和餐馆里的食物都含有大量的盐,有些人还会在上面加更多的盐。这种对盐的偏好是从天性中产生的吗?当然不是。我们并不需要那么多的盐来生存,也不是与生俱来的喜好——而是后天习得的。
这比盐的危害更大。 我们会做一些事情来获得奖励, 从我们小时候开始, 社会就教我们喜欢吃那些肥胖食品—— 高盐、高脂肪、高糖。 盐、脂肪和糖本身并不是不健康的; 只是在不自然的状态和过量摄入时才不健康。 如果你吃加工食品, 这些食品中肯定含有过多的盐、 糖或脂肪。 起初,它们可能让你觉得恶心。 你有没有试过吃过甜、过咸或者过油腻的食物? 如果你经常吃,这些食物就会变得“正常”。
我们已经习惯于吃过于丰富的东西。 这些实验室制作的食物充满了味道、糖分、盐分和脂肪,给我们的味蕾带来了过度刺激。 感官上的过度刺激已经成为可以接受的,甚至是我们吃饭时的常态。
如何改变你的饮食偏好
接下来的内容只是我个人的经历,可能与你的经历不同,但我并不是唯一一个饮食偏好会改变的人。
我有 一个 神话般的 甜食情节。 我喜欢甜食,以至于如果它们是甜的, 我会吃 非食物的东西 。 我 清楚地 记得 我妹妹 大喊 , “妈妈! 史蒂芬 又 吃了我的小老鼠润唇膏!” 就是我最喜欢的口味。 我还会把抗酸剂、 柔软的维生素 和 从杂货店顺走 的糖果 带到我的房间。 我会 爬到床下 躲起来偷偷地 吃这些被禁止的食物 (我不知道我小时候是怎么活下来的)。
我曾经爱吃糖果,讨厌羽衣甘蓝。现在我不再喜欢吃糖了,但很喜欢吃羽衣甘蓝。我以前讨厌泡菜,但现在我喜欢它。我过去常去最糟糕的快餐店吃饭。现在我不去了。我以前喜欢在饭后喝苏打水。现在我总是喝水。
如果有一个合理的理由加上正确的做法,那么食物偏好是可以改变的,而且一定会改变。我现在有健康的饮食习惯,但我曾经是个意志力薄弱的人,喜欢吃糖果。
你会发现,有了完全吃不健康食物的自由,它对你的控制力会大大减弱。 罪恶感和羞耻感驱使我们自我毁灭,当你把所有食物都当成可以吃的对象时,就可以摆脱它们,从而做出更好的决定。 把这种方法与日常的小习惯和场景策略结合起来,增重的食物在你看来就会变得截然不同。
我仍然吃不健康的食物,但很少,并且只吃一点。当你对糖、盐等恢复敏感时,它们会让你感到满足所需要的时间会少得多。我曾经把好几勺冰淇淋舀进一个大杯子里,因为碗装不下那么多。现在我很少吃冰淇淋,但是当我偶尔吃的时候,一勺就足够了。我从不强迫自己。我的口味自然改变了,不是因为我禁止吃冰淇淋,而是因为我增加了健康食物的摄入量。一旦我发现我喜欢加肉桂和花生酱的冷冻水果几乎和冰淇淋一样多,我就不再买冰淇淋了。
信念与经验悖论
如果有人必须经历改变才能相信这是可能的,但如果他们还没有相信这是可能的,就不会尝试改变,那么他们如何改变呢?一旦你进入这个圈子,积极的改变和信念(自我效能感)就会相互促进。但是,哪个先来,信仰还是改变?或者更确切地说,哪一个构成了更好的基础?
开始行动,信念就会跟上。 小习惯可以带来真正的改变,即使没有多少或根本没有信念,因为它们会开始改变,并让你产生信念。
直到我一个俯卧撑的小习惯变成了持续的健身房锻炼,我才真正相信自己可以长出大量的肌肉。在断断续续地举重了三到五年后,几乎看不到任何效果,我怎么还能相信呢?同样地,你怎么能相信改变饮食习惯会在多年的健康饮食之后真的会改变体重?要看到新行动的真实效果,需要付出更多努力。
速效节食或清肠的好处在于,快速减肥的结果可以激发信念,但如果不持续获得这种结果,从长远来看对你的新陈代谢和改变信念是有害的。为什么?当你恢复正常饮食并重新获得(大部分是水)体重时,“好处”变成了缺点——你会立刻认为真正的改变是不可能的。讽刺的是,你会想,“如果这种突然的巨大变化还不够的话,那么就没有希望了。” 问题是你尝试了一个巨大的变化——大脑和身体都不喜欢这样。
大脑和身体喜欢无缝隙、轻松的变化,所以让我们从这里开始。
加工食品相对于健康食品的主要优势一直是它们的方便性。一袋薯片可以放在架子上好几个月,当你想吃的时候就可以吃了。这很容易。切一块水果——这是准备健康食物最简单的方法之一——相比之下就困难多了。
一顿健康的饭菜可能意味着需要烹饪和清洁两小时或更久,如果你不及时烹饪食材,它们可能会变质!但是有很多方法可以让健康饮食变得和吃加工食品一样容易(或者几乎一样)。
我既是真正的“健康狂人”,也是认证的懒惰者。 这很棘手,因为在美利坚合众国很难做到健康生活。 这个困境迫使我发挥创造力。 有了这两种特质,我就必须学会如何让健康生活变得非常容易,否则我会因为沮丧而自我毁灭。 以下是一些实用的方法来使正确的选择与通常更容易增重的选择竞争。
简单的一餐主意
买一只烤鸡,把肉用在接下来一周的不同菜肴中。 烤鸡至少可以在冰箱里保存 3 - 4 天。 如果你需要养活家人,很快就会吃完的。
购买速冻蔬菜,你可以用微波炉或炉子快速烹制。 一般来说,冷冻食品很棒,因为它保留了新鲜农产品的所有营养价值,而且它不会坏很久,也很容易准备。
掌握炒菜技巧!我最喜欢吃西兰花,所以我用椰子油或橄榄油在锅里翻炒冷冻好的西兰花,加入多用途调味料(不含盐)、胡椒、姜黄,当它快要熟了的时候,再加一些事先煮好的鸡肉让它热一下。这是一顿健康又让人饱足的大餐。简单,美味,快捷(也许只需要 10-20 分钟就能准备好)。找到像这样的简单健康习惯对减肥很重要,你会经常思考这件事,因为它会产生很大的影响。这里还有一些小贴士。
学一些慢炖锅食谱。 把所有东西都扔进锅里,等它煮好再回来。
我的早餐通常是鸡蛋、奶酪、面包和鳄梨。 鸡蛋做起来非常简单,如果你真的很赶时间的话,你可以用微波炉在一分钟内做好。 有许多专门为鸡蛋设计的微波炉烹饪器皿。 我有一个Nordic Ware 微波炉煮蛋器; 它可以在8分钟内煮熟四个鸡蛋,而且壳很容易就能剥下来。 现在,我通常是在锅里煎蛋(橄榄油),因为它很快捷方便,味道也更好。
甜点?冷冻水果是有史以来最伟大的减肥发明之一。听起来有点荒谬,但对许多人来说(包括我),切水果足以抵抗不吃它的冲动。冷冻水果已经切好可以直接吃。每当我想要一个甜点时,我很开心,因为我的冰箱里装满了各种各样的冷冻水果。这些水果可以直接从袋子里拿出来吃,也可以与原味酸奶搭配(这是一顿很好的早餐、零食或甜点)。
我最喜欢的甜点是一碗冷冻水果(通常是芒果、草莓和蓝莓),上面撒上大量肉桂。 它的味道和我吃过的任何甜点一样好,而且非常健康,有助于减肥。 当水果解冻到大约一半时,味道很棒,别忘了水果是减肥的最佳食物之一(根据理论和观察科学)。
这只是我为了让健康饮食变得更容易而做的事情。还有很多其他方法可以让食物更健康、更容易准备,而且比你想象的还要好吃。但你必须去寻找它们。当我想要吃更健康的早餐时,我就研究了最简单的做鸡蛋的方法。当我想要在家多做点饭的时候,我就调查了一下,在锅里煮肉和蔬菜既快又简单。不管你有什么需求,肯定有一个简单的解决方案。
在我自己做饭之前,我一直以为这很难,而且要花很长时间。 但我发现它可以很快很容易。 如果你不喜欢烹饪,那就从我在这里提到的一些最简单的菜肴开始,看看它是否像你想的那样糟糕。 如果你仍然认为做饭是最糟糕的事情,那么考虑一下健康餐送餐服务吧。 现在你可以比以往任何时候都更容易地获得健康的家庭烹饪食物。 大多数这样的公司都会迎合注重健康的人,所以你不会吃到很多餐馆里常见的增肥添加剂。
即时、永久、轻松替换
有一些简单的方法,每个人都可以立即采取行动来获得长期的好处。这些方法可以让你走得更远,并且不需要花费任何代价。你只需要做一次决定,然后继续过正常的生活。
换成全谷物食品。全谷物比精制谷物对你的健康有显著的好处,这一点令人惊讶。它不仅仅是“稍微好一点”。全谷物是一种优质食物,而精制谷物则会导致体重增加。全谷物含有更多的抗氧化剂、纤维和营养物质,并且消化速度较慢。如果你觉得它们的味道不如精制谷物好吃(比如白米和面粉),你可以学着去享受它们——甚至喜欢上它们。提示:吃东西的时候想想这些食物的健康益处。我相信这正是我改变对泡菜和羽衣甘蓝看法的原因。
只用椰子油和橄榄油烹饪。你知道你总是用来做饭的那种油吗?椰子油和橄榄油对你的健康和腰围更有好处,它们的味道也很好!
用橄榄油、香草、香料和醋做沙拉酱和蘸酱。我们想让食物好吃,但这并不意味着我们必须使用超市里常见的“大豆油和糖”调制沙拉酱。橄榄油和香醋是一道美味的沙拉调味品。你也可以加黑胡椒、香草、奶酪或香料来为沙拉调味。如果你吃的是(全谷物)大蒜面包,橄榄油和新鲜大蒜会让你翩翩起舞。
需要蘸酱吗?试试鹰嘴豆泥或鳄梨酱吧!牧场沙拉酱其实是带化妆成分的大豆油。你可以用鹰嘴豆泥或鳄梨酱作为蔬菜蘸酱。健康的鹰嘴豆泥和鳄梨酱可以自制,也可以买现成的(阅读配料表)。
使用大叉子和小盘子。如果你想通过餐具来帮助控制食量,正确的搭配是小盘子配大叉子。研究表明,这种搭配能减少食物摄入量。这值得一试,因为这是一种一次性改变,可能有帮助,但正念饮食更重要。即使不幸的是你只有小叉子和大盘子,你仍然可以做得很好。
因为食物的质量比食物的分量更重要,所以也许不值得把所有的盘子都扔掉去换一套小一点的。相反,只要意识到盘子和碗的大小会影响你的食物选择,并做出相应的调整就行了。但是尽量多选点吃的。一项研究表明,当人们“装满盘子”的时候吃得更少,而不是再要一份。
无论你做什么,尽量不要让盘子的大小决定你的饱腹感。 相信自己的身体,当它告诉你已经吃饱了时,不管盘子里还剩下多少食物。 买一些特百惠品牌的塑料饭盒,在你觉得饱的时候练习留点食物到稍后吃。 当你再次饿了的时候,它们就会派上用场了。
永远不要强迫自己吃完或“清空”盘子。 了解有多少人以吃光食物为目标会很有趣。 逻辑上说,用盘子里的食物量来决定你要吃多少是没有意义的,尤其是在餐馆里,因为它们决定了你的份量。
想象一下两种对立的饮食习惯:当你端上一盘食物时,一种可能的习惯是试图吃掉盘子里的所有东西。另一种可能的习惯是忽略分量,只吃身体告诉你的精确数量,不多不少。如果你有“吃完所有盘子里的食物”的习惯,那就意味着你在忽视身体发出的信号。换句话说,这意味着你很可能与身体的饱腹感信号严重脱节。如果你无视身体给你的信号而选择完成“清空餐盘”的目标,那么这恰恰是你擅长的行为。好消息是,你的身体仍然会发送这些信号;你只需要决定更加关注它们。
吃完盘子里的食物并不比你的健康和幸福更重要。 你不这么认为吗?明确地说,这并不是要少吃卡路里。 健康的人既不会限制热量摄入,也不会过度摄入热量。
成功的减肥不需要计数、监控或对食物分量进行微观管理。只需要你用心吃饭。用心吃饭的人永远不会试图吃完盘子里的食物,因为他们的决定来自内心。他们可能最终会吃完,但这与盘子里的食物数量无关,而与他们的身体告诉他们什么有关。
至于什么时候该停止进食,吃到八分饱就好。暴饮暴食是一种文化和习惯。在日本,有一种流行的概念叫做“腹八分”,基本上就是指“吃到八分饱”。这是一个很好的指导方针,并不意味着半饥饿。当你在八分饱的时候停止进食,你会更加享受整个进食体验。发炎和激素问题会扰乱你的饱腹感信号,但最好的解决办法是以健康食品为日常主食,全神贯注地吃。
一个有效的饮酒策略是在喝酒的同时喝水。如果你为了好玩,一晚上喝几杯酒,我也不会阻止你,你自己可能也不会停下来,所以与其把整个夜晚都当做损失,不如试着在喝酒的时候也喝水。这不仅能保持身体水分充足,还能防止宿醉,并减少酒精对身体的危害。
酒精最大的风险之一在于它可能会改变你的饮食习惯。它会降低抑制力,增加人们对增肥食物的欲望。我建议你根据以往的行为来制定策略。
如果你发现自己在喝酒时会过量,试着少喝一点,以减少与酒精相关的体重增加。 如果你总是一杯或两杯就停,那么你可能没问题,除非饮酒导致不良饮食习惯,否则你可以尝试改变习惯(稍后我们会讨论诱惑策略),或者在更少的晚上喝酒。
上述信息值得牢记,但并非本策略的“强制性”部分。接下来的小习惯想法将成为你成功改变为更健康的人的基础。
当你情绪低落、生病或精力不足时,你的小习惯很容易实现。 当你充满活力并有动力改变时,你会有更多的额外活动来推动你的进步。 你会比以往任何时候都更一致、更明智地行动,因为你的目标最终会适应你,让你能够每天精确地达到目的。与大多数需要超人意志力才能取得持续成功的策略不同,这个策略是为了成功而构建的,无论你现在(或将来)处于什么状态。
理想中的迷你习惯
理想的微习惯应该是非常容易做到的事,同时还能开始一项新活动。例如,一个俯卧撑可以开启锻炼的过程。吃一个生蔬菜可以开启多吃蔬菜的过程。当你开始做一件事时,你很可能还会继续下去。换句话说,你最有可能做的是你刚刚做的事。
做不做附加动作是你的选择,所以如果你不做的话也不用太难受。如果你一个月都没有额外做任何事情,那就问问自己,你的微习惯是否真的启动了这个过程,或者你是否需要再增加一个步骤来参与到行为中。微习惯是火花。任何火花都有可能变成一场大火。
如果你在任何一天都能取得更多成就,那就去做吧。实现目标甚至小目标的感觉都很好。我们习惯于设定高目标、达不到目标以及当我们做不到时感到不足。这一次,你会每天达到或超过你的目标。想想心理上的区别:一个适度的“正常目标”是一天跑一英里。一个典型的微习惯是跑30秒。根据正常的目标,如果你只跑了半英里,那么你就失败了。根据微习惯,你不仅成功了——你还超额完成了!
小习惯鼓励任何数量的进步。典型的“目标”建议进步只有在大量积累后才有价值,这是如此不准确和无意义,以至于让我感到愤怒。地球上的每一件东西都是由微小的物质组成的。每一个成功都可以追溯到一个个微小的步骤,所以这是一种将你的意图与进步和成功的自然方式对齐的方法。生活中唯一可能的大“块状胜利”是中彩票(祝你好运)。生活的其他所有胜利——比如实现目标和减肥——都建立在你每天的小决定和行动之上。
赢的感觉很好,当你开始每天都赢时,你会变成一个赢家。嗯,这听起来有点老套,但那些经常获胜的人表现得更自信、更积极,因为他们学会了期待成功,他们的成功会推动更多的成功。我称之为成功循环。
许多人试图把动机转化为成功,但他们颠倒了顺序。 成功和动力相辅相成,但最可靠的起点是成功,它会带来动力,然后带来更多的成功。 本页上的迷你习惯为你提供了每天获得成功的机会,不管你觉得自己有多不积极。 当你连续几天、几周甚至几个月保持这种状态时,你会成为一个更好、更强壮、更成功的自己。 这种经历很难用言语表达清楚,因为似乎没有任何理由认为这些微小的行为会对一个人的生活产生如此大的影响。 但他们确实做到了,这令人兴奋。
食物迷你习惯
我唯一的担心是,您可能会对这份清单感到失望,因为它非常简短,行为也很简单。这是一件好事,但如果您习惯于严格要求、复杂的减肥系统,那么您可能不会这么认为。这是不同的,因为那些不起作用!最有效的策略是最简单的策略,同时仍然有效。
每个想法中都有大量的变化,所以你永远不会缺乏选择。 但是基本的想法很简单,因为减肥通过提高意识、更健康的饮食和更多的运动来实现。 你吃东西的方式、你的心理健康以及你的观点也会影响你的体重(主要是间接影响这三个核心因素),因此会有一些与这些相关的微习惯。
当你浏览这些并考虑你想尝试哪些时,不要想着全部都要去做。你想要拥有最多四个小习惯,比如两个饮食方面的小习惯和一个或两个健身方面的小习惯。在第八章中,我们会讨论如何通过一个小型习惯计划将这些想法(以及一般的和健身方面的小型习惯)融入你的生活。
多吃一份水果:重要的是要知道一份是多少,这样你就知道要达到什么目标。 一份水果是一只苹果、一杯浆果、一根香蕉或一个橙子。 这也是很重要的,如果你有一个小习惯,那就是始终让水果在手边。 如果你喜欢它尽可能简单,像我一样,买冷冻水果,因为它已经准备好可以吃了,并且不会变质。 我强烈建议购买有机浆果和桃子,因为传统的桃子和浆果含有大量的杀虫剂。 浆果和桃子都是“Dirty Dozen”(农药残留最严重的12种农产品之一)的一部分。 如果你买的是传统品种,请彻底清洗干净。
水果奖励:吃额外的水果,或者在你的水果中加入全脂酸奶。
多吃一份新鲜蔬菜:对于一些人来说,每天吃一份蔬菜并不合理,因为他们已经这么做了。在这种情况下,你可以更具体,比如一份生蔬菜或比平时多一份。例子包括:一根完整的胡萝卜、三棵西兰花、两颗菜花、半个甜椒(红、绿、黄)、一根芹菜、四分之一根黄瓜、一把菠菜、八片生萝卜或任何你喜欢的食物。如果你愿意,可以把那些看起来像蔬菜的水果也归类为蔬菜(例如,四个小樱桃西红柿或半个牛油果)。
如果你想蘸生蔬菜,可以用鹰嘴豆泥,最简单的形式是纯化的鹰嘴豆、橄榄油、柠檬汁、芝麻酱(磨碎的芝麻)、大蒜、盐和胡椒。另一个选择是鳄梨酱,它由鳄梨、洋葱、大蒜、番茄、青柠、盐和胡椒制成。在购买商店里预先包装好的蘸酱时要小心,因为你可能会发现每份食物中都含有三倍于盐分的钠,添加了防腐剂(发炎)甚至糖。“蔬菜蘸酱”几乎总是伪装成大豆油。吃覆盖着大豆油和其他增重成分的蔬菜并不理想。这可能是通往理想的垫脚石(如果这是唯一的方式那么吃),但它不是理想的。
蔬菜奖励:额外吃些蔬菜,或者来一份大沙拉!
做一个小健康食物提升:这是一个模糊的小习惯,但在实践中,它会带来积极的影响。每天或在用餐时(根据你的计划和提示)做一次微小的食物提升。也许你在餐厅吃饭,把平时吃的炸薯条换成烤土豆、青豆或者沙拉。提升了!也许你在家里准备吃零食,正想吃薯片,但决定先吃一些不加盐的生坚果。提升了!也许你会选择科布沙拉而不是千层面,并要求服务员给你橄榄油和醋而不是常见的酱油调料变体。双升级!每一天都有很多关于饮食的决定要做,你不需要一下子全部改变(也不应该这么做)。这个策略通过让你做出一个自己选择的小提升来巩固了这种正确的观点。
这是升级的反义词:不吃饭,饿着肚子。下次你想通过让自己挨饿来减肥时,请再读一遍这本书的前言。它会提醒你,人为地限制卡路里是一种增重的做法。如果现在是晚上11点,而你通常在这个时候会感到饥饿,但那天你没有这种感觉,那么不,你不应该吃东西。听从你的身体。在饿的时候吃,在不饿的时候不吃,并利用微小习惯来改变饮食方式。
食物升级奖励:双倍或三倍经验。没有上限!
不要欺骗自己:大多数微波食品并不健康。麦片粥和烤奶酪并不是减肥武器。白面通心粉配马里纳拉酱(但全麦面加橄榄油还是不错的选择)会让人发胖。
健康餐升级:准备另一顿饭,或者做足够的饭菜以备不时之需!
喝一杯水:如前所述,喝水是一种减肥武器。你可能会觉得每天只喝一杯水不是一个好主意,因为我们一天应该摄入更多的水。但是要关注这个想法,因为这正是我们想要的那种思维方式!现在你知道了自己每天摄入了多少水,并且在想“我每天可以喝超过一杯”,而不是被“每天必须喝八杯”的想法压垮。喝一杯永远不会阻止你再喝一杯;它只会让你更有可能做到这一点。记住,策略不同于目标。
太无聊了吗?我喜欢水的味道,但有些人喜欢他们的饮料带点味道,这没关系。大自然有多种答案。如果你习惯于风味饮料,你可以通过给你的水加水果、香料或碳酸来帮助你远离“黑暗面”。柠檬、青柠、薄荷、苹果、肉桂、芒果、生姜、黄瓜、草莓、橙子以及基本上任何其他水果(尤其是柑橘类水果)都可以健康地为你的水增添活力。柠檬之所以成为最受欢迎的健康水添加剂是有原因的。它美味可口,富含黄酮类化合物和抗氧化剂(如维生素C),而且只需要一点点就可以增加风味。
如果你非常在乎这一点(如果你经常喝苏打水、拿铁咖啡和其他类似的饮料,那么给你的水添加风味可能对你的成功至关重要),你可以买一个加味水壶,全天候享受美味的饮用水。 亚马逊上有很多加味器供你选择。 即使你不从亚马逊购买,它也是一个查看评论的好地方。 把水果、蔬菜和香料放进加味器里,再加点水,然后放入冰箱。 不要忘了桂皮!请一定不要忘记桂皮。(如果你附近有桂皮,请过去闻一下。这是我最喜欢的气味。我家有一只叫桂皮的猫,小时候我常常对着她唱歌。出于爱意,她会把耳朵耷拉下来。)
像大多数不健康的食物和饮料一样,苏打水的主要优势在于易得。如果你用你喜欢的水果和香料来泡水,并且总是能随时喝到它,我敢打赌你可以很容易地从廉价的糖浆味苏打水中摆脱出来。苏打水味道好极了,但当你还可以享受到美味饮品的同时避免其缺点时,谁还会选择喝苏打水呢?
也许当你周围有那么多现成的饮料时,你不想费心用水果和香料给你的水增添风味。我明白。一个非常简单有效的方法就是买百分之百纯果汁,但是不要直接喝,而是加一点点到满满一杯水中来调味。你会惊讶于它的清爽口感,而且不会因为喝百分之百纯果汁而摄入过多果糖。
所有果汁(即使是百分之百的果汁)都是增重饮料,除了少量。水果在完整的形式下是减肥的最佳食物之一,但它们会变成增重的果汁。只要加足够的水来满足你的口味就行了。
避免使用含甜味剂的粉末调味包。我还没见过好的呢。它们可以作为不错的运动饮料,但不能当普通饮料喝。
水奖励:两杯、三杯还是四杯?哦,你很棒。
每口食物咀嚼超过30次:这是指每一口,而不是一大口。这样做有很多好处:你会更容易消化你的食物。你会更加享受你的餐点。你会不自觉地吃得更小心。你几乎肯定会吃得少一些,因为你有足够的时间来意识到“我饱了”的感觉。设定一个目标——每口嚼多少下——然后练习。最后,这会成为习惯,就像你现在吃饭的方式已经成为习惯一样。
我试过每口嚼30次的小习惯,效果很好。消化更好了,食物也更美味了,而且也很难吃得过多。我发现每口嚼30次这个规则也有一些问题。在实践中,我会根据不同的食物来调整,比如对水果来说是15+下,对于肉类等比较难嚼的食物则是45+下,我认为这是一个很好的一般性指导方针。
咀嚼红利:在每次咀嚼时,尽量多嚼。你能嚼50次吗?在高咀嚼次数的情况下,不吞咽食物变得出乎意料地困难。
健身策略
让我们一起玩吧!
“健身需要被视作一种乐趣或游戏,否则我们就会在潜意识中避开它。”
艾伦·提客(Alan Thicke)
许多超重的人把运动与剧烈活动、严重不适甚至疼痛联系在一起。他们认为为了达到显著减肥的目的,必须“惩罚”自己和身体。极端锻炼当然可以带来效果,但如果这种经历加剧了你对运动的关系,那么这些效果就无法持久。
什么更有价值:一个月内通过讨厌的剧烈运动减掉15磅,还是一个月内体重没有变化但比开始时更享受运动?我希望你说后者,因为这大致上是任何运动计划的 198 倍。你可能会对此表示怀疑,因为15磅是一笔可观的财富,但是与运动建立健康关系并了解如何进一步改善它的回报——将在余生中继续得到回报。选择在一个月内减掉15磅,就像现在一次性拿到200美元,而不是每周领取100美元,直到生命尽头。
想象一下。如果你喜欢运动呢?如果想到它你会微笑呢?如果你做这件事是因为你想做,而不是因为你想要一个结果或者因为你觉得有压力或羞愧感而去做呢?对许多人来说,这个概念是陌生的,因为锻炼在很多地方都被描绘为“平坦腹部的方法”,以及“燃烧卡路里和减肥的捷径”。如果这就是你现在对运动的理解,那么你会非常兴奋地发现它的意义远不止于此。
为了符合我们的主题,我们将关注我们与运动之间的长期关系,而不是将其用于短期效果。我通过微习惯改变了生活的多个方面。其中一个领域就是阅读。曾经有一段时间,阅读是我只在想要从中获得特定结果时才做的事情。对我来说,阅读就像减肥者对锻炼的看法一样。下面讲的就是这个故事。
我如何修复了与阅读的关系
我小时候喜欢读书,尤其是《鸡皮疙瘩》和《选择你的冒险》系列。然后就上学了。有些年轻人用性、毒品和酒精来反抗。而我反抗作业。是不是很疯狂?我知道大多数孩子都不喜欢做作业,但我讨厌它。我每周五天每天在学校呆八个小时,然后他们又试图通过让我在家做琐事来剥夺我的自由!没门儿!
我作业中很大一部分是阅读任务。 越强迫自己为了学习而读,我就越抵制。 我的确很叛逆,但这种叛逆已经超出了单纯的反叛。 我与阅读的关系发生了变化。 阅读不再是一种令人着迷的虚构世界冒险或 一项鼓舞人心的非小说类文学发现,它变成了一种枯燥乏味的“做还是不做”的活动。 在自己的空闲时间里,我不再阅读消遣了。
在大学里,我为有机会上 《英国文学》 课而感到兴奋。在这门课上,我们可以阅读并讨论 我最喜欢的两位作家之一 托尔金和刘易斯的作品。那个学期我没有读过一本指定的书。
我的潜意识渴望自由,但渴望什么?阅读并不是真正的敌人;只是看起来像这样,因为它是我失去自由的工具。我只想找回我的自由。这听起来是不是让你想起了你的运动经历?如果你经常感到巨大的压力去锻炼,那么你与它有着破裂的关系。社会、减肥书籍和计划往往把“活动身体”变成了一项充满怨恨的工作。
我第三个养成的习惯就是每天阅读两页书。这很容易,很轻便,并且随着时间的推移改变了我对阅读的态度。如今我大概一个月读一本书。我知道这并不惊人,但考虑到我过去一年最多只读了一本书,这就相对令人惊奇了。甚至为我的书籍研究过上千个案例,因为我可以按照自己的方式来做。我可以从自由的角度来做这件事。
这个故事正是这本书与其他所有“节食”书籍的不同之处。我并不是给你一个锻炼计划来“燃烧卡路里”或“撕裂腹肌”。我是在要求你在运动(以及食物)的关系上投入更多的努力,因为如果你能做到这一点,那么你将主导自己的生活结果。自我驱动的结果肯定比让你在第31天不知所措的30天计划更好。
当你阅读本章后面关于减肥运动类型的建议时,记住 运动类型不如修复因视其为工作、对超重的惩罚或 你可能对其形成的任何其他功能失调的关系 而造成的损害更重要。
毕竟,锻炼有什么不好的呢?我们每天都在运动,这就是锻炼。如果你不喜欢运动,那可能和我不喜欢阅读一样,解决办法就是再次了解它,不要带着偏见。
如果你无法让自己去运动,那么运动的好处再多也于事无补。在我养成每天做一次俯卧撑的习惯之前,有十年的时间我都没有坚持去健身房锻炼,所以我很能理解想要获得好处却又不想付诸行动的那种沮丧心情。要明白缺乏运动动力是由你的潜意识决定的,而你可以通过养成运动习惯来改变它。
这是关键:最终的结果是由目标决定的,但并不取决于目标。目标很重要,但并不是人们认为的那种重要性。在俯卧撑的故事中,你们可能还记得当我设定的目标是做30分钟(目标)时,我什么都没有得到(结果)。但是当我设定了一个俯卧撑(目标)时,我得到了30分钟(结果)。目标和结果几乎相反,这表明了行为改变的反直觉性质。然而,解释很简单——失败使我们士气低落,成功激励我们。
如果你设定一个小目标并达到了,那么你在小范围内已经成功了。你可以无限地叠加这些小胜利,最终达到一个巨大的胜利。但如果你贪心了,立刻瞄准大胜,并因任何原因失败,你会感到沮丧。在很多情况下,最初的失败就是动力,这是无法完全控制的。我一直很困惑这种愚蠢的战略是我们被教导追求目标的主要方式。我相信我们把“有远大的梦想”与实现这些梦想所需的策略混为一谈。如果你想在某件事上取得成功,就去追逐伟大的梦想,然后反复采取小行动(而不是“有伟大的梦想”和“采取大规模行动”)。
迷你习惯是一种独特的挑战,因为它很有趣。你会想,“我真不敢相信我的目标是一天做一个俯卧撑”,或者“走到车道尽头?我真的要这么做吗?我希望邻居们不要问我在这里干什么。”嘲笑你的运动目标与传统的令人畏惧的方法有很大的不同。
除了你的锻炼习惯之外,还会鼓励你做“额外的练习”,但这完全取决于你自己。如果你做了额外的运动,那是因为你想这么做(自主性),而不是因为某个任意的、控制性的规则。迷你习惯的微小规模意味着你不会感到被它所控制,而额外练习的灵活性会极大地增强你的自主感,因为它是由选择驱动的,而不是由目标驱动的。你可以利用任何可用的动力、动机或意志力来做额外的运动。
在你需要休息的日子里,你可以做你的迷你习惯,并且获得一个成功。即使是最小的迷你习惯如果每天都做的话也是成功的,因为它足以改变你对运动的潜意识感觉。这不仅让你练习经常锻炼,还让你练习微步骤的习惯,或者甚至是小小的进步都是有用的。这会逐渐取代你可能仍然持有的关于运动很痛苦的观点,以及只有大量运动才有用。我希望这段文字能讲明白,因为在实践中它会让你大吃一惊(随着时间的推移,因为我们说的是大脑变化)。
大多数专家都说,减肥中运动不如饮食重要,从短期来看这是真的。你无法通过跑步来抵消糟糕的饮食。 在30分钟内跑完,你可以燃烧大约400卡路里(取决于你的步伐和体重),这仅仅相当于一个汉堡王芝士汉堡。
运动员迈克尔·菲尔普斯(游泳)和J.J.瓦特(美式橄榄球)都有一天要训练好几个小时。他们还有另外一个不同寻常的共同点。据说这两位运动员在训练期间每天消耗超过9000卡路里的热量!尽管他们的食量是普通人的三倍多,但他们并没有发胖,因为他们的新陈代谢会像篝火吞噬杰西叔叔的棉花糖一样燃烧掉这些热量。如果你试图计算他们通过锻炼消耗的卡路里,你会得到一个远低于9000卡路里的数字,因为其中许多是在休息时消耗的。新陈代谢比卡路里更重要,这就是为什么这些人可以像马一样吃东西而不会变得更胖,而另一个人每天只摄取800卡路里并很快变胖,因为她的食欲增加,新陈代谢降低。
菲尔普斯和瓦特过着训练有素的生活,但普通人没必要采取如此极端的锻炼计划——我们可以通过比现在更积极的生活方式来迈出巨大的步伐。重点不在于每天要锻炼七个小时,而在于我们的整体生活方式决定了我们的新陈代谢。虽然运动对整体健康很重要,但它不如减肥重要。如今,我们似乎认为健康的生活方式就是除了在跑步机上跑 30 分钟外,其余 23.5 小时都保持静止不动。在跑步机上的这 30 分钟确实很重要,过去的 23 小时零 30 分钟也很重要。根据 juststand.org 的数据,86% 的美国人整天坐在办公桌前。这种情况很容易改变。
久坐的危害
关于久坐的研究:
NEAT 是“非运动性活动产热”的缩写。它代表了身体在没有意识地进行锻炼时所消耗的所有卡路里。你不断地使用能量,因为呼吸、思考、移动和循环血液都需要能量。你在不运动时消耗的能量量差异很大。像迈克尔·菲尔普斯 (Michael Phelps) 和 J.J. 沃特这样的运动员可能在休息时比某些人在运动时燃烧更多的卡路里。
我相信NEAT 是减肥被低估的关键。人们容易贬低微小的进步,比如站立时消耗的卡路里比坐着多,但本书的主题是这些看似不起眼的持续性进步总是会带来出乎意料的结果。
典型的美国工人会在一天中醒来,然后坐在椅子上一整天。即使只是在工作时间里站立一小段时间也会对你的新陈代谢产生很大的影响,甚至提高你的工作效率。
坐着本身并不是问题所在,问题是大多数人在坐着的时候都是静止不动的。现在有了一些产品,比如 Deskcycle,这是一款可以放在办公桌下的健身自行车,让你在坐着的同时还能踩踏板。此外还有一款可以放在办公桌底下的踏步机。
一个整洁的想法
大多数NEAT活动都不会占用你的时间。 这些都是替代性的生活方式,只需要用到你的身体,而不是依赖机器和椅子。 站着代替坐着。 用楼梯代替电梯。 步行代替开车。
首先,你应该关注你的工作生活方式,因为我们醒着的时候大部分时间都在工作。作为一名作家,我大部分时间都坐在办公桌前,所以我使用了一种叫做Varidesk的产品,这是一种放在现有办公桌上的平台,可以伸展到站立的高度,然后降下来回到桌子的高度。把它举起来进入站立模式或放回坐姿模式非常快速和容易。虽然这个产品很不错,但它不便宜。
站立式办公桌不一定昂贵。当我第一次想尝试站着工作时,我在桌子上堆了一些纸板箱。(看起来不时髦,但运动裤也不时髦)。它是免费的,而且效果很好。我会把我的笔记本电脑上下移动来切换坐姿和站姿。
考虑买一个立式办公桌、跑步机办公桌,或者自己做一个。警告:不要试图在第一天就一直站着工作。第二天你会后悔的。先从每天一个小时或两个小时开始,然后逐渐增加到半天。减压垫也非常有用。和你的老板谈谈;他们可能会愿意满足你的需求(鉴于关于久坐的危害以及站立办公可以提高工作效率的研究越来越多,这在如今已经越来越常见了)。
站立建议:当在办公桌前站立时,不要锁定膝盖并保持静止。移动、跳舞、改变位置、四处走动。长时间站在同一个地方比坐着好,但如果你根本不运动的话,那就不是很好了。(这个也可以作为小习惯,如本章后面所述)。
站立式办公桌最大的好处之一就是可以很容易地离开它,然后回来。如果你在创意领域工作,那么你知道创作东西有多难。答案并不总是“自动”浮现在脑海中。有时候你需要后退一步。在站立式办公桌上,你可以真正做到这一点。我无法告诉你这种微妙的自由有多么强大。坐在椅子上理论上也可以这样做,但从站起来的角度多出来的那一点点阻力就足以让我们更频繁地留在座位上。
使用立式办公桌时,我更有活力,思维更敏捷,有时工作效率也更高(这是我以前从未体验过的)。 站着工作在某种程度上与直觉相反,因为站着消耗更多的能量,从理论上讲,留给大脑的能量就少了。 但是我们身体的工作方式与这种表面现象完全不同。 坐下会减慢新陈代谢,而站立则会提高新陈代谢。 新陈代谢越高,能量就越多,这就是为什么我在打字的时候也在跳舞。 轻微活动不会让我们感到疲倦,反而让我们的所有系统都开始运转起来。 因此,步行者和跑步者经常说他们最好的想法是在锻炼过程中产生的。 如果全力冲刺,你就无法再考虑其他事情,因为你的身体正在为这一行动付出全部精力。
当我坐下来工作时,我会感到更懒惰,浪费更多时间。有时我甚至会在椅子上睡着。久坐行为会导致久坐行为!我发现站着的时候,我的动力和能量至少是坐着的时候的两倍。
如果你已经尝试了所有方法,但还是无法在工作中时不时站起来,那就设置一个闹钟或铃声,每小时或半小时响一次,然后在响铃时起身走动。你可以做跳跃运动、俯卧撑、踱步,甚至为了讨好周围的人而快速跳舞。只需要几秒钟就能唤醒昏昏欲睡的新陈代谢。虽然这很简单,很容易做到,但影响不会微乎其微。
无论你如何做到这一点,目标都是在一天中大部分时间里不再不动。把它放在首位,因为这对你的健康很重要,并且可以帮助减肥。我保持活力的主要方式之一就是喜欢整天听音乐并经常跟着它跳舞。
在接下来的部分,如果你想提高你的 NEAT 并提高你的静息代谢率,我将为您提供额外(但可选)的“迷你挑战”。 这是我们想要采取的方法的介绍。 我们要行动起来,不仅仅是在锻炼时,也不仅仅是以减肥项目所建议的高压方式(因为这会让人讨厌运动)。
搬到西雅图后,我人生中第一次在腹部和腰间位置长出了明显的脂肪。 (写减肥书的时候发胖可不是我的本意)我觉得这种脂肪堆积很奇怪,因为我搬到这里后比以往任何时候都更经常去健身房!不过,我在努力通过多吃来增加肌肉质量。除了吃得更多之外,我还记得这是我第一次停止了定期打篮球。
因为我已经养成了锻炼的习惯,而且我想降低体脂,所以我问了一个每个想减肥的人都会问的问题:我应该做哪种运动?我应该专注于耐力训练、继续举重还是进行高强度间歇训练(从现在开始简称HIIT)?
并非所有的运动对减肥都是有效的,而且最流行的运动可能效果最差。开始新的减肥计划时,大多数人首先会做什么?他们会去跑步机上进行耐力训练。这种中等强度的运动已经被证明不是促进脂肪燃烧的有效方法。
减肥运动的科学依据
1989 年的一项研究观察了 18 名男性和 9 名女性在训练 18 个月后跑马拉松的身体成分。一年后,男性的脂肪量适度减少了 2.4 公斤,但女性则没有变化。你能想象跑步一年半而体重不降吗?这可不太鼓舞人心!
这些人浪费时间了吗?当然没有。锻炼的好处远远超出了减肥的范畴。但是,如果减肥是你的目标,那么跑步比在人类版的跑轮上以中等速度跑步更适合减肥。
研究表明,间歇训练法 是燃烧脂肪的最佳运动方式,尤其是腹部。所以也许我的问题在于我停止打篮球了。全场篮球比赛 与间歇训练法相似,它包含短距离冲刺和主动休息交替进行的阶段。
最后,谷歌搜索“短跑运动员的身体与马拉松运动员的身体”。看看这些运动员身体类型的差异。男女性短跑运动员通常比长跑运动员有更大的肌肉质量,有时看起来很瘦弱。短暂高强度运动燃烧脂肪,而不带走你的瘦肌肉。
人们普遍认为时间是锻炼中最重要的因素,但所有这些研究表明,强度比时间更重要得多,而恢复时间也是一个明智的选择。这恰好是一个非常友好的小习惯数据点,因为我们正在寻找最初只需要少量我们的时间的活动。强烈的活动对不习惯的人来说有点吓人,但当它持续几秒钟时就不那么吓人了。
在我们讨论高强度训练的好处之前,先说一个非常重要的注意事项。高强度运动不是最好的运动方式。最好的运动形式是那种你真正会去做的运动。你可能以前听说过这个说法,这是真的。我相信大多数人更喜欢高强度运动,因为它花的时间少,效果更好,但是如果你只想在跑步机上跑 30 分钟,同时看最喜欢的电视节目,那就去做吧。任何类型的运动都能改善你的健康状况,甚至可能减轻体重。如果你想尝试高强度运动,请考虑以下几点。
高强度训练考虑因素
一项研究对4846名患冠心病的患者进行了所有类型的运动。在129456小时的中等强度锻炼中,有1例运动诱发的心脏骤停。在46364小时的高强度运动中,有两例运动诱发的心脏骤停。你可以看到这两种情况的发生率都非常低,但随着运动强度的增加而增加。即使是在心脏病患者中,这些发病率也很低——他们是最容易发生心脏事件的人群。由于高强度运动对心脏健康和减肥都有更大的好处,而且即使在心脏病患者中,心脏事件也很少发生,所以几乎总是更好的选择。
我在公寓楼里做的一个运动是在楼梯间进行间歇训练。(我住的大楼很少有人使用楼梯。每个人都是坐电梯。)从底部开始,我会尽快冲上楼梯。然后我会“积极休息”,通过慢慢走下楼梯来调整呼吸。提示:我把洛奇巴尔博亚的主题曲在我的手机上,并把它放在楼梯顶部,这样随着难度越来越大,我感到疲劳时,音乐就会变得更大声,为我加油!
总之,当你为减肥而锻炼时,不要追求时间,要追求强度。你可以很容易地自己设计一个高强度间歇训练计划。基本理念是在运动中全力以赴15到60秒,休息1到5分钟。
如果你想使用跑步机,大多数都有间隔设置。 当我使用跑步机或健身车时,我倾向于手动调整速度。 娱乐性间歇训练的一个好主意是看电视剧或玩游戏(如果你的健身房有电视),每当广告出现时,就全力以赴地进行锻炼。 广告占了整个节目长度的五到七分钟,这是一个很好的间隔时间。 当你的节目回来的时候,你会同时得到休息和娱乐! 我喜欢这个小系统。 我的朋友和我在广告期间也做过“引体向上挑战”,我们在整个广告时段内用相对较轻的重量做引体向上。
互联网上有很多高强度训练的想法。搜索“间歇性训练”或“ HIIT 训练”,让训练变得有趣!在下一节中,您会看到间歇训练作为可选的小习惯。
走路
走路是非常好的。如果你看看人体,你会很容易发现我们天生就是用来走的。在过去,步行是为了出行而必须的。从那以后,我们发明了不用再步行的方法,但是步行对我们来说太好了,以至于我们不能停止这么做。
如果你还在为逼迫自己锻炼而斗争,那么一个结构化的“全面锻炼”计划会很难坚持下去。可以考虑非结构化计划,比如“走到车道尽头,可选择继续走,也可在走路时进行间歇冲刺。” 这种方法难度适合个人,这意味着 即使在你的“休息日”,你也几乎没有什么理由放弃。
阻力训练
话虽如此,对于日常生活而言,抗阻训练比有氧运动更有用。 它可以改善你的姿势和任何活动的表现,甚至可以减轻由虚弱引起的疼痛或帮助你从受伤中恢复(物理治疗)。 不要完全排除它! 通过重量增加让自己变得更强壮是一种乐趣。 如果你学会享受锻炼的乐趣,你会爱上抗阻训练的。
如果你从未能够坚持锻炼,那么你就需要尝试养成锻炼的小习惯。 这些都是你可以养成的一些小习惯。当然还有更多!这些小习惯几乎可以在几秒钟内完成,而不是花费几分钟或几小时。地球上最忙碌的人也有时间这么做。 地球上最懒惰的人也有足够的精力这么做。 小习惯让运动变得不那么吓人、更有趣、更容易做到(与几乎所有的运动项目背道而驰)。以下是小习惯列表。
一个俯卧撑 一个引体向上 一个仰卧起坐 10个跳跃山羊跳 在原地跑步30秒 在跑步机上跑30秒 跳一支舞 上下走楼梯一次 走出你的车道或邮箱外 穿上运动装备(说真的) 穿上运动装备做一个俯卧撑(或其他锻炼) 没有特定锻炼计划就去健身房(在否定之前先试试) 30秒高强度间歇训练(冲刺、爬楼、原地快跑等。既然你可以在这里做,你可以在任何地方做!)或者,你也可以做30秒中等强度的运动。 播放健身视频(或完成30秒的健身视频) 每隔两小时站起来工作一次(如果你有一个站立式办公桌),或者每小时站起来几分钟,让你的新陈代谢恢复 如果你只有一个坐式办公桌,那就起来活动活动吧。 我发现与设定一个固定时间相比,站立一会儿会更好,所以我就“随便站一站”。然后我听着音乐,随着音乐工作的节奏摇摆。 只要选择站着,就可以启动这个过程。 就像其他微小习惯一样,你可以在满足自己简单要求后立即坐下。 不必担心做得少。担心什么也不做。
健身奖励:做更多相同的运动或更多不同的运动。
您可能会注意到一些细微的变化,比如穿运动服而不是穿运动服+做运动迷你习惯,或者去健身房。对某些人来说,在没有运动服的情况下锻炼是没有意义的,因为他们不想在商务装中锻炼。这就是为什么有“穿上运动服”的迷你习惯,这可能足以开始锻炼过程。其他人可能需要通过锻炼来启动这个过程,但同时也需要穿着运动装备,所以对他们来说,理想的迷你习惯可能是“穿上运动服并做一次俯卧撑”。还有一些人只需要一个“一次引体向上”的迷你习惯就可以了。我从每天做一个俯卧撑开始,现在我的目标是在健身房“只是出现”,效果非常好。
非主流小习惯(与运动或食物无关)
冥想一分钟: 冥想是减肥的最佳间接练习之一,因为它在许多相关领域都有所改善。它可以降低皮质醇水平,提高你的意志力,增加正念和专注能力,并帮助你睡得更好。这些都被证明对体重管理有帮助。 只要冥想一分钟就能产生效果。 试试看吧!在YouTube上搜索“一分钟冥想”,以获取引导冥想课程。
额外提示:再冥想一分钟或七分钟。
迷你习惯计划
笑到肚子疼,才知人生短。
“易则行之,难则思之。为山九仞,功亏一篑。”
老子
现在我们将所有这些融合到一个适合你的生活方式的策略中。以下是迄今为止我们讨论过的微习惯想法的总结。选择您想要融入生活的最多四个想法。
食物迷你习惯
每天吃一份水果 每天吃两份蔬菜 做一份健康食物的小升级 在家做一顿健康的饭菜 每天喝8杯水 每次咀嚼食物至少30下
健身迷你习惯
一个俯卧撑 一个引体向上 一个仰卧起坐 10个开合跳 原地跑步1分钟 跑步机上跑1分钟 随音乐跳舞1首 在楼梯上走上走下1次 走出你的车道(或邮箱前的那段路) 穿上运动服(说真的) 穿上运动服做一个俯卧撑(或其他动作) 没有特定锻炼计划就去健身房(在否定掉这个办法之前请先试一下) 进行30秒高强度锻炼(冲刺、爬楼梯、原地快跑等)。既然你可以在这里做,那意味着你可以在任何地方做的!或者,你也可以选择30秒中低强度锻炼。 播放一段健身视频(或争取在30秒内完成一个视频里的动作) 工作时时不时站起来一小会儿(用站立式办公桌的话)或者每小时站起来活动几秒,以唤醒新陈代谢。 我发现使用站立式办公桌的话,不一定非要达到某个时间要求,而是应该“边工作边偶尔站起来”。然后我听着音乐,伴随着音乐的节奏工作。
非主流迷你习惯
冥想一分钟
访问 minihabits.com 以获取更多迷你习惯想法。
在《迷你习惯》第一本书中,我涵盖了使用小日常实践来养成小型习惯并改变行为的基本策略。 一旦你致力于一个微小的习惯,定义你的提示就很重要。
迷你习惯提示
习惯提示 是触发您执行行为的东西。例如,想要养成弹吉他习惯的人可能会说:“我每天晚上7:30都会练习弹吉他。” 提示就是晚上7:30。
我有个好消息。减肥很难,但养成良好的饮食习惯比其他行为有更大的优势。餐本身就是一种暗示。例如,你可以选择在下午6点(时间暗示)洗澡前(活动暗示)或白天任何时间(灵活的日常,没有特定的时间提示)做一次俯卧撑。然而,无论何时发生一顿饭,你的微小习惯都会起作用(也就是说,基于餐食的习惯性微小习惯的提示就是这顿饭本身)。
因此,每个基于餐点的习惯都会有一个活动触发器。唯一的例外是你决定为所有的小习惯使用灵活的日志提示。在这种情况下,你会在一天中的任何时间完成你的小习惯,甚至是在两餐之间。
我的小习惯一直是以灵活的方式进行的,比如“睡前做”,因为我真的是我所认识的人中日程安排最少的人。我很少制定计划。我没有“忙”。对我来说,几乎每一天都是自由发挥的,只要我把事情做好,我就很开心。这种生活方式让我可以随心所欲地旅行。对我来说,没有事先计划好就是自由(这是人类长期以来的核心愿望之一)。
我之所以提出这个问题,是因为大多数自助建议都忽视了像我这样的人,或者建议我应该把自己变成一个“A型”人。 我看到了这样生活的优点,但我自己的生活方式和其他生活方式也有优势。 懒惰的策略迫使你适应它们(例如节食); 聪明的做法会适应你的现状。 这本书有一个足够灵活的聪明策略,可以适合所有类型的人的生活方式(A、B、C、R 和外星人)。
有三种提示可供选择:基于活动、基于时间,以及灵活的“睡前任何时候”选项。如果你的时间安排得当,那么以时间为基准或以活动为基础的提示会很有效。如果你的生活充满即兴和无计划性,你会喜欢灵活的日程提示。话虽如此,但成功使用哪种提示并没有硬性规定。也许那些注重时间安排的人会享受在两件事之间抽出一点时间进行小锻炼的机会。也许即兴发挥的人会享受生活中的更多结构,通过预先设定的小习惯来完成它们。所有这些提示都可以起作用,但是确保为每个微习惯选择一个(除了我们接下来要讨论的饮食)。
基于活动的提示:这些动作是由您知道您每天都会做的事情触发的。四个基于活动的小习惯示例包括:上班后吃一份水果,第一节课休息时吃一份蔬菜,在下班回家后喝一杯水,并在日常工作零食时间咀嚼每一口食物三十次。(一个巧妙的运动提示是在使用卫生间后做至少一次俯卧撑或其它锻炼。这比一天做一次要多,但对某些人来说仍然可以做到)。
基于时间的提示:如果你的生活节奏紧凑,每一刻都安排好了,那么基于时间的行为会很有效。三个基于时间的小习惯的例子:下午3点15分吃一个健康的零食,在晚上6点喝一杯水,在晚上7点吃一碗水果。
灵活的每日选择(无提示):只要在当天结束前完成,这些活动随时都可以进行。它们很灵活,但需要更多的正念,因为你必须每天选择何时进行,而不是依赖预先设定的提示。四个灵活的小习惯的例子:睡前吃一份水果、睡前吃一份蔬菜、白天用餐时每口嚼30次、睡前喝一杯水。
传统上,习惯只能通过基于时间或活动的提示来形成,但迷你习惯如此之小,以至于不需要特定的提示。坏习惯需要提示吗?我们只是在各种时候做它们,因为它们很容易也很有回报。迷你习惯具有同样的吸引力,只不过它是个好习惯。
吸烟者可能会在吃饭、喝酒或压力大时抽烟。这是同一个行为的多个提示。同样,你会为灵活的日间小习惯培养一些触发器,但不会依赖任何一个提示。仍然会涉及触发器,但你会让它们在“野外”成长。
这样做的好处在于,可以形成多元化的力量。把习惯比作一棵树的根。你可以为一个习惯培养出非常强大的根源,或者你可以培养出许多较弱的根源。多根源的习惯会有更弱的个体根源,但当它们聚集在一起时,可能会比单个根源的习惯更有韧性。 这正是为什么坏习惯很难改掉——因为不是说你可以简单地找出导致坏行为的一个触发因素并避开它。触发因素有很多,其中一些甚至是由于某些感觉而引发的(不可避免)。
通过一个微小的习惯,你可以利用这种力量。这就是为什么我每天都写作,但不是在特定的时间。这也是为什么我几乎每天都在锻炼,但没有固定的计划。为了帮助你在这三个提示选项之间做出选择,这里有一个表格,显示了每个提示的优点和缺点。
每个提示在各种类别中从 1 到 5 进行排名,其中 5 是可能的最佳分数。以下是类别的含义。
灵活性是你决定何时执行行为时拥有的自由程度。
记忆是提示如何帮助您记住要做的行为。 时间线索是僵化的,因为您必须在特定的时间完成它,但它可以帮助您记住,因为您可以将其放在日历上或在手机上设置提醒。 灵活的日程安排没有具体的单一提示,这意味着它最容易忘记。 您可以使用任何提示来设置提醒。 对于灵活的提示,请尝试在枕头下放一支笔,以提醒您睡前做迷你习惯(或者更好的做法是在冰箱里贴一张便笺,提醒您做食物类的迷你习惯)。
习惯形成的时间是指你的行为形成神经通路并成为习惯的速度。活动和时间为基础的提示会更快地形成习惯,因为它们只有一个模式供大脑识别。如果你选择一个灵活的日程安排,你可能会发展出几个固定的习惯性动作,而大脑需要更长的时间来把这些行为模式转化为习惯。灵活的习惯在很大程度上与我们无意中养成的“野蛮”习惯相似。吸烟者不会决定每天晚上11点抽烟,而是会在各种触发因素(多个线索)后抽烟。多重诱因使戒掉坏习惯变得困难;同样,当好习惯有多个诱因时,它们会有更好的“粘性”,因为它们不依赖于任何一个诱因。
永不失败是指每天都能成功地完成你的微习惯,而且永远不会失败。在时间触发器方面,这可能是最具挑战性的,因为如果你下午两点错过了提示,那么从技术上讲你就失败了。而在日常触发器的帮助下,你有整整一天的时间来取得成功,即使是在睡前也可以做到这一点。并不是说用时间触发器永远无法保持连胜,只是相对来说比灵活的触发器更难罢了。
额外的重复就是你可能会比你的迷你要求做得更多。在这方面,每个提示都是相等的。
多个习惯是指每个提示如何轻松支持多个习惯。 任何一个提示都可以很好地与多个习惯配合,但灵活计划在这里最有效,因为您可以根据自己的日常习惯调整自己的日常生活。
最好的计划就是适合并吸引你的。我所有的微习惯都使用灵活的日要求,因为它适合我的不定时生活方式。你可能一开始不知道哪种风格最适合你,所以不要害怕尝试。你可以混合搭配提示。例如,也许你设定的目标是每天至少喝一杯水(灵活的日要求),但晚餐也要吃一份蔬菜(活动),下午3点15分要吃一根生胡萝卜(时间)。一般来说,在所有微习惯中选择一种类型的提示可能是最好的,但是,请记住,唯一“规则”是做对你来说最有效的事情。
如果你愿意,你可以通过选择最多四个微习惯(以及每个微习惯的一个触发器)来使用这个系统。或者,你可以为所有与食物相关的微习惯选择一个“饮食计划”。
这些饮食计划都使用了活动提示(即餐)并为每顿饭设定了不同的目标。下面的策略分享了我们一直在讨论的改变生活的概念,但它们的实施方式可以灵活地适应你。
确保您只选择其中一个计划。 这些是竞争性的选项,而不是待办事项清单。 将其视为帮助您记住何时以及如何完成基于食物的小习惯的主题。 如果您选择其中一种膳食计划,请不要忘记在上一章中提到的提示之一添加健身小习惯。
这是我最喜欢的策略。在餐时升级计划中,你在吃的每一顿饭里选择一个“升级”的小习惯。这意味着即使你吃的是不健康的快餐,也不会像往常一样全盘皆输。你可以选择每口咀嚼30次,用水代替苏打水,饭前喝一杯水,用生菜包代替面包,或者用更健康的食物替换炸薯条。要确定什么是健康的升级,请使用过去的行为作为指标。如果你已经总是喝水了,那就太好了,但不要把它算作升级。
这个计划的优点是你不需要记得自己做了什么。每一顿饭都是提醒,让你做出一些小小的、健康的“改进”,来改善你的饮食习惯。额外的好处(总是可选的):你可以随时在任何一顿饭里做额外的改进,或者通过吃一顿完全健康的饭菜来进行巨大的改进。
通过这个选择,你会养成在吃东西时寻找小而健康的升级的习惯——这可能是减肥最有价值的习惯。然而,由于你的健康升级可能因餐而异,所以你不太可能养成具体的健康习惯,比如饭前喝水、吃特定的水果或蔬菜等。
对于旅行来说,这是一个很好的选择,因为它可以让你完全灵活,并提醒自己注意饮食习惯。
这里的目标是一顿饭一顿饭地征服。你所有的努力都会集中在一顿饭上,其他餐吃什么就由你自己决定。如果你选择这个计划,那就从早餐开始吧。所有的小习惯,比如在你的常规饮食中加入或替换水果或蔬菜,咀嚼食物超过30次,或者在吃饭前或期间喝水,都是为了这一餐。一旦你发现自己可以一直吃健康的食物,充分咀嚼,并且坚持喝早餐水,你可以继续吃午餐。我建议至少两个月后再这么做,因为如果你过早转向午餐(在早餐习惯养成之前),你会冒着试图过早做太多事情的风险,正如所有曾经节食的人都知道,这会导致失败。
这被称为“堡垒计划”,因为一顿饭将成为您健康生活方式的堡垒。 如果您可以永久改变一种食物的吃法,那么您也可以为所有餐点做同样的事情。 尽管与传统的迷你习惯设置略有不同,但这仍然是每天的进步,并且将成为建立的基础。 首先选择早餐是个好主意,因为您如何开始新的一天会在很大程度上影响您如何结束这一天。 当您通过吃得更好来开始每一天时,它甚至可能会对您的午餐和晚餐决定产生影响,即使它们是“想吃什么就吃什么”。 由于没有压力要使每顿饭都完美无缺,因此您将能够保持早餐的成功。
迷你堡垒示例:在起床和吃早餐之间喝一杯水,早餐时吃一份水果或蔬菜,早餐时每口咀嚼30次,午餐和晚餐可以随心所欲。你也可以考虑制作健康的一餐,比如全脂酸奶配水果作为快速早餐(它和谷物一样快捷,但更健康),或者当你有时间做饭的时候可以做鸡蛋菠菜。
在这个计划中,您每天选择两顿饭来做如下事情:吃一份健康食物(通常是蔬菜或水果)和一顿餐改型剂(在用餐前喝一杯水,细嚼慢咽,吃到八分饱等)。这是您每天两顿饭中的一个健康食物和一种改型剂。
两餐两个微习惯加起来就是四个微习惯。当你加上健身微习惯,总共就有五个微习惯了——这比通常推荐的数量要多。在这种情况下,我认为这对一些人来说是可以做到的,因为其中两个微习惯是对行为的调整而不是新的行为(所以它们应该比大多数微习惯更容易养成)。如果你觉得这个计划很难实施,那可能是因为五个微习惯太多了。
选择两个例子:早餐时,您喝一杯水并吃一个葡萄柚。 晚餐时,您咀嚼每一口三十次,并吃一份配菜沙拉。
这是一种灵活的方法,因为它不规定每餐必须吃哪些食物或添加什么调料。旅行时可以使用这种方法,因为旅行通常需要更多的灵活性。
这个计划很简单,很容易记住。每顿饭都做同样的小习惯。例如,你可以在每一餐之前或期间喝一杯水作为你的主要饮料选择。喝水代替汽水对你的体重和健康有显著的影响。另一个选择是在每个餐点中吃一份蔬菜,或者如果你有特别喜欢的蔬菜(但可用性可能会使这变得困难)。这个计划通常不灵活,因为你选择了单一的具体行动,但是你可以选择一个后备行动,以防主要选择无法实现(比如餐厅没有提供你选择的蔬菜)。
线性习惯示例:每餐只喝水(假设您一天吃三顿饭,这相当于三个小习惯)。
这个计划意味着没有饮食计划。你可以选择什么时候做你的微习惯,无论是吃一份水果还是一份健康升级。在灵活计划中,您可以自由选择在一顿饭里完成所有微习惯,在早餐时做两个,在午餐时另一个日子做一次,或者任何其他组合。您甚至可以在餐间完成它们。吃饭是我们食物摄入量的主要部分,所以如果你走这条路,我仍然会试图优先考虑用餐时间。
假设你有三个微小习惯:吃一顿健康的饭菜、吃一份水果,以及每一口食物咀嚼 30 次。周日,你用蓝莓、香蕉和草莓代替了平时的麦片和牛奶来吃酸奶。酸奶比牛奶更“微升级”(益生菌和肠道健康),而你吃的多种水果则超过了每天所需的水果量。完成了两项中的三项。午餐时,你吃了快餐。晚餐,你吃了牛排和土豆,并且每咬一口就咀嚼 30 次(对于牛排要多咀嚼几口)。完成了全部三项。成功!
膳食计划的最终决定
每次只选择一个饮食计划。 旅行时,你可以选择另一种饮食计划,但在其他情况下,请选择一种并坚持下去。 这样做会改变你的大脑,并帮助你养成更好的习惯,让你终生受益。
在这里,您选择的策略将成为您的核心饮食策略,但也要考虑健身、零食、冥想和其他非正餐的小习惯。不要忘记它们!我建议在膳食计划中加入一个健身小习惯,包括基于活动、时间或灵活的日常提示。为了简单起见,并且为了“健康生活协同”,您可以考虑将用餐作为锻炼小习惯的提示(例如,在晚餐前做一次俯卧撑)。我建议你在用餐之前做这件事,因为饭后立即运动很少是一种愉快的经历。
如果你认为这些计划还不够“多”,那么你可能仍然在用节食的方式来思考,而忽视了真正长期改变的力量。考虑一下:一旦你养成了健康的饮食习惯,它就会变得不费吹灰之力,你可以以此为基础继续发展。大多数人低估了这一点,因为它并不引人注目;它只会有效。节食失败是因为大脑和身体一次过量摄入。这才是正确的改变剂量,可以悄悄地让你变得更强大。
既然我们已经讨论了如何将积极的改变融入生活的总体结构,让我们来谈谈你可能仍然有的问题。
跟踪进度有三个原因:它证明了你的承诺,每天鼓励你,并让你知道随着时间的推移,你做得有多好。
这里有一些跟踪进度的方法。无论你选择哪种策略,我建议你在睡觉前勾选你的成功。如果你在一天中的早些时候就完成了任务,完成感可能会让你没有动力去做“额外的重复”。而且,在睡前把它勾掉也是一个好习惯,这样你就不会忘记它了。
大日历(推荐)
这是我用来追踪我的微习惯的方法。我在房间里的墙上挂了一个大日历。我把我的微习惯写在附近的白板上,每天完成时都在日历上打勾。它很简单,而且很有效!经过几个月的微习惯后,成功地打勾仍然感觉很棒!
如果你只是想勾选一些日子,那另一种选择就是每年一次的“一览表”日历。一个明智的预算行动是打印网上能找到的各种免费可打印的日历(提示:只需打印你的Gmail日历)。 在物理上打勾会让你的成功感比数字跟踪更真实。此外,如果你把它放在一个显眼的地方,你会经常看到它,这会让你意识到自己的微小习惯、进步和成功。不要低估了这一点的影响!
打破成功日链的唯一借口就是忘记,因为小习惯太容易失败了。但忘记也是个糟糕的借口,因为你的日历就在眼前,每天晚上睡觉前你会问自己,“我今天完成了我的小习惯吗?”还有就是,你的小习惯不一定要成为一个几个月后就会放弃的潮流,它可以是一辈子的追求。它效果太好了,也太灵活了以至于不能放弃!
写下你的微习惯并逐步完成至关重要。不要跳过这一步。不管你用什么方式追踪微习惯的完成情况,我建议你至少把这些习惯手写在某个地方,这样你可以看到它们。
应用跟踪
有些人会想用智能手机,虽然我更喜欢老派的方式,但智能手机有一些显著的优势。第一个优势是便携性——人们随身携带智能手机,甚至出国度假也不例外。第二个好处在于可见性和提醒功能——有些应用程序可以提醒你养成小习惯,或者作为采取行动的具体提示。
访问http://minihabits.com/tools/ 查看推荐应用的最新列表。
所有数字应用软件的最终注记
你会从这些应用程序和网站中看到预先设定的健康习惯。除非它们已经微小化(可能性很小),否则不要急于开始这些习惯。如果你真的很喜欢其中的一个,确保你在将其添加到你的日程表之前先把它微小化!每天做100个俯卧撑看起来很有趣,但当你放弃的时候就没那么有趣了。把每天做一个俯卧撑作为目标会更有趣,并且连续200多天都完成这个小目标。
你可以按照自己的意愿(或根本不)将以下技巧纳入你的迷你习惯计划。 你甚至可以使用这个有趣的方法来选择你每天的所有小习惯。 这完全取决于你自己。 如果你在几个选项之间犹豫不决,你会喜欢这种方法的!
在一张纸上或你的手机上,列出并编号六个同类型的微习惯(饮食或健身)。例如,你可以为一个健身微习惯列下如下清单:
一个俯卧撑 一个仰卧起坐 10个跳跃深蹲 在原地跑步30秒 走到车道尽头 跳舞一首歌的时间
确保列表中的某处每天都能看到——你的办公桌、冰箱或手机上的应用程序等等。 准备好进行微习惯后,拿一个骰子或两个骰子(或者使用掷骰子的应用程序)。
用一个骰子
如果你只用一个骰子,每天掷一次,并且做与你掷出的数字相对应的小习惯。例如,如果上面列出的是你的清单,今天你掷出了 5 ,那么你就走到车道尽头。这给了你两次额外练习的机会:你可以走得比车道还远,或者再投一次!
重要提示:一张清单只能代替你的 一个 习惯。你每天只会做其中的一个。如果你真的很喜欢这个想法,你可以创建多达四个列表(用于四个小习惯),每个列表都可以让你决定当天要做什么。
掷骰子游戏
如果你使用两个骰子,你可以把你的清单扩展到 12 项活动,并做你掷出的数字对应的活动。或者,你可以把清单保持在六个迷你习惯,并给自己一个选择的机会。在这个清单中,如果你掷出了三和四,你会在10个跳跃运动和原地跑步30秒之间进行选择。如果你掷出了双六,那么你就必须跳舞!
可选功能
你可以考虑在列表中添加一个困难的动作。例如,也许你会把“跑一英里”排在第一位,这样如果你摇到1,你就必须跑一英里。这不是一个微小的习惯,但它确实给摇骰子增加了一些风险,并且与其他微小习惯相比,它会让你的其他微小习惯看起来很容易(这是件好事!)。
如果你增加了一个困难的挑战,你可以考虑在另一个数字上添加某种奖励。例如,你可以让6成为“自由选择”,投掷时可以选择你的微习惯。或者你可以把六放在“跳一首歌”的位置,并且投出六个后加一小块糖果作为奖励。(参见minihabits.com 以获取更多奖励想法)
滚动福利
骰子掷出的结果的随机性使活动变得有趣,可以让你保持新鲜感和享受感。虽然这种方法会使你的日常行为更加多样化(这似乎会阻碍习惯的养成),但你仍然会形成每天进步、健身和吃健康食物的习惯。 你的主要目标是改变你与活跃和吃健康食品的概念的关系,这一点是可以实现的。
通过掷骰子来决定下一步行动,实际上会使你的行动力降低。 掷骰子是一种契约,你同意做它要求的事。 这就像是和朋友打赌的稀释版本:“如果他们输了,我就去跳水池,但是如果他们赢了,你就得请我吃饭。” 有人可能不会自愿跳进水池(在那里有人会扔球瞄准目标,如果你被击中就会掉进水里),但如果这是友好打赌的一部分,他们会做的。 掷骰子是你与自己进行的一种有趣的打赌。 无论结果如何,你都必须去做。
最后,掷骰子可以让你更容易做出决定。与其决定做一些可能会让你感到不舒服的事情(比如培养一个健身的小习惯),不如决定掷骰子,这样就开始了你的小习惯过程。
在你的迷你习惯计划中加入骰子,会增加一个步骤,这通常是一件坏事,但它所提供的好处和乐趣绝对值得。对于那些把减肥视为辛苦劳作和痛苦的人来说,“游戏化”可能是他们成功所需要的。
如果你在养成小习惯上遇到困难,那就来看看这篇文章吧。
我感觉到了阻力。
阻力是你潜意识对你的行为感到不舒服的表现。检查一下这个清单,确保你的观点正确。
我是在追求微习惯,还是假装在追求微习惯,而实际上是在追求更多?你不能欺骗你的潜意识,所以不要尝试。你的目标必须是小的。记住,这是一步一步来的。这不是说你永远不会做更多的事情;这意味着你会通过思考一系列小步骤来实现它,而不是说“我会迈出这一小步”,然后在内心深处要求自己做得更多。
我的微习惯真的做到了微小吗?我发现实施微习惯的最大问题之一是人们没有足够缩小动作。例如,有人告诉我他们很难每天阅读一本书中的十页。那么,我的微习惯就是每天读两页,这比那少五倍!十页听起来可能不多,但在心情不好、缺乏动力的日子里,它就变得太多。让您的微习惯变小,您就不会抵制它们。一致性比数量重要得多,这就是我们一开始制作微型产品的原因。
我是否仍会感到阻力? 感到有些阻力没有关系,因为你可以控制自己的意志力。 这些小行为太微不足道了,以至于你永远不应该缺乏足够的意志力来强迫自己去行动。 这就是这个策略成功的原因。 只要你有足够的意志力去做你想做的事,意志力就是可靠的。 依靠你的感觉并不是一个成功的策略。 在任何领域取得成功的人,并不是仅仅在他们想那样做的时候才采取行动。 无论生活多么艰难,他们都每天出现。 对于一个典型的目标来说,这属于“说起来容易做起来难”的范畴。 但对养成习惯的人来说,这就很容易做到了! 不管你经历了什么——你可以喝一杯水,吃一个苹果,或者做一个俯卧撑!
每当您对微习惯产生阻力时,请务必挑战自己。不要接受您不想跳舞一分钟的想法。想想这有多容易,你会对自己的成就感到多么满意。挑战自己起床尝试一下。微习惯越容易克服初始阻力,您就越相信过程,您的结果就会越好。
我一直在逃避我的小习惯。
问自己这些问题。
我是不是太认真了?听着,我知道“把食物咀嚼30次”在你想减掉100磅时听起来很傻。但这里有些讽刺意味。速成节食和军训看起来像是认真改变生活的尝试,但实际上它们的目标远低于我们。与微习惯带来的永久性生活改变相比,速成节食或军训只是个笑话。速成节食或军训的目标是短期、肤浅的身体成分变化。我们的目标更深。我们致力于改变你的大脑,以及你对食物和运动的看法。人们之所以暂时坚持这些疯狂而痛苦的计划,是因为他们渴望承诺的结果。如果你能理解持久的习惯性变化会产生多大的效果,你就不会对每天的小习惯了有抵触情绪。这并不意味着你不应该嘲笑“不得不走到车道尽头;”这只是意味着你会确保去做,不管表面上有多傻。
我选择的提示是否正确?如果你出于任何原因没有做到这一点,请仔细检查你选择的提示。如果你选择了基于时间或活动的提示,那么也许你需要更多的灵活性,并尝试一个更灵活的日程安排提示。如果你有一个灵活的日程安排提示并一直推迟或忘记它,那么也许你需要一个更结构化的提示(如时间和活动)。
我有太多的小习惯了吗?不管我说什么,我知道有些人读完这本书后会立即开始培养十个小习惯(我建议最多四个)。一个家伙告诉我他每天完成20多个小习惯时遇到了一些困难。
当你有太多的小习惯时,你会被你需要做的事情的数量压垮,结果与任何压倒性的目标一样(失败)。话虽如此,如果你有四个小习惯,那对你来说可能还是太多了。就我个人而言,我做两个或三个小习惯做得最好。当我加上第四个时,它并不起作用。我要补充的是,我最初只有一个迷你习惯(每天做一个俯卧撑),这完全改变了我的生活和我对运动的态度。所以不要认为只有一个迷你习惯是没有用的!如果你没有完成你的小习惯,考虑放弃一个。
如果我完成了一些小习惯,但没有完成其他呢?
在“微习惯”中,不完成就是失败。这些行为本应如此容易,以至于即使在你一生中最糟糕的日子里,你也可以全部完成。所以,如果你发现自己完成了其中一些,但没有完成其他的,那么你要么放弃其他的,要么找出它们对你来说具有挑战性的原因。有了所有这些战略性的计划,你可以尝试调整你的“微习惯”计划,看看这是否有帮助。这个策略是为了实现百分之百的成功,但是当你发现适合自己的策略和微型习惯的数量时,你可能不会立即达到这个目标。拥有微型习惯的最大好处是,可以随时出于任何原因重新开始一个微型习惯项目。如果你“掉下马来”,你可以在五分钟内再次上马!争取完成所有微型习惯的百分之百。如果没有达到这个目标,那就做出改变,直到达到为止。
我从不做附加动作。我哪里做错了?
额外的练习只是额外的东西。如果你从未“超越”过,那就没有必要惊慌。有些习惯比其他习惯需要更长的时间来养成。例如,我的阅读微习惯发展得相当缓慢,俯卧撑微习惯增长适中,而写作微习惯则像赛马一样腾飞。你可以预期会有波动,但在其他情况下,请考虑这一点。
你的小习惯是不是太小了?我在第一本《小习惯》中没有提到这一点,因为我当时并不知道这是可能的。有一天,我收到了一位读者的电子邮件。她告诉我,她在30天内只写了30个单词——每天一个单词。这让我恍然大悟:如果这个行为无法启动你想要的行为过程,那么它就太小了。
例如,如果你的目标是写更多的东西,那么只写一个词并不开始写作过程,因为至少写作需要你形成一个有意义的想法或短语。否则,你可以写“the”,然后停止思考。我每天写的微小习惯是50个单词,因为这几乎总是能带来更多的想法和写作;它开始了写作过程。既然只是一段话,我就不会被吓倒。我没有写作障碍。
每天做一个俯卧撑是锻炼过程的一个很好的例子。一旦进入俯卧撑姿势并完成一个,它就促成了更多的运动。有些人可能觉得在做运动之前需要穿上运动服,所以他们可能会修改他们的习惯为“换上运动服”,或“换上运动服并做了一个俯卧撑”,或者“换衣服然后开车去健身房”。
有一天,我注意到每次我在门口安装引体向上杆时,我都会做引体向上。从那一刻起,我没有设定目标去做一个引体向上;我的目标是设置杆子。然后习惯就接管了。
无论你的习惯多么微小,都要密切注意是什么让你开始了这个过程。如果你的小习惯是吃一根胡萝卜,而且你只吃了一根,试着把两个小胡萝卜混在一起,看看是否能启动胡萝卜派对。理想的小习惯总是要达到最低阻力水平,并开始进行目标行为的过程。
如果我错过一天怎么办?
养成小习惯的一个好处是,如果你遭遇挫折,很容易“重新开始”。因为你可以在不到五分钟内“回到正轨”,只要你坚持下去,就有可能成功。
我应该奖励自己吗?
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“i” “should” “reward” “myself” “?”
如果你熟悉习惯形成的过程(提示、行为、奖励),你可能会期望我讨论奖励,但迷你习惯可以没有奖励。完成目标本身就有一种内在的回报,这已经足够了。也许我们需要奖励来鼓励更困难的行为,但即使是小习惯也足以让你强迫自己去做,即使没有任何外部强化的回报。成功的内在回报对一个迷你习惯就足够了。外部奖励的唯一目的是让大脑习惯于在没有奖励的情况下做某事,也就是说,你不需要奖励就可以做这件事(这也是它优越的原因之一!)。正如孙子所说,“胜利者先胜而后战。”
还有一个很好的理由不去想奖励:它增加了需要管理的东西。这个策略在简单性上蓬勃发展,所以我建议保持最简单的形式。话虽如此,你可以奖励自己,对自己好一点,把你的成功与小习惯联系起来。这当然是值得的,但你不需要把它变成一个硬性规定。
多少个微习惯?
我建议一次最多养成 4 个小习惯。除此之外,您还有很多(可选)机会来改善健康状况和体重。不要担心做得不够!除了为持久改变奠定基础之外,这已经使这种策略胜过其他方法,而且您还将有机会取得短期进步。
我记得每一口要嚼30次,但吃到一半时,这还算数吗?
是的,确实如此。每一口嚼半顿食物 30 次是个小习惯(如果你愿意的话,甚至可以把它变成标准的小习惯)。这个策略的精神就是所有进步都是有价值的。显然,记住每口嚼 30 下比什么也不做要好得多,但如果你在尝试,就请给自己一点信任吧。第二重要的事情(仅次于一致性)就是保持对你的进步持积极态度。
什么是健康的一餐?
It's not just about the calories. It's about the whole package of nutrients that go into making up your body. The more you know about what goes into your body, the better you can make choices for yourself.
健康食品有一个共同点:它们使用真实且最少加工过的食材。不含防腐剂、人工色素、甜味剂、乳化剂、香精和其他化学添加剂。当心那些用这些短语来吸引你注意的公司。仅仅因为没有人工色素或人工香精,并不意味着其他许多糟糕的加工成分不存在。健康食品很少见。
什么算是水果的一份?
A cup of berries, melon, grapes or cherries is one serving.
关于你的小习惯,不要把罐头或果酱里的水果算作水果。新鲜或冷冻的水果几乎在任何地方都很容易买到,而且它们本身就有丰富的风味和甜味(不需要像水果杯里那样的含糖糖浆)。如果某种水果沙拉配奶油酱汁,你可以根据自己的喜好来计算。我的建议是,无论哪种方式都不要欺骗自己。你不是为了“蒙混过关”,把一个水果零食袋当作每天的水果摄入量;而是要多吃水果!如果你吃了四个裹着糖浆或蓝莓酱的蓝莓,那其实并没有达到目标。
什么是蔬菜的一份?
"我有两份蔬菜" 和 "我有两杯水" 有什么区别?
(1)"我有两份蔬菜" 和 "我有两杯水" 有什么区别?
(2)我吃两份蔬菜,两杯水。
我吃两份蔬菜,两杯水。
理想的营养目标是吃生蔬菜。其次是煮熟、蒸煮或烘焙的蔬菜。话虽如此,如果你只吃淋上酱汁或加盐的蔬菜,那么你可以从这里开始。吃不健康的食物比只吃不健康的食物要好。所以,如果你只喜欢在不健康的东西上面撒满西兰花,那就去吧。
快餐汉堡上所用的可怜的、质量低劣的生菜和番茄虽然比没有强,但并不是我们想要的。我建议规定蔬菜在你的食物中“必须占主导地位”,才能算是一份。例如,炸薯条是由土豆制成的,但这被油炸的事实淹没了。
如果你想让你的蔬菜更有风味,黑胡椒基本上可以给任何咸味菜肴增添健康美味。还有许多其他的香料也可以做到这一点。我通常使用有机万能调味品。健康的食物通常很美味,但对某些食物和某些口味来说,实验可能是值得的。
如果我不喜欢[插入健康食品]怎么办?
如果你不喜欢,就不必吃。水果蔬菜种类繁多,口味、质地和烹饪方法各异,几乎不可能每样都讨厌。找到适合你的组合。我最喜欢沙拉、蓝莓、芒果、草莓、西兰花和菠菜,所以我吃的也最多。这些食物只是众多选择中的一小部分。我偶尔会吃花椰菜,但我不喜欢它。我从不吃蘑菇。鸡肉比红肉健康,但我更喜欢吃牛肉配西兰花,因为我喜欢它们搭配在一起的味道。记住,所有东西都是相对的,用大豆油蘸着吃的西兰花仍然比回锅肉和芝士通心粉要健康。
如果我无法停止吃不健康的食物怎么办?
关于诱惑的策略在下一章中讨论。提前剧透一下答案:不要试图用意志力来戒掉不良饮食。摆脱不健康饮食的方法不是限制,而是丰盛!不健康的食物提供了奖励,你必须找到另一种方式来获得这个奖励。如果你完全切断了一个强大的诱因,你就无法长久坚持下去!
在整合变化的过程中,你会继续吃一些不健康的食物,这没关系。短期来看,垃圾食品再少也不行,这只会让我想吃个汉堡包。要充分考虑,并选择健康食物而不是远离不健康食物。我们下一章中的策略比这个建议更具体、更容易操作,但观点确实很重要。
如果我不想吃胡萝卜怎么办?
笔记:
刚才,我在写作间隙休息了一会儿,吃了点东西。我想吃胡萝卜,但我想要更丰盛的食物(比如一顿饭)。我渴望一顿正餐或一份丰盛的小吃,这让我没有选择“只吃一根胡萝卜”。我怀疑这种感觉非常普遍,因为蔬菜的热量并不高。在这种情况下,我通常会不吃胡萝卜,而是吃一些我真正想吃的东西,但这一次,我想象着自己真的在吃胡萝卜。我想到它的味道、质地和令人满足的嘎吱声,它立刻变得更吸引人了。但促成我做出决定的关键想法是提醒自己,吃胡萝卜并不意味着不能吃其他食物。我吃了胡萝卜,然后享受了它。没过多久,我又开始渴望一顿饭,但是现在我的胃里有一根胡萝卜。
如果你处于这种情况,你可能会认为吃胡萝卜是一种“浪费”,因为你吃了之后仍然感到饥饿。事实并非如此。蔬菜对健康有益,不管它们在多大程度上满足了你的食欲。此外,你的饥饿感可能并不像你说得那么敏感、准确:“我吃了胡萝卜后感觉和之前一样饿。”你在吃胡萝卜前后量过饥饿程度吗?读数是多少?
吃蔬菜并不一定意味着“以蔬代餐”。如果你饿了,可以也应该继续进食。如果你吃了蔬菜还是很饿,那就吃别的东西吧,如果需要的话,就吃点不健康的食物好了。摒弃这种节食减肥的饥饿心态。假设你先吃了三个完整的胡萝卜和一份沙拉,然后又吃了一个热狗,按照节食法的逻辑,这就算失败了。但实际上,这是巨大的成功!如果你不吃胡萝卜和沙拉,也许你会吃掉两到三个热狗。但是即使蔬菜奇迹般地违反了物理定律,没有填饱你的肚子,甚至让你觉得一点都 没有满足你的食欲,它们仍然值得食用,因为它们对你的其他健康和减肥都有好处。
这是一个至关重要的观点:在改变初期,健康食品可能无法完全替代不健康食品。吃一份小沙拉可能只会满足你35%的食欲,当然如果你这样想,“该死。那份沙拉是我的一顿饭但我还是很饿。那块披萨本可以填饱我肚子的。我想我必须受点苦才能吃得健康。” 不,不,不!这种想法太糟糕了以至于我不想打字。你知道什么比三片油腻的披萨更好吗?三片油腻的披萨外加一份沙拉。如果你担心沙拉带来的额外卡路里,那么就想想这个吧。
当你吃健康食物时,不要期待它会对你的食欲产生影响。别让一份简单的沙拉有满足卡路里需求的负罪感。我管我的沙拉叫“巨无霸”是有原因的!如果你吃了健康的食物还是很饿,你可以再多吃一点或者换一种食物。就是这样。把食欲调节交给身体。饿了就吃,吃到饱了就停。
奶酪会发胖吗?
我不相信。真正的奶酪是一种富含营养的食物。当你在电影院吃纳乔奶酪时,那其实不是奶酪。它可能含有奶酪,但它还含有很多其他的东西。至于自制的纳乔奶酪,薯片比奶酪(如果它是真的的话)要油腻得多。
奶酪基本上属于我们之前讨论过的牛奶那一类。它不会获得“年度减肥食品”的称号,但它也远没有人们想象中那么糟糕。就像牛奶一样,全脂奶酪是最好的选择。所有的科学研究都表明脱脂牛奶比全脂牛奶更增肥、不健康。
如果牛油果(脂肪含量 82%)和蓝莓(高糖分)等食物不仅有助于减肥,而且还是世界上最好的两种减肥食品,而研究也表明它们确实是,那么这表明我们需要停止过多关注宏量营养素,而更多地关注整个饮食的质量。研究的一致发现是加工食品会让我们发胖——不是高脂食品,也不是高糖食品,而是加工食品。
在大多数情况下,超加工食品被剥夺了生命,纤维含量低,饱腹感低,生物利用度低 微量营养素、发炎且高热量、脂肪和糖。你可以把任何一种情况都归咎于它——“就是这样!我们之所以变胖是因为缺乏纤维的食物!”但所有这些因素都会让我们走向Frankenfoods之门。在实验室设计的食物是实验品,就像任何实验一样,它们可能会失败。虽然我们不会立即生病,但它们会混淆我们的身体,使我们营养不良,并使我们变得更胖更容易患病。实验失败了。让我们回到吃真正的食物作为主要食物来源。
我应该买有机食品吗?
这取决于。我觉得人们对待这个问题时所持的有机派和反有机派立场很有趣,因为是否购买有机食品应该是个案处理。我从不买有机鳄梨,但总是买有机浆果。你觉得这是为什么?
环境工作组(总部位于华盛顿特区)测试农产品上的农药残留(有机农产品不含任何杀虫剂)。2016年农药残留最多的15种食物(按农药含量从高到低排列)分别是:草莓、苹果、油桃、桃子、芹菜、葡萄、樱桃、菠菜、番茄、灯笼椒、圣女果、黄瓜、豆苗、蓝莓和土豆。这些食物是人们应该购买有机食品以减少接触农药的食物。农药残留最少的十种食物(因为它们的农药残留量最低)是:鳄梨、甜玉米、菠萝、卷心菜、甜豌豆、洋葱、芦笋、芒果、木瓜、猕猴桃和茄子。完整的列表可以在他们的网站上找到。
转基因呢?基因改造是人类对食物的另一种篡改。我不会详细展开,但我会尽量避免它们——最简单的方法就是购买有机食品。转基因生物是一个热议的话题,但是当你每天吃快餐时,转基因生物是你最不需要担心的问题(事实上,也许这是你应该担心的问题,因为快餐里充斥着它们)。如果你改变饮食习惯,吃得更健康,那么你会自动减少摄入转基因食物,也就是说,除非你的饮食已经比95%的人群更健康,否则转基因并不是你需要关注的重点。
在本书中,我引入了一个新概念,叫做“微挑战”。它们在大小上类似于一个微习惯,但却是可选的、情境化的。这些微挑战不是必须的,也不是你的核心微习惯计划的一部分。它们是一次额外进步的机会。
大多数节食和减肥计划都陷入了完美遵守会怎样;他们给参与者灌输了很多规则和限制。但是,为了成功,成功的策略必须非常小心地处理其强制性要求(即规则),以保护自主性和防止疲劳。然而,可选活动实际上可以无限制地进行而不会产生负面影响,因为不做它们并不会损害你的自信或连胜。
看到这有多令人兴奋了吗?想象一下典型的一天。与其被 你想成为的人 和真实的你之间的鸿沟所淹没,不如有一个简单的日常小习惯清单可以去完成,此外,如果你愿意的话,还有一个更大的清单式微小但有影响力的行为挑战等着你去做。这些都不是义务,而是机会。义务是一种负担,而机会则是无重量且诱人的。
这些可选挑战(以及你的微习惯)会让你在安全的环境中体验健康生活。任何节食的人都会在控制、为了结果而受苦的环境中体验健康生活。不幸的是,这是对“健康生活”的最常见看法。它充满了羞耻感,提醒着过去的饮食失败,以及其他情感包袱。健康生活从来都不是“有趣的叔叔”,但如果你以自己的方式体验它,不带任何不必要的联想,它也可以很有趣。消除所有先入为主的观念,开始尝试吧,你会惊讶于这趟旅程可以有多享受。
这些小挑战背后的共同想法是:活跃是有价值的,无论多少。
电视挑战:看电视前先运动或活动20秒(开合跳、俯卧撑、原地慢跑、学小丑一样跳舞等)。需要提醒吗?把它们贴在你的电视或遥控器上。你可以用一个小标记或贴纸,因为你知道它代表什么。如果你认为20秒不值得,我向你发起挑战,现在就来验证这个理论。全速前进20秒,看看你的感觉如何。
虽然20秒很短,但当你在运动时,它会显得更长!然后,你的心跳会让你知道那20秒是多么“无用”。我认为20秒是这个小挑战的好时机,因为开始之前目标已经很清楚了,一旦开始,它也不会立刻结束,这会给你一种低阻力和令人满意的结果之间的良好混合。低阻力和令人满意的回报是任何行为坚持下去的强大公式(这就是坏习惯茁壮成长的原因)。
电视挑战奖励:每看30分钟电视,就起身活动20秒。我建议跳跳舞来吓唬你的家人。如果你和家人一起看电视时,突然站起来开始跳舞,却不告诉他们为什么要这么做,那么你就是我的好朋友了。
电视广告挑战:每次你在看电视的时候,起身四处走动。 甚至不需要“锻炼”,只需要起身四处走动就好。 广告本来就很无聊。 在房子里面走几圈。 清理屋子的一部分。 这样做可以防止你在观看电视时新陈代谢降低,同时还可以在做对身体有益的事情的同时享受乐趣! 当节目再次开始播放时,你会觉得自己因为“挣得”了更多休闲时间而感觉良好。 这听起来似乎有点傻,但请你在否定它之前先尝试一下。 感觉很棒。
用健康的生活方式“赚取”不健康的食物并不好,但为健康的生活方式“赚取”休息和娱乐是非常好的。休息和娱乐并不是有害的;它们是健康生活的重要组成部分,也是努力工作的自然回报。人们经常因为看太多电视而感到羞愧,但这只是因为他们被动地、大块头地看电视。如果你在闲暇时间加入活动,你会在多个层面上取得成功,因为会有协同效应。你会更享受你的娱乐,因为你不会被“懒惰的耻辱”分散注意力。
楼梯挑战:如果可能的话,走楼梯吧!为不用电梯或扶梯而感到骄傲。我是我公寓楼里唯一一个住在七楼还爬楼梯的人。为了得到不同的结果,你必须采取与他人不同的生活方式和思维方式。这是一个很好的机会。
注意不要用非黑即白的方式思考。如果你的目的地在18楼,你可以走三层楼梯然后再乘电梯上去。或者先乘电梯上去,在电梯里原地慢跑(尤其是当电梯里还有其他人时)。如果有多层楼梯和自动扶梯,可以先爬楼梯再坐自动扶梯。没有什么规则。没有人会说,“嘿!她刚刚走楼梯上来了,然后又改坐自动扶梯了!真不一致!太奇怪了!”
停车挑战:停在离商店最远的地方。步行距离其实没差多少,而且你也不会像其他人那样寻找“最好的停车位”超过五分钟。这里有个秘诀:最好的停车位其实就是离店最远的那个,因为这样你可以享受最好的散步、最美好的天气、最少的压力以及最有成就感的感觉。
步行/骑自行车挑战:如果你可以走路或骑车去某个地方,那就去做吧。我经常惊讶于走路去某个地方是多么令人愉快。
情境策略
规则可以被打破。策略永存。
“每个人都有计划,直到他们被击中。”
迈克·泰森
节食者遵循他们的好与坏食物清单,直到生活发生了变化,事实证明这种情况经常发生。这些规则是可以打破的,但策略却可以永远保持下去。
以下策略不是需要遵循的原则。这些是可以随时选择的心态和行动。你想用它们,什么时候用取决于你自己。所有这些策略都有助于引导你走向正确的方向。既然你可以不使用它们,所以如果你一时兴起吃了一个冰棒也不会感到“做错了”。
我们在上一章讨论的核心微习惯计划是“主菜”。 这些都是可选的,但强烈推荐的“配菜”。 这反映了健康生活的本质,即主要由习惯决定,次要由我们的视角和我们每天做出的非习惯性选择决定。
由于现实应用比理论更重要,因此以下是一些具有挑战性的实际情况的列表,这些情况会发生在您身上,并且提供了自定义策略来帮助您做出更多正确的选择。
你已经制定好了计划。 太棒了。 但突然,你想吃掉七块饼干…… 哎呀!怎么办? 最糟糕的做法就是直接抵制这种欲望,剥夺自己。
渴望是一种罕见的进步机会。你知道为什么吗?你的渴望背后有巨大的动力,我们可以利用它!当谈到目标时,这是数十亿人想要的东西。我们有了它,而且它很强大,但它是为了吃饼干而产生的动机,这与我们的目标不一致。我们如何利用这一点呢?
我用过我现在要告诉你的策略,效果非常积极。 我的一个不那么令人印象深刻的习惯是沉迷于电子游戏。 我玩过很多次双位数小时的游戏。(告诉你,我很懒)。 通常,当我有玩游戏的冲动时,我会想想之前的暴饮暴食,并告诫自己不应该再玩了,或者不应该再玩这么多(这听起来像不像你在饮食方面的样子?)。 这些想法都是出于羞耻感,让我们觉得被剥夺了什么,使事情变得更糟。
我发现了一个比羞耻感更好的策略。 假设我的总体目标是少玩游戏,多做有意义的事情。 当我受到诱惑时,我会在自己和游戏之间设置一个很小、不吓人且有益的障碍。 而且我在做这件事的时候,仍然可以毫无愧疚地玩那游戏。 说白了就是无罪恶感地玩游戏。 我已经多次成功地通过这种方式连续数小时地完成富有成效的工作,而且没有玩游戏。 其他时候,我会边工作边玩,最后对两边都感到满意。 不管做了什么,反正我都赢了。 现在让我们来谈谈当面对不健康食物的诱惑时,这个策略能为你做些什么。 除了核心的微习惯策略,这可能是整本书中最有意思的部分了。
如何成为机会主义者而不是受害者
一个渴望者典型的行为是什么?他们抵制,直到屈服于欲望。他们战斗、筋疲力尽、失败并吃掉美食。好像他们是欲求攻击的受害者。然后,他们会对自己输掉这场战争感到难过。如果这些“受害者”不仅能防御这种对欲望的攻击,还能发起进攻呢?我们要彻底改变这个游戏,让你再也不会以同样的方式看待你的欲望。
我们先问您一个问题。对您的长期减肥目标来说,吃不健康的零食或为吃不健康的零食感到羞耻哪个更糟糕?您认为随着时间的推移,哪一个会导致体重增加更多?在我们讨论对食物的渴望时,请把这个问题放在一边。
把你的欲望想象成一种磁力,它会不断地把你拉向它。你可以抵抗一段时间,但是一旦你放松警惕,你就会冲过去。我们的策略是在你和你的欲望之间设置一些小障碍来利用这种力量。不是替代你的欲望。在你和你的欲望之间。但在我们深入研究这些小障碍之前,我们必须先调整好视角。
通过完成这些小障碍,你确实离你的饼干(或者其他任何东西)更近了。但是,这一点非常重要,你并不是“挣得”它。你做这些事情不是为了“买下”吃不健康食物的权利。用健康行为“换取”不健康食物的概念表明它们相互抵消,它们的价值相等,一点点好可以弥补一点点坏,以及其他类似的错误观念。你没有买饼干,你是在买一张“免费通行证”。如果你完成了你的小挑战,你会同意吃这个东西而不感到羞耻。(如果你仍然感到羞耻,你应该为自己感到羞耻!事实上,那并不好。你明白了。如果你开始感到羞耻,请提醒自己你的交易。)如果你完成了这项任务,同意自己在不感到羞耻的情况下吃你想吃的东两。
如果你在想为什么你会选择去完成这些小障碍,而不是直接吃零食,我喜欢你的想法。质疑一切。这个策略非常有效,在很多情况下你会很乐意选择带有小障碍的包裹。为什么?因为与“直接吃饼干”的选项不同,带有小障碍的包裹没有任何羞耻感,而且你仍然能得到食物。这就是为什么我在玩电子游戏之前喜欢工作的原因——无论我是否在工作之后玩游戏,我都对自己的积极决定感到满意,并且不会对玩电子游戏感到内疚。
直接抵制食物诱惑是没有用且有害的。 今天成功地抵制了,明天你就更弱了; 第二天也抵制住了,第三天你会变得更弱。 直接抵制是对抗诱惑最常见的选择,但这是已被证实会失败的做法,原因有三个。 首先,它会让你觉得被剥夺了,如果可以选择的话,很少有人能长期忍受被剥夺的感觉。 其次,它让你更加关注诱感:“我不能吃巧克力”会让你想到巧克力,增强对它的渴望,从而消耗你的意志力。 第三,如果你屈服了,就会感到羞耻——当我们想做“正确的事情”,却做了相反的事时,我们会有这种感觉。 最后一点就是为什么你不应该“奖励”自己,而应该“获得”一个没有内疚的结果。
这不是一场抵制诱惑的战斗。 你在任何特定时刻是否能够抵制住诱惑并不重要,因为意志力之战并不会就此结束。 如果你赢了今早的饼干大战,那么在午餐时你可能会因为汉堡包肉饼大战而感到疲惫不堪,或者是因为今晚的芝士蛋糕山战役。 你可能会坚持一个小时然后就崩溃了。 也有可能会坚持几天或几周,然后在第37天暴饮暴食。 而引诱就像一个永无止境的威胁,这就是策略至上的原因,直接对抗是没有效果的。 这种策略可以让你一直战胜这种引诱,而不会耗尽你的意志力并使你感觉精疲力竭。 你可以一天重复多次这个过程,而且即使你屈服于这种诱感,这个过程本身的行为也会让你变得更强。
总结正确的观点:如果你能完成我下面要展示给你的两个小挑战,就给自己充分的许可去吃东西,不要羞愧,不要后悔,也不要有任何自我评判。 这会把你想吃的动力变成了做这些小挑战的动力,因为你只需要满足一个简单的小条件就可以获得免于羞愧的免疫力。 从表面上看,好像是你在允许自己增重并减肥:你说“我做了这些容易做到的事情,然后我可以毫无罪恶感地吃垃圾食品?! 你疯了吗?!”
我们现在正面临着心理学中与直觉相反的一面,因为尽管吃饼干不感到羞耻对你想吃所有饼干的那一部分有吸引力,但放弃羞耻对“我想吃健康食品来减肥”的那一部分更有益。
现在让我们把所有这些放在一起。让诱因(不害臊地吃东西)使动机(吃东西)变得更加诱人的动机,会给你带来极大的好处——减少你的羞耻感(立刻),同时激励你完成一个高度有益的小练习,旨在让你有时不再想要这个东西。你可能会或可能不会最终食用该物品,但这不是胜利的衡量标准。胜利的衡量标准是你是否加强了自己或削弱了自己。对于我之前问的问题:吃一些不健康的食物甚至暴饮暴食是一次性的事件。吃一件不健康的东西或一次暴饮暴食的羞耻感可以螺旋式上升并持续数年。哪一个听起来对你来说更大威胁?
这个小练习不仅会让你更觉知,它不会仅仅增强你的意志力和自控力;而是会塑造你而不是撕裂你。这不是关于个别案例,而是关于你在成为什么样的人。你可以“屈服于”你的欲望,并仍然在改变行为上取得重大进展。
看到这个有多强大了吗?你能看出这与“脂肪羞辱”、交替禁食和暴饮暴食周期以及死板的节食之间的区别吗?这是真正策略带来的清新感受。它优于世界上任何一位最聪明的医生告诉你应该吃什么来减肥。
现在,还有一个因素需要考虑。当你受到诱惑并决定接受这个小挑战时(我建议你尽可能频繁地这样做,因为这是双赢),请确保完成前两个动作是你开始的要求。你会发现我给你的清单比两个动作要长,这是因为你可以选择添加额外的挑战来满足你的要求。这完全取决于你自己!就像核心的小习惯策略一样,它有低门槛,没有上限。
如果你觉得你的挑战还不够“好”,不足以让你毫无愧疚地吃东西呢?首先,恭喜你,因为你终于在对抗正确的敌人。食物不是问题所在,自毁行为才是,而羞耻感就是自毁行为的核心。但我要提醒你,绝不能让羞耻心与饮食有关,因为食物并不具有道德属性(好的或坏的);不同的食物对我们的身体有不同的影响。除此之外,如果你觉得有必要,你可以随时多做一些任何一项挑战,或者你可以继续进行下一个微小的挑战。无论你决定做什么,都要把摆脱羞耻作为你的目标。
接下来是挑战。我之前称它们为障碍,因为基本上它们是你从A点到B点的路上的障碍,但这些更积极的说法是小挑战。
诱惑迷你例程
我考虑过订购顺序,但您可能会对不同的顺序做出更好的反应。我把冥想放在首位是为了放慢大脑的速度、提高正念、延迟行动并平静情绪。这解决了几个可能的食物诱因。然后,它转向替代品来满足生物上的渴望,锻炼以激活“健康生活”的动机,喝水来解决经常被误认为饥饿的口渴,稍作停留,选择另一项活动,贿赂,离开,最后,进行分量谈判。这里有一个详细的例子,使用饼干作为食物欲望的例子。
找个安静的地方坐下来。 如果你在聚会上,那就去一个相对安静的地方、室外或者洗手间。 集中注意力关注你的呼吸。 一分钟内不要去抵抗你的想法或欲望,把它们当成局外人来观察。 在YouTube上搜索“一分钟冥想”,就可以开始一段指导性的冥想旅程了。 为什么说这个方法排名第一? 冥想可以立刻减少压力,改善情绪,让你更留心生活。 这三个功能加在一起就是强大的抗诱惑三联疗法。 如果你觉得一分钟不够,那就试一下,亲自感受一下。
不要作弊。 尽量把注意力集中在呼吸上。 如果你的思绪开始游荡,比如想到甜点或其他东西——它们大概率会这样——那就轻轻地把它们带回到呼吸上。 人们常说,即使在冥想时分心了,也会有所收获。 正如其他技能一样,练习冥想是为了提高技巧,而不是为了第一次就能做得很完美。
想想你吃零食的时候。可能是在看电视、放松或感到有点懒散时。嗯,做完俯卧撑(或其他运动)后很难觉得懒散!这会让你在精神上处于更好的状态,抵制住不健康食物的诱惑或不再想吃它们。
这完成了诱惑迷你例程列表。如果你想改变顺序,那就随你的便吧。有些可能对你更有效。不要等到被诱惑时才决定小挑战的顺序,因为做决定会耗尽你的意志力,而这是个重要的资源(尤其是在被诱惑的时候!)。
如果情况需要,请随意即兴发挥。如果你的标准顺序如上所述,但你立即看到了一个更好的替代奖励(清单上的第 7 项),那么你可以直接选择它。话虽如此,始终做相同的迷你挑战很有帮助,因为当你受到诱惑时,这些行为会变得越来越习惯。这就是为什么我建议有一个你可以根据情况进行更改的首选迷你挑战顺序。
渴望示例
现在是晚上11点34分,你坐在沙发上,“天啊,我现在就想吃冰淇淋。”这是一种渴望。放松下来。不要把它变成一个“节食决策”。不要害怕屈服于你的欲望。尽量冷静地应对。
认识到羞耻感才是真正的敌人,你可以同意接受两个小挑战来毫无羞耻地吃冰淇淋。过去,你会让你对完全控制的需求转化为严格的规则,然后又反弹回来。现在,你正在温和地把行为从极端戒绝或暴饮暴食转变为冷静地做出决定。
冥想一分钟 吃健康的替代品(如果没有,跳到#3) 做一个俯卧撑(或选择其他运动) 选择继续接受挑战,或者继续吃你想吃的量。这并不是禁止,没有人会阻止你。然而,在你吃的时候,不要让你的大脑休息。尽情享受它,并考虑一下你到底有多想要吃掉它,所有的事情(包括体重增加)都在考虑之中。
边际效用递减法则说明,与第五片披萨相比,我们更喜欢第一片。这是所有事物的本质,这就是为什么吃饭时要保持专注很重要。我们很可能已经吃过不健康的食物,甚至不喜欢吃,只是因为我们没有专心致志地去吃。不管你吃什么,都要用心去品尝。
吃的时候,一定要好好享受
你会有做你的小挑战(或不做)的时候,仍然吃炸洋葱圈、苏打水或快餐。没关系。你只是人类。当这种情况发生时,不要试图通过“减肥”食品来欺骗和愚弄你的身体。
绝对不要吃减肥食品。 不仅因为减肥食品通常会让你发胖——体重增加是一种新陈代谢问题,而且它们比真正的糖对你的新陈代谢更糟糕——如果你试图减肥,那么吃“减肥食品”是你能做的最心理上反作用的事情之一。
这是典型的图片,一个人在狂吃薯片而毫无顾忌。这人喝着又一瓶无糖汽水,因为“为什么不呢?”它们不含卡路里!这个人把脱脂牛奶当水喝,仿佛奶牛都濒临灭绝了。一个“减肥”的产品让你相信,食用它不会让你发胖,或者比“非减肥版”少长点肉。这不是对羞耻感的降低,而是真相被掩盖!这种信念通常就是错的,但当你觉得必须多吃点以满足“它是减肥版”的要求时,情况就变得更糟了。
当你吃不健康的食物时,确保它富含真正的脂肪和糖。首先,这种食物在生物学上确实会让你感到享受和满足,因为你的身体可以消化这些物质。其次,你会更加意识到自己的决定。这就是为什么人们推荐用现金而不是信用卡支付——当你把钱交给别人时,你会比刷一张百元大钞更痛苦地感受到损失。同样的道理,当你大口咬下那个三层巧克力软冰淇淋圣代时,你会感受到收获!不是羞耻,而是收获。把这些食物与体重增加联系起来是有好处的,因为这是事实,即使它们充斥着非食品化学物质,并贴上了“低卡路里”或“减肥”的标签。
这并不是让你对自己的不健康饮食感到难过;而是要让你意识到,如果你整天吃蛋糕,减肥就没有捷径可走。真正的食物通过减少炎症、引发适当的奖赏和饱腹感反应,并给身体时间从弗兰肯斯坦食品的过去摄入中恢复过来来修复你的新陈代谢系统。
即使有了这本书中的优秀策略,如果你用“我必须努力吃好、为身体做最好的事情”这样听起来似乎无害的想法来对待你的饮食和运动习惯,你会给自己制造麻烦。当你对当前的饮食和运动习惯采取战斗姿态时,就是在向潜意识宣战。这是个坏主意!有些人一直在与最初的迷你习惯系统作斗争,因为他们实际上并没有摆脱旧有的思维方式。
《微习惯》以及此书中的其他策略都是经过深思熟虑的。 微习惯的力量在于它不会引发这些内部战争。 它的力量在于它不会威胁到你目前的生活方式。 就像出租车一样,它不加判断地把你从你现在的地方带走,然后带你去一个新的地方。
以下是至关重要的,如有必要,请重新阅读。如果你在面对诱惑时发现自己很难养成一个习惯或者完成一系列的小挑战,那是因为你在“错误地”抵制它。这是因为在试图强迫自己做“正确的事”。
当你被某物诱惑时,你的第一反应不应该是“哦,不,这是欲望。我能做些什么来阻止它?”即使你在那之后采取了明智的做法,但你最初对诱惑的直接抵制态度已经使你处于显著的劣势。
我会把这句话写三遍,因为它太重要了。
你越抗拒,你就会感受到更多的阻力。
你越抗拒,你就会感受到更多的阻力。
你越抗拒,你就会感受到更多的阻力!
这种做法的原理在于,你的“不做错事”的抵抗力会激发潜意识(因为它想做错事),然后你会觉得连做一个俯卧撑或喝一杯水都阻力重重。 从本质上讲,这些行为很容易,但当你把它们视为“有趣的事情”的障碍时,它们只会比人们经常失败的巨大目标好一点。
“速成法”的神话是养成小习惯成功的最大障碍之一。通过自由、接受现状以及有策略地、坚持不懈地朝向更好的行为来改变你的行为。或许在思想中传达正确的观点是最容易的。
好的:“那些饼干看起来很好吃,我想要一个。我知道它们会增重,所以我会完成两个迷你挑战,并从那里开始。”
坏:“那些饼干看起来很好吃,我很想吃一个。唉,但是我不能现在就吃!我应该!我真的想减肥,但是它们看起来太好吃了!我现在必须做点什么!我能尝试哪些策略来阻止自己吃掉它?”
看第一个回答是多么冷静、从容、随意、随和?第二个回答又是多么疯狂、防御性地、失控了?第一个回答有效是因为它没有制造输赢,也没有给你施加任何压力去立刻改变自己。它让你有时间呼吸。
坏处:“我打算做这个小挑战来战胜这种渴望。”
“微习惯”的“最终目标”就是完成这个微习惯。没有别的。你不应该指望一个微小的习惯能让你远离诱惑,或者把它们变成一次完整的锻炼,也不应该指望它们能让 你在任何一天爱上青豆。但你可以期待随着时间的推移,微小的习惯会提高所有这些领域的表现。这道理说清楚了吗?如果你对微习惯有过高的期待,那你就不再是追求 微习惯了,而是追求你的期待了。避免这种情况的方法是停止关注个别事件和结果,而是专注于养成这些小行为的一贯性。在减肥方面,每一战都很重要,但没有一场 战斗能赢得整场战争。不要害怕输掉战斗;害怕因为放纵自己的情绪而输掉整场战争(这就回到了那个问题:“吃饼干是不是比为吃饼干感到羞愧更糟?”)。
我知道你真的想改变。 我知道你真的很想摆脱一些坏习惯,这些习惯让你无法获得健康的身体和体型。 把这种能量投入到掌握这项策略中,你会得到真正的进步,而不是典型的节食过山车,在前10天减掉10磅,接下来的60天里又增加15磅。
情绪蛋糕螺旋
既然我们知道食物诱惑是由情绪驱动的,那么请考虑一下:这种高尚的抵制美食诱惑的做法会对你的精神状态产生什么影响?它会增加你意识与潜意识之间的摩擦。这种内部冲突会放大你整个人的情绪状态,进而使你对放纵的渴望更加强烈。
你看这蛋糕。你想吃这块蛋糕。但想到自己的减肥目标,你抵制住了诱惑。你纠结于这个决定,拼命地抵制着想吃蛋糕的欲望(而这种强烈的欲望只会让你对蛋糕念念不忘)。因为这场高风险的战斗,你感到压力山大、筋疲力尽、意志消沉。嘿,那块蛋糕看起来是个不错的转移注意力的对象!于是你咬了第一口蛋糕,甜美的味道立刻抚慰了你的大脑,你顿时如释重负、放松下来。但是没过多久,新的痛苦和羞愧感就又把你淹没。尽管你已经竭尽全力,但还是输了这场战斗,而你现在的心情比之前更糟糕了。随着压力和羞愧感愈加强烈,你对蛋糕的渴望也愈发强烈。现在你开始狂吃蛋糕,因为你感觉自己在生活的方方面面都失败了,而且似乎已经无关紧要。你假装那一刻不在意,但实际上这是因为你再也无法承受再次输掉这场战斗所带来的痛苦,以及它可能会给你的未来带来的影响。
这个过程与你的经验相符吗?你能理解我们为什么采取不同的方法吗?
当您感到食物渴望时,您有瞬间的时间来决定如何应对。 如果它是狂热的“哦不!我不能!”,那么您可能会失败。 相反,深呼吸,慢慢来,决定要冷静,并考虑本书中的战略选择。 如果您想尝试可选的诱惑策略,请这样做。 否则,没关系。
如果你买了它,你会吃的。
家庭饮食战争的胜负决定于杂货店。 你在杂货店买的食品决定了你家里的食物环境,而要想改变这个环境来达到你的目标是非常困难的。
如果你只买健康食品,你就能轻易地在家中消除不健康的零食问题。 我明白,在同一屋檐下的其他人不想加入你的行列时,事情可能会变得很复杂,但如果是这样的话,也许你可以请他们把不健康的零食藏起来。
我建议你在购物时这样操作:照常购买杂货。结账时,拿走一份不健康食品,用一份健康食品替代。为什么要这么做呢?让你买至少一个水果或蔬菜是很尴尬的。除非你的饮食习惯非常糟糕,否则你可能会在平时就买一些水果和蔬菜,所以“至少一个”的要求对你来说毫无意义。但用健康食品替代通常吃的不健康食品,可以立即实现双赢。
与所有微习惯一样,你可以继续养成健康的替代习惯,但开始时只需专注于一个。以下是一些例子:
用无糖或低糖黑巧克力交换糖果条 用香蕉(冷冻后口感像冰淇淋)和其他水果代替冰淇淋 用西葫芦面或全麦意面代替普通意大利面 用橄榄油、香蒜沙司和帕尔马干酪替代意面酱 用全谷物面包(如果可能,选择发芽面包)代替白面包 用水晶饮料或矿泉水和100%果汁代替苏打水(在水中加入少许果汁以增添风味) 用鹰嘴豆泥或鳄梨酱代替蔬菜蘸酱(或者,甚至更好的话,自己做!) 用橄榄油和香醋替代沙拉酱 用酸奶和水果代替谷物和牛奶(格兰诺拉燕麦片也可以,但很难找到不加糖的)。或者,简单的钢切燕麦或即时燕麦也是不错的选择(前者更好)。避免吃含有大量糖分的即食燕麦片。 用鱼肉代替肉类 用胡萝卜、芹菜、萝卜、樱桃番茄、西兰花或坚果等蔬菜类零食代替加工小吃。
如果你真的只买加工食品,你可以至少买一种新鲜或冷冻蔬菜(有一个计划来处理它;不要买南瓜然后让它在你的衣柜里腐烂... 不要把蔬菜放在你的衣柜里)。
健康食品的价格
改善家庭饮食的最佳方法之一就是让健康的食物触手可及。易得性在你是否愿意吃得健康上起着重要作用。购买健康食品并不是完全的答案,因为很容易买健康食品,然后吃别的东西的时候就放坏了。 有三个办法可以让健康的家庭饮食更容易得到。
沙拉是你能吃的最健康的食物之一,也是制作速度最快的,因为它不需要烹饪。有时我会用生菜和其他几种蔬菜、橄榄油、醋、胡椒粉、通用调味料和奶酪做简单的沙拉。其他时候,我会用 15 种以上的食材做一个大沙拉。最快的方法是在第一次处理时切很多蔬菜。把一堆萝卜、一根芹菜、几根胡萝卜、一个甜椒、几个番茄等全部切好。然后把需要的东西拿出来放在冰箱里,在三明治袋或特百惠塑料盒中存放剩下的东西。它们可以保存 3 到 4 天,下次你想吃沙拉的时候,你可以把你所有的食材都拿出来,把它们混在一个碗里,很快就能做出美味的大沙拉!对我来说,这种快速技巧就是我吃沙拉而不是在餐馆吃饭的区别。
要满足于健康饮食,这是绝对可能的,你就必须有足够的食物。你需要平衡第一部分(消费计划),因为没有什么比没有足够的食物更糟糕了在周围有健康的食物,但由于您没有计划如何消耗它而让它腐烂。 这浪费了你的时间、金钱和吃健康食品的动力。
总体目标是创造一个 有利于健康生活 的家居环境。增加健康食品与不健康食品的比例,计划消费,并了解自己愿意做哪种食物准备。尽管我喜欢吃健康的食物,但我并不愿意每天花两个小时来做饭。如果你喜欢,那就太好了;但如果你不喜欢,那就不要把它作为你的胜利条件。让事情变得方便、简单,你会做得很好。
情绪化进食 是不必要吃零食的主要原因, 而且很难克服。 我知道。
你可能期待我会告诉你,为了防止情绪化进食,你需要控制自己的情绪。但在这本书里不是这样。微小习惯之所以有效,是因为它们不依赖于情绪操控。
克服情绪最聪明的方法是间接的,因为当你直接对抗自己的情绪时,通常你会输。情绪是一种潜意识的感受,不会因为你想要消失就消失。为了感受不同,你就必须采取不同的行动。感受本身不是选择,但你的选择会极大地影响它。
希望每个人在生命中的某个时刻都能学到,专注于你能控制的事情会更有效。所以,与其试图扭转导致暴饮暴食的情绪,不如重置一下你的“情绪反应软件”。现在,当你压力大或难过时,可能会下意识地想吃薯片、冰淇淋或巧克力棒。
两种可能的情绪支持系统
作为一个人很难。我想我们都能同意这一点。因为生活艰难,所以我们往往需要来自他人的支持,也需要来自物质的支持。
有些人从冰淇淋、沙发和好看的电视节目中获得支持。即使适量,这也并不完全错误。但如果你在生活中主要且经常地依赖它们作为治疗手段,你的身体几乎肯定会积累脂肪。
你可以通过去健身房、吃健康的食物或冥想等方式获得类似的支持。这种支持不仅更有效——因为它从长远来看强化了你的思维、身体和情感上的韧性,而且这些事情也可以过度进行而没有负面影响。它们可以叠加!
当一个人面临改变行为以实现目标(减肥)时,他们可能会考虑他们必须放弃的令人愉快的事情,他们应该考虑到这一点。但他们也需要考虑自己得到了什么。平衡的观点是最好的。
打几个小时篮球后的感觉是我所知道的最好的感觉之一!我感到放松,疲惫但愉快,满足于活动,并且我的内啡肽在流动。运动被证明可以减轻压力并改善情绪。冥想也是如此。
"吃货就要吃"
吃零食也无妨。问题在哪里?这并不是一个要饿肚子的节食方法。与正餐一样,吃零食也有相同的观点和理念。显然,选择芹菜而不是纸杯蛋糕对你的体重更有好处,但如果你因为饿了而想吃点心,那么限制自己就是愚蠢的,因为你不会通过少吃食物(长期)来减肥,而是通过吃更健康的食物。
有些人建议我们每天只吃3到5顿饭,不要吃零食。他们不明白他们要求我们的这些吃货!新闻速递:减肥的同时也可以吃零食。禁止吃零食是我们反抗并抓起甜甜圈的经典例子。
如果你决定吃一些不健康的食物,那就选好你想吃的量,然后把它放在碗里。不要选择比自己想要的更少的东西,因为这样会打错仗。如果你想再拿一点也没问题,但下次试着拿你需要的数量。研究表明,“再来一份”的人在第一份食物就吃饱了的人相比,摄入更多的食物。
选择零食的量并不是人为地限制你的摄入量; 你在避免盲目“袋装”的饮食。 如果你在吃水果或蔬菜,那就把整袋都吃了并享受吧。 盲目吃那些能减肥的食物没什么问题,但要小心不要把生水果和蔬菜与有机蔬菜片或加糖水果杯等“假健康”食品混为一谈。
一个很好的经验法则是:饿了就吃,不要因为无聊。如果是因为需要能量而吃,而不是需要治疗师的话。如果你觉得想吃东西,但不是因为饿了,你可以尝试一下 诱惑迷你挑战 。 如果这个挑战是基于情绪压力的话,它可以帮助改善你的心情并减少或消除你的渴望。
记住,目标不是策略。 目标是在吃零食时不要选择冰淇淋和饼干,或者如果你吃了也不要用太多。 策略是尊重你的渴望,而不是试图剥夺自己。 做冷静、理性的选择,比如接受诱惑迷你挑战,选择你的食物分量,用心吃饭,在饱了之后就停止。 如果你这样做了,你会吃得更少不健康的食物。 不要忘记这一点,并开始回到节食的心态“哦,天哪,我想要薯片。 我必须抵制它才能成功!” 这就是你会失败的时候。 逆流而上是没有用的,目标不是策略。 别忘了!
话虽如此,你的目标也不是被忽视。你应该保持对吃更健康食物的目标的关注。如果你不再关心自己的目标,盲目地遵循这本书中的策略,那么你会很难做出正确的选择。关注你的目标,并明智地采取行动——这就是成功的秘诀。
在大多数情况下,如果你经常在外面吃饭,减肥会很困难。外出就餐是我最喜欢做的事情之一,而且我经常这样做,但我非常谨慎地选择在哪里以及吃什么。当你在餐馆用餐时,你不能假定他们的食物是健康的,因为它可能含有不健康的添加剂和不必要的糖、钠和脂肪。餐厅的食物通常是为味道而不是健康而制作的,尤其是因为顾客对所使用的成分视而不见(我发现这令人沮丧)。
顾客询问成分和营养信息是很不寻常的事。 那时候食物很简单,这可以理解,但现在比以往任何时候都更重要的是要知道你在吃什么,而餐厅是你必须“盲吃”的地方之一。
假设餐厅食材不健康,除非食物非常简单(例如蒸蔬菜),或者餐厅明确说明他们使用了哪些食材。如今越来越多的餐馆在宣传没有人工色素或香料、不含防腐剂、无抗生素肉类等信息。只是要提醒大家,餐点中可能仍然含有过多的糖、盐和脂肪。
检查配料表
当你考虑在餐厅吃饭时,我建议你先谷歌一下“[餐厅名称]成分”。不是很多餐厅会在网上列出他们的食材,但是一些连锁餐厅会这么做。如果你找不到确切的成分,你可能会发现一些关于它们的评论。如果你找到了配料表却不认识某个成分,那它可能是一种化学合成的防腐剂或调味剂。如果配料表非常长,这也是一个危险信号。
关心体重意味着要关注食物中的成分。如果优质食材成为标准,那么事情会变得简单一些,但它们更贵,消费者也很少询问配料。作为商家,餐馆有更大的动力使用价格低廉、味道不错的食材。
比你多久在外面吃一次饭更重要的是:
你在哪吃 你点什么
一般来说,健康的饭菜是简单的蔬菜(如果你不是素食主义者的话也可以加肉),而最糟糕的食物包括油炸食品、油脂和酱汁(在许多餐馆里,酱汁都是隐藏卡路里的来源)。酱料和调味品的味道很棒,但它们几乎总是含有大量的不健康脂肪(大豆油)、糖和化学添加剂,并且它们不能提供饱腹感。
对餐厅食物了解得越多,你就越能更好地控制外出就餐的频率和选择。 你可以调查一下自己喜欢的餐馆,看看它们的食物质量如何。 除了查看配料外,你还可以在网上找到餐厅菜单,看看是否有你喜欢的健康食品。
问对问题
如果你考虑一道有肉或鱼的菜,询问他们是如何烹饪它的。希望它烤、烘焙或烧烤。在几次意外中,我点了炸食物,因为菜单没有说明使用的烹饪方法,而我没有问。现在如果没写的话我会问。
当然,这些都不是规则——你可以吃任何你想吃的东西。知道正确的方法和有压力去完美地实践它是不同的。由于外出就餐时很容易把不健康的食物误认为是健康的食物,所以了解这些细节是很重要的。最糟糕的是,当你不是在吃健康食品的时候,你会认为你在吃健康食品!
心态检查:对于想要减肥的人来说,吃高质量的食物并不是“必要的痛苦”或“惩罚”。你刚刚读到的内容正是我对待餐馆用餐的方式——我只是关心自己的健康。有时我会在不查看成分的情况下吃饭,但我知道我经常去的餐厅的食材是什么。你最常做的事情决定了你的长期结果。
热狗的力量
小时候,我吃饭凭口味(记得吗,我喜欢吃唇膏的味道)。如果我还是按照这个标准来的话,我会很喜欢热狗。但当我看到热狗时,我看到了充满防腐剂的加工面包;当我看到热狗肉时,我想到了里面令人作呕的成分。
在许多文化中,谈论食物原料并不常见。在美国,有人会说,“这只是一个热狗,伙计。” 不想吃下不适合人类食用的实验室产物是很不寻常的。为什么?轶事证据比比皆是,比如“我叔叔每天都吃热狗,他活到了88岁”,这更多地说明了叔叔的活力,而不是热狗适合食用。还有联想的问题,这次是我们的损失。 许多人最美好的记忆都与最难吃的食物有关。在美国,人们把棒球比赛和热狗联系在一起。人们看电影时,联想到的是装满苏打水的大桶和一大桶咸黄油,上面还撒了一些爆米花。难忘的派对和节日聚会几乎都是由不健康的食物组成的。
这些联系对我们有几层影响——个人记忆叠加在社会配对之上(热狗和棒球、蛋糕和生日等),再叠加在当前的社会规范之上(和男生们一起喝啤酒,在大学里吃披萨等)。 这些社会力量是世界上最有影响力的,它们让我们变胖。
如果我要提及热狗不像食物的一面,我可能会冒犯到某人。也许这个人小时候 会和他父亲一起去棒球比赛,总是吃热狗。他父亲已经去世了,现在热狗成为了他的一部分记忆,所以如果我告诉他热狗有多糟糕,他会觉得我在影射他父亲是个糟糕的父亲,因为他让儿子吃热狗,或者我觉得他在吃热狗很可耻。这就是为什么食物不仅仅是卡路里、营养和食物质量的讨论。它也是文化、社会、记忆、情感、习惯和体验。食物的质量只是减肥书籍所强调的表面问题。但真正对我们饮食习惯产生影响的是我们潜意识里的那些东西。
不同结果需要不同
2016 年的一项研究发现,只有 2.7% 的美国人符合健康的生活方式(不吸烟、低体脂率、积极的生活方式和健康的饮食)。这并不会让人感到惊讶。当你外出时,你不喝酒就会觉得奇怪,或者建议吃蔬菜作为零食,或者点一份大沙拉。这是因为可悲的是,现在不再正常地吃真正的食物了。
要想保持健康的体重,你就必须与普通人不同,因为如今在许多国家,普通人的体重都超标了。有些人理解得没有错,但应用方法不对。他们改吃减肥食品、饮料,试图饿着自己,还进行“排毒”。据估计,每年有 4500 万美国人节食,真正成功的却寥寥无几。你不希望自己的身材与超重的人一样;你也同样不希望自己的身材与正在节食的人一样。这意味着你必须采取与众不同的方式(小习惯法是不同的且有效)。
即使有了更好的信息,行为改变也会滞后
尽管如此,随着营养教育的普及,人们知道应该怎么做,但持久的行为改变仍然是罕见的。据估计,美国人中约有四分之一每天吃快餐。在2015年,美国快餐业的收入超过2000亿美元。全球范围内为5700亿美元。那可是天文数字。
这就是为什么这本书能改变游戏规则。这些策略非常强大,它们能够赋予你力量来对抗肥胖的世界潮流。
同伴压力策略
既然我们已经讨论了健康生活面临的压力有多大(很大),那么现在该解决这个问题了。首先,如果你的任何友谊都依赖于你不健康的生活方式,那么根据定义,这是一种不健康的友谊!真正的朋友不会评判你,也不会因为你的明智选择而试图让你感到难过。随着你逐渐养成小习惯来改变自己的行为,你应该能够继续与朋友保持联系,但要意识到,即使以渐进的方式进行生活方式的改变也可能会改变你们的关系动态。
每当你的饮食决定受到同辈压力的影响时,问问自己此刻什么对你更重要——健康还是适应环境。 我并不是在贬低任何人,也不是暗示“你应该永远选择健康”。 有时候我们更愿意随大流而不是选择健康的生活方式,这并没有错。 问题在于,当你无法控制自己的选择,而同辈压力总是占上风的时候。 如果你有屈服于同辈压力的历史记录,那么你需要练习更加独立地做决定。 同辈并不需要忍受你的选择,只有你自己需要。 这里有一些应对同辈压力的方法。
从喜好出发,而非义务。人们通常会尊重你的喜好。如果你不喜欢某样东西,别人不会强迫你吃下去。但如果你因为“正在节食”而“不能吃”,他们可能会试图诱使你放纵一下。顺便说一句,人们希望你加入他们的放纵行列的原因之一,是为了让他们对自己的不健康生活方式感到更好。如果你订了一份沙拉,而其他人都点了炸鸡和薯条,那么你的沙拉可能会让其他人开始质疑自己的决定(或者为此感到难过)。就好像你碗里的生菜在训斥他们,当他们正享受着自己的油炸食品时。
假设你决定选择更健康的食物,尽管你的朋友都沉溺于不健康的饮食。太好了!但是其中一个朋友对你的选择发表了评论或提问(别担心,因为健康饮食是不寻常的)。你会怎么说?
你能做的最糟糕的事情就是表现得好像不吃巧克力蛋糕不是你的选择。这是为了减少对决定的责任而向权威发出呼吁。这似乎让你摆脱了质疑,因为你“只是在按照指示行事”,但这往往会激起他人错误的反应。如果我是你的朋友,你告诉我因为一些你编造出来的假想权威而不允许自己吃蛋糕,我可能会被激励去帮你摆脱这个不让你享受生活的权威。你暗示你想吃蛋糕,但没有选择的自由。你也可能开始考虑反抗这个假想的权威。没有人喜欢快乐警察!
如果你自信地说你不想要巧克力蛋糕,那么你的朋友几乎没有什么理由与你争论。在食物选择方面,个人偏好是你最终的权威,大多数人都本能地理解并尊重这一点。如果有人坚持要你吃,那就继续声明你想吃什么或不想吃什么就行了。就是这样简单。你不需要任何“我在节食”的借口来不吃甜点。有很多其他原因可以解释你为什么不吃甜点。
正确且有力的回答
“我不想要[不健康的食物]。”
“我真的很想要[健康食品]。”
“我宁愿吃[健康食品],也不愿吃[不健康食品]。”
弱响应
“我不能吃[不健康的食物],我在节食。”
“不,谢谢。我在减肥。”
“我必须吃这个[健康的食物]。”
也不要将自己的健康选择强加于他人。 吃健康食品时,你能做的最好的事情之一就是明确表示你不评判任何人的食物选择(也不应该!)。 人们选择吃什么是很私人、不道德的,不应该让别人担心。 如果有人评论我的饭菜很健康,那可能是因为他们对自己的饮食选择感到羞愧,所以我通常会赞美他们的餐点,或者提到我有时也会吃他们点的食物。 这是真的。 正如我说过的,我也吃过所有最糟糕的食物,就像大多数人一样。 根据一顿饭来判断一个人吃什么是没有意义的,也是徒劳的。
如果你想鼓励别人吃得更健康,那么指责他们并不是办法。没有人喜欢“健康食品警察”。即使出于好意鼓励某人吃更健康的食物,也可能意味着有罪恶感。对许多人来说,这是一个敏感的话题,所以要小心!最好的方法就是像《减肥迷你习惯》中所建议的那样思考食物——食物选择永远不是坏的、错误的、禁止的或非法的。
有些食物对我们的健康和体重有害,但我们有权选择吃它们。如果你从这本书中得到的是这样的信息,并决定整天躺在床上吃蛋糕而不感到内疚,那是你的选择,我不会因此评判你。持久的成功来自于自由、选择、赋权和正念,而不是内疚和羞耻。
总之,应对同伴压力的方式是通过相互尊重。要求他人尊重你的饮食选择和欲望,并给予他们同样的尊重作为回报。
因此,节日期间看似微小的体重增加对长期减肥计划来说是毁灭性的。 节日派对(或其他类型的聚会)上的行为很重要,因为在这些时候,糟糕的食物选择、同伴压力和“特殊场合效应”等因素最有可能导致做出不好的决定。
派对零食心理学
想象一下,你在派对上有很多零食,有些健康,有些不健康。(如果你在派对上发现任何健康的零食,那很可能就是你带去的。)当看到蔬菜和饼干时,不要以非黑即白的方式思考,这会导致你产生逆反心理。这不是蔬菜或饼干的问题——想想如何最好地将你的甜食爱好与健康目标结合起来,并尽力“吃得健康”。一个饮食健康的人和一个饮食不健康的人之间的区别比你想象的要小。一个是吃得健康,另一个则是吃得不那么健康。一个人假期会胖一磅,而另一个人可能不会胖或者每月减掉一点体重,包括假期也是如此。随着时间的推移,微小的选择累积成了重大的变化。
节日不是特别的食物场合,而是特殊的时刻。食物不应该成为使节日变得特殊的东西。否则的话,节日就只是去一个好的自助餐厅吃饭而已。
尽最大努力让你的假期快乐与食物和啤酒脱钩。 这并不是说你不应该吃不健康的食物; 我的意思是,不要因为“哦,这是假期,所以我可以心安理得地吃!” 而放弃对饮食选择的责任。 如果你真的开始改变——而你的日常微小习惯会帮助你做到这一点——那么你的健康生活方式就不会只持续每周46周,而是全年如此。 因此,假期是你真正立场的一个很好的指示器。 节食者总觉得自己在每个假期都会被撕裂,因为他们知道自己“应该”这样做,但他们就是不想这么做。 改变潜意识偏好的人不再像以前那样渴望这些食物了。
很难在不传达出“你不可以再开心了”的感觉的情况下,去表达成功所需要的正念和一致性。我知道节食让我们所有人都容易陷入“我不能做XYZ,因为……”的心态。这是一个失败的计划。真正的改变意味着我不想做XYZ。
党的策略
这不是一个“要小心”的情况,而是“要留心”。这给错误的暗示,你会回到节食直接对抗的老路上。在派对上冷静地采取策略。与自己谈判并达成协议。保持警觉。例如,也许你可以谈谈吃点糖果,但喝点水,或者选择喝酒,但吃胡萝卜和芹菜作为零食。都很好吃。你是冷静的。你赢了。
当你在思考吃什么,吃多少时,最好的潜在心态之一就是 简单地关心你的身体和健康。 这一点很重要,它会让你真正不想吃一些 不值得的食物。 我不吃很多糖果是因为我知道(也不喜欢) 它们对我身体的影响。 也许有些食物——比如三层巧克力蛋糕—— 在你看来很值,那么也许你可以吃一片,然后慢慢享受, 悠闲地品味,不要感到羞愧。
吃一片三重巧克力蛋糕时,有几种方法。
匆忙、狂躁、紧张、受刺激时吃东西,抵抗到最后关头才屈服,狼吞虎咽。满足感不仅来自对糖分和蛋糕味道的渴望,也来自抵抗的压力结束后的轻松感。正常地吃,但充满羞愧和失败的想法。不吃会感到完全剥夺了所有快乐和生活。慢慢地、全神贯注地、愉快地吃一片,肆无忌惮地享受每一口,注意什么时候饱了就不要再吃了(即使盘子里还有)。
永远不要忘记,减肥的大敌是加工食品,但减肥行为改变(最重要)的大敌是一些无意识的饮食、羞耻感、不一致性和放弃。
正念是什么样的
当你不想吃不健康的东西时,你就不会吃。 当你只是“有点”想吃不健康的食物时,你会等到你想吃的时候再吃。 但如果你吃了不健康的食物,你会细细品味每一口,并比任何人都享受它。
不羞于吃的样子
当你吃不健康的食物时,你就不太可能暴饮暴食。吃完不健康的东西后,它不会影响你的下一个决定(这是件好事)。吃完不健康的东西后,你会在减肥过程中保持坚定和自信,而不是崩溃和痛苦。
一致性是什么样子的
当你持续吃健康食物时,偶尔不健康的食物不会影响你的成功。 当你持续以新的方式行事时,你会养成习惯,并开始更喜欢这种行为。 当你持续获胜时,你会期待胜利并表现得像个赢家。
永不放弃能做什么
永不放弃的人会找到通往成功的路。 每一个成功故事都有一个共同因素:坚持。 即使你每天都在用小习惯取得成功,也不意味着不会遇到困难时期。 关键是要减少这种日子带来的心理伤害,而要做到这一点,就需要把上述因素与永不放弃的决心结合起来。
以冷静、战略性的思维参加派对,你会成为那里为数不多的能享受乐趣并取得进步的人之一。随着时间的推移,你会做出更好的选择,这将导致更健康的偏好。
十
结论
你已经尝试了很多次节食,这次试试这个
“人们可以看见我用以克敌制胜的各种妙策,但却看不见使胜利成为可能的种种战略。”
孙子兵法
我每天做一次俯卧撑,以养成经常锻炼的习惯。 它把一致性放在首位,这样可以改变大脑,让它习惯运动,在早期成功中提高短期和长期的动力,并通过开始每天锻炼来最大化基于动力的进步,以及通过确保长期连胜来改善我的士气。 那些看到一个俯卧撑策略的人可能会把它与“100俯卧撑挑战”等事情进行比较,即每天做100个俯卧撑。 如果不考虑这些策略背后的策略,只比较它们,通常会导致错误的选择。 每天100个俯卧撑背后的战略相对来说很弱。 这样做的目的是快速取得进步,产生滚雪球式的动力,但这几乎总是被大脑的缓慢变化、善变的动力、有限的意志力和生活的不可预测性所阻止。
大多数想要减肥的人会选择节食作为首选策略。 节食背后的逻辑是,通过比不试图减肥的人做更极端的事情来减肥(其中之一就是有意制造热量赤字)。 这种改变在生理上和神经上都会受到阻碍,而这些变化超出了我们的控制范围。 因此,即使您在这个计划中取得了成功,也有可能达不到您的目标,正如简介中所提到的那样。 该方法有多么糟糕——当完美执行时,它会失败。 不仅如此,极端的变化不仅不是减肥所必需的,而且还会适得其反。
我们讨论过的这种新思维是要认识到减肥和行为改变最好是循序渐进。当变化是逐渐的时候,我们就不会触发大脑让我们回到旧习惯的防御机制,也不会触发身体让我们重新获得体重(甚至更多)的防御机制。相反,当我们改变我们的行为和饮食偏好时,我们会系统地降低基础脂肪水平。
为了配合这一点,我们已经澄清了减肥不是碳水化合物、脂肪或卡路里的问题,而是食物质量的问题。将这些因素中的任何一个孤立出来都是不正确的,尽管很流行,但却是对事情的过度简化。每种宏量营养素都有不同类型,它们在人体内的作用大相径庭。橄榄油和椰子油是健康的脂肪。反式脂肪和植物油是不健康的脂肪。水果和蔬菜是健康的碳水化合物。薯片、苏打饼干和炸薯条等高度加工食品是不健康的碳水化合物。任何人都可以指出一个不健康的脂肪或不健康的碳水化合物的例子,并说:“就是这样!这是碳水化合物(或者脂肪)!”这就像遇到一个刻薄的人就断定所有人都是刻薄的一样。我们中的一些人很好!观察性研究一致发现,脂肪、碳水化合物和热量有时好,有时坏,这取决于来源的质量。
有些人说我们吃得太多。这可能是真的,但如果我们吃得太多的话,为什么呢?我们的祖先在计算卡路里上更熟练还是买无糖纸杯蛋糕上更熟练?真正重要的因素是饱腹感、满足感、微量营养素和植物营养素。如果你有两样食物,每份都是100卡路里,但一份重14倍,而且每份卡路里提供的饱腹感更强,你怎么能说卡路里就是全部呢?草莓的热量是薯片的14倍。对于仍然相信卡路里计算的人,我邀请你们来挑战草莓条!
请自担风险。我不推荐这么做。
有一天,看看你能吃多少 8 盎司的薯片。我想我可以在一次饭量中吃完整袋。还有另一天,看看你能吃多少 7.2 磅的草莓。一袋薯片和 7.2 磅草莓含有相同数量的卡路里,所以只要你“数”了它们,不管是吃薯片还是草莓都没关系吧?哦,那是什么?当你试图吃掉七磅草莓时你的胃爆炸了吗?免责声明:请勿在家或任何其他地方尝试此挑战。
如果有人告诉你,卡路里计数才是最重要的,那就让他们接受这个挑战。当他们拒绝或找借口说,“嗯,你只需要适度吃薯片”,你可以向他们解释,每卡路里的饱腹感比仅仅计算卡路里更重要(当然,微量营养素也很重要,但它们不如七磅草莓那么直观,所以我们保持简单)。如果你只计算卡路里,你可能会挨饿并破坏你的新陈代谢。吃健康的食物来满足你的饥饿感和营养需求。这才是正确的解决办法。
总结一下这本书的新思维:不要担心碳水化合物、脂肪、蛋白质或卡路里。只要关注你吃的食物的质量就好了。如果你吃了高质量的食物,其他所有的事情都会自然而然地解决。在一个痴迷于加工食品的世界里吃高质量的食物并不容易,但比起计算卡路里、碳水化合物或脂肪来要容易得多。不需要数学。我喜欢数学,但不喜欢计算卡路里的数学。
不要违反这些法律。如果你这样做了,你会大大降低成功的机会。
不要节食,称之为养成小习惯。 小习惯是一种微小而简单的改变,而不是“抱歉,我不能吃那个。 我在减肥,只能吃沙拉。” 节食迫使你吃健康的食物,但你的小习惯会让你更享受它。
你的身体已经习惯了某种饮食方式,如果你威胁到它,你会输掉 95% 的时间(根据一些研究,这是节食失败率)。 如果你强烈渴望吃汉堡包,那就想想看吧,然后应用这本书中介绍的可选诱惑策略,看看是否会发生变化。但即使如此,如果它仍然存在且强大,那么 你最好还是去吃那个汉堡!享受它。
如果你因为想取得进步而对你的渴望感到沮丧,那么你仍然可以取得进步。 每口食物咀嚼30次。 喝水。 看看生菜包是否比面包更令人满意。 内战中也有内战,最优决策通常不是极端的。 即使输掉整场战争,也比赢得战争不重要。 我们不再盲目地挥舞。 我们选择我们知道我们会赢的战斗。 耐心和狡猾的战略导致胜利。
减少垃圾食品摄入的方法就是无条件地允许自己吃,然后用策略帮助自己做出更健康的决定。把限制留给节食者。如果你在遵循减肥小习惯策略时感到受限制,那可能是因为你的方法不对,或者你需要调整它以适应自己的需求。
这并不意味着,如果你有吃不健康食物的欲望时,你就应该总是吃不健康的食物。如果你更喜欢汉堡包,但是发现鲑鱼和蔬菜几乎一样好吃,那就去吃鲑鱼吧。这不是对无法控制的食欲的剥夺;这是在两个可取的选择中做出更好的选择。
没有必要为自己的体重或饮食感到羞耻。 如果你只用两口就吃掉了一片披萨,那你没有犯罪, 也没有破坏减肥的机会,更不用说做错了什么“坏事”了。 食物是没有道德属性的。 也就是说,食物本身并没有对错之分(除了某些宗教——那些人自己心里清楚)。
也就是说,吃汉堡包、苏打水、薯条、糖果、抱子甘蓝、法式洋葱汤或培根不会影响你的自我感觉。 想想看—— 几乎每个人都吃过几乎所有种类的食物。 吃大家都吃过的东西有什么不好的呢? 这没有道理。 我是个健康狂人,但我还是吃了所有最糟糕的加工食品。 在 90 年代,有一种名为 Surge 的流行饮料,我喝了它,就好像它赋予了我超能力一样。 Surge 的糖分和咖啡因含量比大多数软饮料都要高,所以有时候我会觉得自己有超能力。
食物是我们赖以生存的东西。 除了我在泰国吃的蟋蟀以外,其他都很好吃。 邻居们刚吃完的油炸食品仍然能给他们提供生存的能量。
你可以充分意识到食物对身体的影响,而不会因为吃东西感到羞耻。通过不节食,你会更容易做到这一点,但如果你的老“节食”本能再次出现,你可能需要提醒自己。你甚至可能需要有意识地、自信地吃不健康的食物来证明它不是犯罪。你有一个减肥计划,但它与那些不起作用的计划完全不同。它是基于你的个人自由、自主权和赋权。没有食物被限制。
现在就做出决定,不要再为你的体重或饮食感到羞愧。只要摆脱了羞耻感,你就会觉得轻盈一百磅,而且你绝对不会想念它!
这一点很重要。许多人阅读策略驱动型书籍时,会试图“按照成功的步骤行事”。对于这种策略来说,尤其如此,你需要主动出击。成为领导者,并将此作为您变革的指南针。所有优秀的领导都有顾问。这本书就是你的顾问,但你才是决定者。这是你的生活。
如果你把自己贬低为一个甲板手,你会遵循字面意义上的指示,可能会错过使这种策略有效的概念。那些对这个策略最成功的人将是那些“理解它”的人。他们会看到发挥作用的概念,比如微小且不为人所察觉的变化不会引发身体或潜意识的反制措施,耻辱如何摧毁我们,而小小的胜利又如何激励我们,自主权如何赋予我们新的力量,而规则却让我们屈服直到反抗,或者一致性比其他任何事情都更重要,因为它塑造了我们的习惯性偏好。
描述船长与水手之间差异的最佳方式之一是:船长会根据需要做出改变,而水手只会做他被告知的事。 船长通常更积极主动,这使得额外的重复动作成为可能(而且是此策略最令人兴奋的部分)。
你可以随心所欲地生活,但你会拥有强大的策略来改变自己。这是一个终身策略,因为你并没有放弃你的自由。你在给自己的生活增加力量,而不是听从别人的指导或剥夺自己以获得结果。请上车,船长。(我可以建议夏威夷吗?)
当你说“算了吧”的时候,开始暴饮暴食的那一刻就是你失败的时候了——不是因为你即将吃掉整个芝士蛋糕,而是因为 你让想要减肥的“严格”的自己 太久地控制了欲望很强、喜欢芝士蛋糕的自己。为了让这个冒险成功,你必须在意识上和潜意识里都对自己的决定感到满意。你需要做出决定,既要支持一个更健康的自己,也要给自己带来肉体上的舒适感。
反直觉的是,阻止叛乱的方法不是通过武力(比如意志力),而是让叛乱看起来像是一个荒谬的想法。人们不会反抗他们喜欢的东西。确保你喜欢自己正在做的事情。这个策略旨在非常讨人喜欢,但你可以自由地定制它以更好地满足你的需求。只要小心不要把它“定制”成典型的节食系统——规则和限制。这就是为什么理解这些概念对成功至关重要。
注意你喜欢吃的健康食物。这些就是你的英雄,你可以依靠它们来滋养自己。如果你不太喜欢蔬菜,但是对西兰花有特别的喜爱,那就多吃点西兰花。如果你喜欢吃萝卜条,那就经常吃吧。如果你非常喜欢芦笋的味道,那就在手边一直放着它。
节食的人往往会强迫自己吃他们不喜欢的食物。有些食物是后天养成的口味,所以偶尔让自己吃点不喜欢的食物也没关系,但不要把它当成主要策略。选择你喜欢的食物可以避免“为减肥而受苦”的心态。如果你觉得没有健康食品是你喜欢的,那就继续尝试吧。你还没有全部试过,而且你很可能是在跟加工食品比较。当你吃了大量加工食品时,健康食品就没那么有吸引力了,因为它不同。不要把吃健康食品当成替代品;把它当作练习。你越是一致地吃健康食品,你就越想要它。
小习惯是一种强大的微小行为。 它们可以改变你的生活。 但是,它们并不是魔法。 我的意思是,它们在多大程度上有效几乎是神奇的,但你不能认为,“好吧,我做了一个俯卧撑,什么也没发生。” 这句话背后的人对成功漠不关心,希望不用努力就能获得成功。 要想让“微习惯”策略发挥作用,你仍然需要付出努力,就像任何其他策略一样。 成功所需的努力总量低于大多数,但仍然需要努力。
你的目标是你想去的地方。 你的策略是你计划如何达到那里。
加工食品很糟糕。它是减肥的大敌。因此,目标是停止吃它们。然而最好的策略并不是“不吃”,因为一个“垃圾食品禁令”会让你在不吃的时候感到被剥夺,在吃的时候感到羞愧。
你的目标不是你的策略,但目标仍然很重要。把目标当作策略一样糟糕的是忽视目标,盲目地使用策略。如果你吃胡萝卜并被动地等待“策略应该有效”的事情发生,那么你就没有考虑到你最初的目标——过上更健康的生活。
当你知道自己的目标,并使用聪明的方法来实现它们,你会繁荣昌盛。你的目标给你方向和欲望,而你的策略让你能够达到目标。这里有一些例子。
错误(把目标当作策略):“我想戒掉汽水,所以我停止喝汽水。”
正确:“我想戒掉汽水。我的策略是允许自己喝,但要准备一些健康的替代品,每次想喝汽水时,我都会完成我已经设置的小障碍课程,包括喝一杯清爽的青柠水。”
错误(忽视目标,盲目地尝试策略):“我会在每天下午三点吃一根胡萝卜,因为斯蒂芬说。” (这可能会起作用,但这不是最佳视角。)
正确:“我想通过多吃蔬菜来减肥。我的策略是在每天下午3点吃一根胡萝卜,这样随着时间的推移,我就会逐渐减少对吃蔬菜的抵触。此外,在某些日子,我可以利用这种势头在那个时候多吃一些胡萝卜或其他蔬菜,或者这可能会鼓励我在接下来的一天里继续做出正确的决定。第一步应该打破我通常感受到的阻力,使我走上正轨,而每天都这样做可以养成吃胡萝卜的习惯。”
既然我们已经涉及了这么多信息,您可能会想知道如何将所有这些放在一起。让我们从宏观角度来审视一下这本书的可操作部分。
减肥迷你习惯策略有四个组成部分。其中三个是可选的,一个则是每日必需的。我们已经详细讨论过这些,这里是它们如何共同发挥作用的概述。
每日微习惯(强制性):选择 1 到 4 个你每天都会做的微习惯,并选择一个适合你的个性和生活方式的实施计划(如“微习惯计划”部分所述)。这些日常微习惯是改变最重要的组成部分,因为它们是你持续进步的基础。即使在糟糕的一天,它们也很容易做到,这就是为什么显著的一致性不仅是可能的,而且是非常有可能的。每日微习惯是整个微习惯策略中唯一强制性的方面。如果你想成功,每天都必须完成。既然这是“必须做”的要求,提醒自己这些行为有多么简单是有帮助的,否则你可能会感到被控制并反抗。如果你对你的微习惯有阻力,请考虑以下建议:
想象一下,如果你真的完成了你的小目标,那有多容易。 想象它。 不要拿你的目标和其他任务比较。 对任何前进都是积极的。 为忽视你的环境设定先例。 进步很少是方便的。 别低估了短期内或长期内一个小的好决定能给你的生活带来的影响。
如果你能将这种心态内化,你就会茁壮成长。除了迷你习惯之外,剩下的策略都是关于改变你的思维方式,并利用以下可选策略来帮助你。
诱惑策略(可选):在“情境策略”章节中,有一个可以覆盖所有情况的广泛的诱惑策略。这个诱 惑策略旨在减少羞耻感,减轻你的渴望程度,并赋予你现在和将来做出更好决定的能力。这三个目标 通过一个简单的“迷你障碍课程”来实现。这个策略很聪明,因为它甚至在你“失败”并沉溺于某 种欲望时也能增强你的能力。你不可能永远抵制加工食品,所以任何依赖你做到这一点的战略(读: 你曾经阅读过的任何其他减肥书籍)都是不好的战略。
诱惑策略是可选的,这意味着你不必每次都试图实施它。你的目标是做出更健康的选择,这是一种帮助你实现这一目标的方法。如果我建议你让它成为强制性的,那会干扰到更广泛的迷你习惯策略。如果你强迫自己每次被诱惑时都要使用这个策略,但你并不总是这样做,那么你可能会认为你在失败或者整个迷你习惯策略不起作用,并停止做日常的迷你习惯。显然这是需要避免的,因为日常的迷你习惯才是最重要的,如果你能做到这一点,那就更好了。
话虽如此,这是一个非常强大的策略,我建议您尽可能多地这样做。但是,如果你被食物所诱惑,尝试了这种做法之后仍然忍不住吃掉它,千万不要觉得自己失败了或“搞砸了”。这是可选的,但我认为这比其他可选的方法更重要,因为渴望和诱惑在饮食中起着很大的作用。
情境策略(可选):如果你想减肥,生活会给你带来很多挑战。你会发现自己处于很难做出健康决定的情况中。大多数人试图用意志力来缓解所有这些情况,而且效果很好......直到它失败为止。既然我们的意志力有时会让我们失望,最好使用在任何情况下都能有效果的策略。
在“情境策略”这一章,我们讨论了 一般性的诱惑、六个常见的场景以及每个场景的理想策略。你可以把它们当作参考。例如,当你即将参加一个派对时,你可以复习一下《派对与假日》的策略指南。为不同的情况制定不同的策略比节食更能考虑到生活的现实,并为你提供了一个非黑即白的“无论如何”的最终决定。
小型挑战(可选):你可以根据情况选择进行这些有趣且简单的挑战。它们就像情境策略,但不是吃东西,而是移动。
如果你想,你可以尝试 把这些变成一个标准的小习惯 如果它与你每天做的事情有关。例如,如果你每天都看电视,那么你可以把“电视挑战”或“电视广告挑战”作为日常要求来完成。这比典型的微习惯要困难得多,因为它一天可以触发几次。如果你看了三个小时的电视,那可能有24个商业广告,这意味着你每天需要起身24次。这在每一天都是相当多的工作量。每个案例都是可行且容易做到的,但必须这样做这么多次可能会让人望而却步。这就是为什么我建议在大多数情况下,这些都是可选的。
如果你每天都有一个选择,要么走楼梯,要么坐电梯,比如在你的工作场所,你可以通过选择一个特定的提示来把这变成一个小习惯。也许你会决定在上下班时走楼梯,但在午餐时间乘电梯。同样地,也许你会选择在看电视前做一套简短的锻炼,但不在广告时间。你是否强制执行这些小习惯取决于你多久会遇到这种情况,以及你整体上的“小习惯负担”。有太多的小习惯并不是什么好事。
一定要把你的日常需求和可选活动安排得舒服一些。 你的计划可以稍微挑战一下你自己,但是日复一日的成功比“挑战自己”更重要,因为这会让你养成习惯,而习惯能让你更频繁、更大强度地挑战自己,且不会面临彻底失败的风险。
习惯为你的最糟糕的日子奠定了基础。例如,我最糟糕的一天写作实际上有50字的底线。这只是我在纸上留下的小习惯。因为我已经养成了这个小习惯两年多,我的写作习惯也很强,所以我最糟糕的一天相当于写了1000个单词。其他人——包括我在开始养成小习惯之前——一开始就把目标定在了挑战性的目标上,比如每天写1000字,但往往达不到或因为过度劳累而放弃。因为我追求的是坚持,培养了写作的习惯,所以对我来说,每天写1000字现在是一种平均水平或者低于平均水平的表现,以前则是“非凡的成就”。这是习惯的力量,不要忘记这一点。
这些小挑战的乐趣(以及你的日常小习惯)是你无论何时做出一点积极的行动,你会对自己感觉良好。我无法强调这对你成功来说有多重要。当我在公寓里走楼梯而不是坐电梯时,我会感到非常自豪。有人应该打我一下并说,“伙计,你只是上了一些楼梯。冷静点。”听起来很傻,但你会发现我的意思。这是令人上瘾和有回报的积累这些小胜利,这就是整个策略的基础。
你现在有了可以帮你坚持下去的方法。七年以后,甚至今天,你都可以使用这些策略,因为它们是为了终身受益而设计的。如果你尝试过那种疯狂的、被动力驱使的快速减肥方法,你会知道结果是怎样。如果你试过一夜之间改变饮食,你知道结果是怎样。试试这个方法,你会看到一个不同的、更快乐的结果。
要取得真正的、持久的进步,你需要做出可以维持的改变。随着时间推移,这些改变不会变得越来越困难,而是随着大脑对它们的习惯性熟悉而变得更容易。当它们最终成为习惯时,它们将成为你的新偏好,然后你就不再需要遵循任何计划了。你会过上新的生活方式。
持久减肥并非通过节食,而是通过与你的身体和大脑更倾向的方式相一致的小而持续的变化来实现。如果一个行为“太小以至于不会失败”,并且简单到即使在最糟糕的日子里也可以做到,那么什么能阻止你去做呢?没有什么能阻止你改变自己的行为并变得更健康。
减肥小习惯 是成功驱动型的。太多的人设定了他们无法达到的目标。这毫无益处。我们通过练习达到目标来提高,而不是因为超出我们的能力而未能达到目标。想象一下每天都能成功,而不仅仅是当你有动力的时候。想象一下每天都在增强信心。想象一下在接下来的一年里减掉体重,而不必担心会因为从内到外的变化而重新获得它,而不是强迫自己、只靠意志力、从外部向内部饮食计划。
这是你可以尝试长期有效的减肥策略的机会。我希望你能抓住这个机会。俗话说,一旦你开始吃迷你食物,你就不会再吃了。祝你在减肥和生活中一切顺利。
干杯,
斯蒂芬·盖伊
有关额外工具、资源及社群,请访问minihabits.com。
非常感谢您阅读《减肥小习惯》。我希望你喜欢它。
如果你认为这本书传递了一个重要的信息,请在亚马逊上留下评论。 评论(数量和等级)是人们用来判断一本书的内容的主要指标。 如果你取得了进步,请回来告诉我和其他读者!
每一个评论都对他人阅读一本书的意愿产生巨大影响,如果这种策略改变了你的生活,那么你可以通过传播这个信息来改变别人的生活。这本书的影响范围取决于你自己。《小习惯》就是最好的证明。因为读者们对它进行了评论并分享给了大家,所以现在全世界都在读它!你能帮我传播减肥的小习惯吗?世界需要听到这个消息。
点击这里 在亚马逊上查看减肥迷你习惯
联系斯蒂芬:sguis@deepexistence.com
请访问 minihabits.com 查看更多关于减肥的迷你习惯、工具和资源!
微习惯
如果你还没有,我强烈建议你阅读我的第一本书《小习惯》。 尽管你不需要阅读《小习惯》也可以受益于《减肥小习惯》,但它会让你对原来的“小习惯”策略有更深入的理解。
根据科学,Mini Habits 可能是世界上最有效的习惯形成策略。而且,根据评论,它可能是最受喜爱和最成功的!许多人的生活因为采用 Mini Habits 策略而发生了改变。它也可以改变你的生活!
迷你习惯大师
如果你喜欢视频课程,想学习迷你习惯的概念,你可以参加迷你习惯大师视频课程。使用优惠码“MHWL55”,即可享受减肥迷你习惯独家折扣。迷你习惯大师课程是世界上最受欢迎的习惯课程之一,有超过9000名学生。
迷你习惯掌握高清视频课程:https://www.udemy.com/mini-habit-mastery/?couponCode=MHWL55
如何成为一个不完美主义者
我的第二本书运用了“小习惯”来解决完美主义的问题。如果你正在与抑郁、恐惧或不作为作斗争,这本书有很多值得借鉴的地方。这是 我有史以来 最受欢迎的产品。
如何成为一个不完美主义者 书籍:https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00UMG535Y
周二消息
每周二,我都会写一些关于智能生活策略的文章,并通过电子邮件发送给订阅者。 人们告诉我这些内容改变了他们的生活。 当您注册时,您可以查看以前感兴趣的信息存档。 这些只针对订阅者且免费。 此外,注册意味着您可以了解我的下一本书或课程何时可用。
注释
布朗内尔,K.,格林伍德,M.,斯特拉尔,E. 和 Shrager,E。(1986)。大鼠反复减肥和体重恢复的影响。生理学与行为,38(4),459-464。https://doi.org/10.1016/0031-9384(86)90411-7
D.Walks,M.Lavau,E.Presta,M.U.Yang 和P.Bjorntorp(1983)。禁食后重新进食:饮食诱导肥胖对能量平衡调节的影响。美国临床营养学杂志,37(3):387–395。
博伊尔,P.C.,斯托里伦,L.H.,哈珀,A.E.,凯西,R.E.(1981)。在限制性喂养和再喂食期间的氧消耗与运动活动。美国生理学杂志 241:R392-R387。
博伊尔,P.,斯托里安,L。和凯西,R。(1978)。减肥后食物利用率提高。生理学与行为,21(2),261–264。https://doi.org/10.1016/0031-9384(78)90050-1
利维茨基,D.,福斯特,I.,& 玻璃曼,M.(1976)。在没有经验的老鼠身上禁食后食物摄入量与体重恢复。生理学与行为,17(4),575-580。https://doi.org/10.1016/0031-9384(76)90154-2
罗宾逊,D。霍奇森,D。布拉德福德,G。罗布,J。彼得森,D。(1975)。饮食限制和禁食对正常和遗传性肥胖小鼠体组成的影响。兽医科学杂志,40(6),1058。https://doi.org/10.2527/jas1975.4061058x
罗尔斯,B。, 罗伊,E。, 转轮,R. (1980 年)。在混合高能饮食后大鼠持续肥胖。生理学杂志,298(1),415–427。https://doi.org/10.1113/jphysiol.1980.sp013091
卡特等人。(2015)。对自我控制似乎不依赖于有限资源的耗竭效应的一系列元分析测试的补充材料。实验心理学杂志:综合卷。https://doi.org/10.1037/xge0000083.supp
让·雷诺德,B。《中枢神经系统与体重调节》。PubMed—NCBI。Ncbi.NIH.Gov。检索自2016年8月30日:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9239233。
我会用“重量”这个词,因为它更常用也更准确。如果你在月球上读到这篇文章,请酌情调整(并邀请我一起打篮球,这样我终于可以在十英尺高的篮筐上扣篮了)。
关于味精的一个轶事:有一次我在一家亚洲风味餐厅吃饭,大约在用餐后20分钟,我感到头痛。对我来说,头痛非常罕见,所以我回去问了餐厅,我的饭菜里是否含有味精,果然,它是在酱汁里。谜团解开了。我不再在那里吃东西了。
Fagherazzi, G., et al. (2013).
徐,许。谭丽,田,希美,三岛。津村沙弥香,秋元明彦,赤池明彦,加藤洋子,金子奈绪(2011)。产前暴露双酚A引起的成年期甜味偏爱改变:与超重和肥胖有关的可能联系。神经毒理学与围生医学杂志。第33卷,第4期,第458-463页。https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ntt.2011.06.002
普林斯,G.胡,W.石,G.胡,D.马贾德,S.李等人。 (2014)。双酚a促进人前列腺干细胞自我更新,并增加人类前列腺上皮在体内的致癌性。内分泌学,155(3),805-817。 doi:10.1210 / en.2013-1955
张,Y. ,余,Y. ,李,X. ,Meguro,S. ,Hayashi,S. ,&Katashima,M. (2012)。高内脏脂肪成人饮用富含儿茶素绿茶饮料对内脏脂肪减少的影响:双盲安慰剂对照随机试验。功能性食品杂志,4(1),315-322。https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jff.2011.12.010
Borghouts,L。& Keizer,H。(2000)。运动与胰岛素敏感性:综述。国际运动医学杂志,21(1),1-12。https://doi.org/10.1055/s-2000-8847
男性的血液检查显示,在间歇训练日,生长激素释放肽水平较低,血乳酸水平较高,血糖水平也较高。所有这些都被证明可以减少食欲。令人惊讶的是,这种效果一直持续到第二天,他们在接下来的24小时内摄入的热量更少。这与休息和中等强度运动的日子形成了鲜明对比,在那些日子里,男人们狼吞虎咽地吃下了粥。
这是一项针对年轻超重男性的短期研究,但考虑到我们对高强度运动的其他数据,结果仍然很有希望。根据个人经验,这完全符合我的经历。当我十几岁的时候,我会连续打长达六小时的全场篮球比赛,尽管在这段时间里我一点东西都没吃,在消耗了大量能量后非常需要吃点东西,但我回到家至少还要再过一两个小时才能吃东西。它会完全抑制我的食欲!
帕帕斯,S.(2010)。临时心脏损伤可以解释马拉松死亡。生命科学。检索自2016年10月18日,http://www.livescience.com/10211-temporary-heart-damage-explain-marathon-deaths.html
https://zhuanlan.zhihu.com/p/354807878
翻译官:你很优秀! 小马:谢谢夸奖,您也很优秀! 翻译官:我们一起努力吧! 小马:好的!