The first ingredient towards your new lifestyle starts with
having the ability to identify the behaviors that are impacting
your eating and your resulting weight.

Remember, most people go on a diet, lose the weight and then
put the weight back on. Having the ability to lose weight proves
that the dieter has the discipline to stick with a diet.

Unfortunately regaining the weight also indicates that the
dieter was unsuccessful in identifying or resolving underlying
issues of eating.

As a result, the first and most important personal ingredient
addresses the need to identify your own behaviors and begin the
process of putting an action plan in place for allowing you to
overcome them.

To start this process, take a moment and think about the
following 5 questions:

- What do you want to change about yourself?

When you think about this question, think in terms of the
little things that you do on a daily basis, that have a direct
impact on your weight.

Some of these things could be the habit of starting your day
with a muffin or a donut, skipping breakfast, stopping for fast
food on your way to or from work, eating while shopping on your
way home from the grocery store, eating unhealthy lunches or
dinners, eating the kids’ snacks, having ice cream at night, or
finding that your cravings have more control over you, than you
have over them.

The list goes on and on, and is as diverse and unique as each
person. The important things to think about are your own
personal behaviors and the things that you would like to get
under control.

Now, don’t feel bad if you start to think about your own list
and the issues seem infinite.

I know for myself, when I went through this process, my own
personal list was over 50 items long. What matters most right
now is taking the time to think about the behaviors that you
want to overcome.

So, take a moment, pull out a piece of paper and make your own
personal list. While doing this might seem a little
intimidating, know that the personal behavior list that you are
creating is actually the start of your own attack plan for
taking back your life and truly creating a new lifestyle.

- What are your personal triggers?

While your behavior list may seem long and intimidating, the
events or circumstances in our lives that lead to our behaviors
are often very similar. Meaning, the majority of people seek
comfort in food to handle stress or anxiety.

Often, they aren’t hungry at all, but are simply seeking a few
moments of caloric solace in their day. For example, whenever I
had a stressful meeting at work or got into an argument with my
wife, I would immediately find myself reaching out for food.

For some, certain people or situations in their lives can
trigger a response or a desire to eat. What really matters most
is trying to identify various events in your life that you
associate with your poor eating behaviors.

In doing this, you’ll find that regardless of how big your list
of behaviors is, certain events in your life will stand out more
and more. And you’ll start to understand yourself a little
better.

- Is food helping or hurting you?

In examining your own behaviors and the events that cause them,
the next step is to examine the consequences that you would like
to change.

For example, if you are someone who eats because of stress or
anxiety, does the food make you feel better? When you get into
an argument with a family member, does food help to resolve the
stress?

Regardless of the behaviors that you are trying to overcome,
begin to think about the things that food is providing for you
and what it represents to you.

For some people, it’s not so much about emotion, but more about
situation. Food has become such a huge part of celebrating and
being social that it’s hard to enjoy the company of others
without having any event surrounded by eating.

In examining your own behaviors, think about the consequences
of what it is you are trying to overcome.

- What are your personal goals?

While it’s impossible to overcome all of your behaviors at one
time, it’s critical to have goals and an action plan for
allowing you to take baby steps along your journey.

So, for each of the behaviors that you are trying to overcome,
create clear and concise goals for overcoming them. Some
examples include:

“I will no longer eat in my car.”
“I will no longer visit the vending machine at work.”
“I will no longer eat fast food.”
“I will no longer eat late at night.”
“I will no longer drink mocha lattes.”

For each one of your behaviors, try and come up with a clear
goal. Keep in mind that this is not an easy thing to do. For the
first time in your life, you may be admitting to things that you
would rather not be thinking about.

Write them down on paper. This is a personal exercise just for
you and is for your eyes only.

Then, having completed your list of goals, take the time to
list out an action plan. For example, when I feel stressed, I
will go outside and get some fresh air, instead of visiting the
vending machine.

When I’m out with friends and we order our mocha lattes, I will
order a nonfat latte or have bottled water. Or, since I’ve
gotten into the bad habit of eating fast food on my way home
each night, I’ll take another way home so that I won’t be
tempted.

Having this action plan is critical! As you can see, in listing
out each of your behaviors, and listing your goals with an
action plan for each, you have now given yourself a plan of
attack for creating your new lifestyle.

So now no matter what situation you face, by taking the time to
think about the behaviors that you are trying to overcome and
the actions that you will take when faced with them, you now
have a working model.

Definitely don’t discount the power of having your plan to help
in overcoming any challenge that you face.

- How will you reward yourself?

This might seem silly, but taking the time to celebrate your
small victories along the way is critical. Creating your new
lifestyle isn’t just about the score on the scale, but it’s
about the little victories along the way and being able to
overcome the challenges that you face on a day-to-day basis.

Take the time to reward yourself. For example, after you have
achieved a small victory, you might reward yourself by ending
the day with a bubble bath, taking a moment and smiling in the
mirror, or looking over your list and putting a check mark next
to the behavior that you were able to overcome.

I know for myself, my own personal list was infinite, but with
each small success that I had, I always took the time to check
off my behavior list and remind myself that I was slowly facing
down each of the behaviors in my life that had been holding me
back.

Taking the time to identify your behaviors, the events, the
consequences, and having clear goals and an action plan will
allow you to have the framework for a working plan to take back
your life.

Then, always reward yourself along the way; it will help to
keep the journey fun, and also serve as a reminder that although
the ingredients for success are small, each one of them is
taking you one step closer to your new lifestyle.

About The Author: Visit newlifestylediet.com for
healthy diet foods, weight loss programs, and nutritional
products including a liquid diet plan.

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