9 Easy Mindset Hacks To Stop Yo-Yo Dieting And Lose Weight For Good

We’ve spent our entire lives being told that the reason we’re overweight is because we eat too much and we’re lazy. So it’s no wonder that as adults most of us have struggled with yo-yo dieting. We believe we just need to stop being so weak—go to the gym, skip dessert—and we’ll be thin.

But how has that worked out for you so far?

If you’re anything like most American women, you’ve likely spent your entire life picking apart your body while yo-yoing between diets that always end the same way—in feeling like a failure. Yo-yo dieting is the direct result of the American mindset surrounding body ideals and diet culture.

In reality, yo-yo dieting is mentally painful, creates only short-term results (if any), and often leads to decreased self-confidence in the long run. But have faith.

You can change your mindset and finally learn how to stop yo-yo dieting so you can lose the weight for good.

What is Yo-Yo Dieting?

Yo-yo dieting refers to getting trapped in a cycle of intense diets and intense binges. Many people struggle with the balance of dieting, especially when experimenting with extreme changes to their typical diet and lifestyle. Unfortunately, yo-yo dieting often leads to additional weight gain and decreased confidence and sense of self rather than accomplishing the goals of losing weight and feeling better.

HoW Your mindset has led to yo-yo dieting

Since we were little, we ladies have been indoctrinated with the ideas about our bodies that are cruel and harmful. Most of us believe we need to be as tiny as possible in order to be happy or confident and that the way to get there is by eating less, working out more, and sticking to “the plan”—whatever it may be this week.

The “stick to the plan no matter what” mindset obviously isn’t serving us—if it were, we would all be thin, happy, and confident by now.

So what is it about this mindset that is not working for us and ultimately leads to yo-yo dieting? And more importantly, how can we change that mindset and learn how to stop yo-yo dieting.

MINDSET PITFALLS THAT LEAD TO YO-YO DIETING

1. Overlooking the relationship between food and overall well-being

The problem with this “stick to the diet” mindset is that it makes it feel like food and exercise are only important because they have the power to make us skinny or fat.

When we are obsessively thinking about our diet and our gym routine to make sure that we’re able to fit into our jeans this weekend, it’s really hard to remember that food and exercise don’t exist solely for the purpose of shaping our bodies.

In truth, diet and exercise directly affect your mood, stress levels, depression/anxiety, your physical health (not just size), your confidence, sleep, and your intuition.

When we become hyper-focused on food and exercise for purely aesthetic reasons, we’re leaving less room in our consciousness for overall health (which, spoiler alert, leads to a healthy weight.)

2. Believing your goal weight should be as low as possible

Diet culture tells us that the most beautiful woman is the slimmest one. Because of this ideal, we associate health with being thin.

In reality, health looks different on everyone.

No, being morbidly obese is not healthy—it’s associated with lots of health issues. However, there are many women who fit society’s standard of beauty who are also not healthy people! A thin woman who suffers from depression, anxiety, insomnia, strained relationships, disordered eating etc. is still not a healthy person.

We have to look at health holistically—otherwise we’re not really talking about “health”—we’re talking about body size.

3. Over-analyzing what we eat

As humans, we have a finite amount of willpower we can expend each day. We need it for things like not punching someone at Starbucks or crying in public. So when we instead try to use all of our willpower to avoid certain foods and force ourselves to go for a run, we eventually run out and snap (read: binge). If we want to learn how to stop yo-yo dieting, we have to change the way our minds work.

Maintaining a healthy weight is much more about lifestyle and changed habits than it is about exercising willpower over food and exercise.

4. Falling into the yo-yo dieting cycle

When we inevitably fail at a crash diet because we are simply not designed to interact with food in such a restrictive way, it makes you feel like a failure.

You end up feeling worse about yourself that you tried and failed, which leads to feeling desperate for a quick fix, which leads to the next crash diet.

Before you know it, you’re in too deep to see a way out of the yo-yo diet tailspin.

What mindset will lead to sustained weight loss?

In order to create a truly healthy relationship with your body, you’ll have to develop a more holistic mindset around health.

If you have a thin body but every other aspect of your health is strained—that’s not health. You’re shooting yourself in the foot by thinking about health in bits and pieces instead of seeing it as the dynamic, multi-faceted entity that it is.

Here are some of the ways to start thinking about health more holistically.

How to Change Your Mindset and Stop Yo-Yo Dieting

1. Think About Why You Want To Lose Weight

The reason we get so attached to the idea of losing weight is because we believe that at that lower weight, we’ll be happier.

So what is it about that fantasy life where you’re thinner that you believe would make you happier?

Would it be having more confidence, more strength, more energy?

Focus on moving towards those things rather than the weight loss itself and it becomes easier to stay on track without making an enemy out of your body.  

(Related: What’s Your Why? How To Craft A Strong “Personal Why Statement” (With Examples))

2. Re-Build Your Relationship With Food

Find reasons other than your weight to think about food.

Many people have learned to cure themselves of countless ailments just by changing what they eat. I personally have used my diet to stop getting cystic acne, stop feeling bloated and lethargic, to pull myself out of a depression, and to stop having panic attacks.

This “magic” of food comes from being so familiar with what you feel inside your body that you can pinpoint exactly how everything you eat affects your mood, energy, and general wellbeing.

What we eat literally becomes our bodies—our thoughts, emotions, intuition, etc. could not continue to exist without the energy that comes from our food. Yes, food also builds our physical body and to some extent determines that shape of that body—but that’s only one small piece of its role in our lives.

When we are able to quiet the voice that tells us what we “should” and “shouldn’t” eat all day, we realize that there are actually lots of other voices in there trying to give us helpful information about the food we eat. This made me feel bloated, that gave me brain fog, those drained all my energy etc. These are the voices that are worth listening for and eventually learning to trust.

3. Listen To Your Body About What It Needs

Our bodies come programmed with the information they need to nourish themselves.

Just like any other animal, we have the intuition to know what we’re meant to eat.

Unfortunately over time, our society has become so money-oriented that diet culture has spun completely out of control and spends billions of dollars per year confusing us about what’s right for us.

We just need to learn to tune out diet culture and tune back into our bodies to hear its cues. Intuitive eating is a good place to start!

4. Find Movement You Enjoy

It’s true what they say—the best exercise routine is the one you stick to. Movement should not be about the number of calories it burns. That’s a reflection of our diet culture mindset.

The right kind of movement for you will leave you feeling empowered. (Click Here for tips to start running and not hate it, or Here for tips to start weight lifting for beginners.)

5. Think About What You’re Gaining From Your Choices—Not What You’re Losing

The word “diet” inherently makes us think about restrictions—what we’re “allowed” and “not allowed” to eat. This is what makes us believe that eating well is all about how much willpower we exert and ultimately leads to yo-yo dieting.

In order to finally stop yo-yo dieting, we have to change this scarcity mindset into an abundance mindset. What am I gaining from this choice, what can I have instead etc. This way, our food choices become a self-love practice rather than a punishment.

6. Be Mindful Of Your Words

Since our bodies are just chemical integrations of what we feed them all day, they are smarter than you may think. If you tell your body that it is fat, ugly, and lazy—it can hear you. And it believes you. Thoughts change the chemistry in your body just the same as food or drinks do.

So, be aware of the thoughts you’re feeding your body!

(Related: Rewire Your Brain and Change Your Negative Self-Talk (4 Simple Steps))

7. Recruit Support From Friends And Family

I can’t stress enough that what we’re talking about here is a mindset shift and NOT a lose-weight-quick scheme. This means that it’s going to take time and it’s going to touch every area of your life in ways you can’t yet imagine.

It’s clinically proven that we are extremely likely to share health habits with the people in our closest circles.

If you want this to truly last, you’re going to have to bring your people along with you!

8. Start Small

You don’t have to implement all of these tips all at once to start seeing results.

It takes time to make a mindset shift and that’s okay. You’ve spent your entire life with your current mindset that’s led to yo-yo dieting. Give yourself the grace to start with one or two small adjustments and build over time as they begin to feel more natural.

When you make a positive adjustment in any area of life, it becomes easier to do the other things that keep us healthy. Yo-yo dieting will never lead to the body of your dreams—but a patient mindset shift actually might.  If you’re going to learn how to stop yo-yo dieting, you have to get on board with doing things a little differently this time.

9. Be Patient

How much time have you already spent bouncing around from diet to diet without ever reaching the results you want?

Months? Years?

Imagine what you would have accomplished in that same amount of time if you had just been consistent with a few small changes.

It takes time to see results in your mindset and in your body, but that’s okay! The time is going to pass either way.

It’s not going to happen over night, but you are more than capable of changing your mindset and putting yo-yo dieting behind you. Follow these 9 tips and you will be well on your way to a healthier, happier you.

(Related: How To Set And Accomplish Big, Powerful Goals)