Staying motivated on a diet can be tough! As with a lot of things, it’s easy to be fired up at the beginning but we tend to lose focus along the way. That is natural, but there is TONS you can do to help avoid it and protect yourself.
I want to thank Chris G for the suggestion for this post. It was a great question. Chris asked, “I read your easy foods list for losing fat, but I find myself getting bored with my choices after a short time. How to stay motivated?” Again, thanks Chris. I think a lot of people get hit by this from time to time.
How I View Staying Motivated on a Diet
First and foremost for me, I will be honest, I am a creature of habit. Eating the same stuff pretty much each and every day, doesn’t tend to bother me. I don’t know if that was from initially changing my view of food from a source of pleasure to FUEL, but I can sit down to the same lunch 5 days a week and be fine. I realize that is not everyone though.
I do believe that the perspective of seeing food as fuel over a source of pleasure is a big one to work on when you are trying to stay motivated on a diet. It can cause a huge momentum swing and really start the lifestyle change you need to break addictions to food.
Next is still perspective, but it’s really focusing on your WHY. Is why you are eating the same thing important enough to you to push off those temptations for momentary pleasure from food? That’s a big one. I have found the reward of being healthy and fit far more rewarding than stuffing my face with Mexican food or drinking tons of soda. It’s more important than taking seconds or thirds, or whatever I want just to feel “full.” So what is your WHY? Is it BIGGER, more IMPORTANT than how you used to see food?
Staying Motivated on a Diet: Keeping it Fresh
Mindset is huge, but what if you really don’t want to eat the same thing so often? Well spice it up!
Chicken
This tends to be everyone’s go to for protein. It’s super lean, easy, and really good. With chicken, there are so many ways to prepare it that won’t ruin your budgets. Dry spices and seasonings are almost always a freebie. The only ones you have to watch out for are some rubs that use sugar. Even then, a little goes a long way (and just include it in your tracking). How you cook your chicken can make a huge difference. If you cut your chicken breast into small pieces (1/2″ by 1-2″ strips), you can “pan fry” them only using a little PAM and get really moist, tasty chicken. The cooking time is really fast with small pieces so you don’t have to overcook them and dry it out. Grilling is another great option, but again just watch your cook times. Butterflying your chicken breasts or pounding them flat can really let you get them thoroughly cooked without drying them out. Steve Cook (physique competitor and ripped stud LOL) has a great way to use a brine (and he evens out his chicken breasts). I have heard it is really good… You might want to check it out!
Sauces
Sauces are some of the easiest ways to improve proteins and some carbs. Most of the time, you just have to watch out for some sodium. If you are sweating a lot in your workouts (which you should be!), you will burn up a lot of sodium. It’s an electrolyte. Check out this post on sodium for more, and always check with a doc if you have blood pressure issues. All that being said, I don’t add salt to much elsewhere, so I am not that worried. A regular blood test with your physical can make sure you are on the right track.
Great (practically free) Sauces:
- Mustards (tons of varieties, just track the sugar if they have it)
- Hot sauces (almost always free)
- Low Sodium Soy Sauce – use sparingly but don’t worry if you like it on rice
- Even Salsa is a great “sauce” to use – fresh salsa is all good veggies too!
Be a little FLEXIBLE to Stay Motivated on Your Diet
Finally, you should be tracking. And when you track, you can use a little flexible dieting. Flexible dieting (or maybe you have heard of IIFYM) is eating to your macro goals without specifically ruling out certain foods. The most flexible of flexible dieters will look at 50g of crabs and 10g of fat left in their budgets and plan in some ice cream. Now you have to know yourself. If an honest, actual 1/2 cup of ice cream would be too much temptation to eat 4 bowls… don’t do it. But you can work in foods that still hit your macros and be completely fine.
***The caution and real work here is know yourself and be 100% honest with your tracking. Some people can’t handle it when they are getting over really old, strong bad habits. You won’t hit your macros eating junk, so this isn’t an excuse to eat crap. Watch your fiber too. If you aren’t getting 30-40g a day, you are most likely not eating enough veggies and whole foods.
Now on a deficit, you won’t have room to work in much…. but as you hit your goals, you will see how you can increase the size of your food list.
Keep on track and keep it fresh!
So start with your WHY, make the food you eat the most super tasty and fresh, and work in sometime other than chicken and broccoli! Then you will be on your way to staying motivated on your diet. Thanks Chris! I hope this helps you and anyone struggling to keep focused on your long term goals!
Need a coach?
My email: coachwayne@teamripped.com
IG: @wayne_wyatt
