Wellbeing | Bouncing back from diet setbacks

Trying to lead a healthier lifestyle through better dieting is not always easy. And when it does not go according to plan, we tend to punish ourselves over it. Overcoming that slip-up and recovering stronger is also not as hard as envisaged.

Whether it’s a night of too much food and wine or a week-long gorge on holiday, how do you recover from your ‘eating better’ setback? Are you the type that punishes yourself for hours about all of those calories consumed and lack of exercise? Or do you just put it down to a bad period and start afresh?

To get back on track, you need a unique purpose or goal. You need something that helps you remember what you are doing and why you are doing it on those ‘bad’ days. Envisage that end goal, such as the ability to run the 10k without stopping or fitting into ‘that’ dress.

Put yourself first. It is easy to spend your time and energy fussing and worrying about everyone else, thus failing to put your own needs first. Take the time to do an activity each week or something that makes you feel good.

Lose the ‘all or nothing’ way of thinking. Just because you have one biscuit that does not mean you need to just give up, and eat the rest of the packet. You need to be a little more flexible in the way you look at lapses. This means you do not beat yourself up every time you make a slip up. Instead, just eat and enjoy the biscuit and cut yourself some slack.

Remain positive in the face of set-backs. If you start being negative about your slip-up, it is harder to get back on track. Take the time to recognise the positives that you have achieved to date. 

Practice self-compassion. If you have a more forgiving approach, instead of blaming yourself you allow yourself to adapt and move on when things go wrong.

Self-compassion has three parts. The first is self-kindness – treat yourself as you would your best friend, in a way that is encouraging and without blame.

The second is mindfulness. That is being able to focus on the here and now and not getting distracted by negative emotions that bring us down. And the last part is common humanity. Realising you are not alone helps you be kinder to yourself when things go wrong – which they will.

***Woman’s Way Health and Wellbeing event takes place this Saturday (September 19) in the Radisson Blu Royal Hotel, Golden Lane, Dublin. There are a small number of tickets still available. Purchase yours today.