slim

The word “diet” conjures up images of deprivation, starvation, moodiness and all round forcing yourself to do what you really don’t want to do. Due to the feeling of deprivation, most of us fall off the bandwagon rather quickly or if we make it to the required 30 days or more excruciating 90 days; we often binge on all the foods we were not allowed to eat and quite quickly put on all of that weight and then some. So are you ready to accept that yo-yo diets don’t work?

The statistics are rather alarming. 95% of diets don’t work and yet every time we pack on the pounds, we start searching for the next “miracle” diet that will get us to “cover girl” body. Is it possible that the whole weight loss industry is flawed and preys on people desperate to fit in to the norm of what we should look like? Who set the standards anyway?  Back in the day of Marilyn Monroe, a voluptuous body was considered sexy until the fashion industry told us otherwise. Could it be time for us to redefine our perfect weight?

If you are overweight according to the standard weight chart and blissfully happy with that, I would say “good for you!” However, most people that are overweight are severely affected by it. The effects are physical: due to lack of energy or even health issues or mental: for example a lack of confidence or emotional: like depression and self hatred. It also affects the way we show up in our work and our relationships.

Most South Africans follow the standard American diet and our obesity rate now matches theirs. 70% of SA women are overweight or obese and 40% of men now fall into that category too. 13% of children in SA are overweight and this is about 5% higher than the world average. Is this a silent crisis that we need to address now rather than later?

If simply eating healthy and exercising more is the answer to this epidemic, then we should all be at our perfect weight. However, we are bombarded by advertisements from magazines to television to pop-up ads and billboards showing us tantalizing images of fast food. If you’re hungry and you haven’t planned and prepared your meals; it’s almost too easy to grab a bite from the local supermarkets that have food prepared and displayed or fast food restaurants that can deliver your order in 5 minutes or less or now we even have drive-through restaurants to get food without even having to get out of our cars. Are we even stopping to ask what goes into these foods?

Food companies also know the bliss point, which is the perfect combination of sugar, salt and fat that keeps you wanting more of that particular food. So every time we feel emotionally vulnerable; when we are stressed, sad, frustrated or anxious; we automatically try to stuff down the emotions with food. After all, it’s easily available in copious quantities and it’s legal.

What if you could take back your power and responsibility for your health and wellbeing? After all, shouldn’t we be the only ones responsible for our health, our weight, our success, our finances, our homes and the state of our relationships? When we take full responsibility for ourselves, we can determine the outcome.

We need to turn health and well being into a lifestyle not just a 2 week program. When we force change by using will power, the changes are difficult and short-lived. When we harness the power of our mind and emotions and start changing our habits, it becomes easier to create lifestyle changes so you are consistently making better choices.

S3H (Slim, Sexy, Strong & Healthy) is a lifestyle program designed by 3 expert coaches to help you get to your perfect weight for life.

Kas Naidoo is a Transformation Coach specialising in helping you create amazing relationships, financial wealth and perfect weight.