The Big Clean-Up
You said you were going to start in January. Then you said that you’ll start a diet after your ski trip. Then you got swamped with work and now Easter is almost here.
You promised (solemnly) that immediately after Easter you’ll take action. Without realizing, summer is almost over and instead of weighing 10-15 kilograms less, you actually gained 5 more kilos since January 1st.
I have lost a lot of weight and I am maintaining my figure for over a decade. If you want to discover a hugely important part of any successful weight loss process, read below.
✅ THE GOLDEN RULE
After almost 13 years in a community with thousands of people who have lost weight and are maintaining their figure, I have reached a simple conclusion:
A crucial component of your weight loss success is to minimize the times you expose yourself to temptation.
✅ TEMPTATIONS
You know what I’m talking about. The heart (or is it the stomach? The brain?) wants what it wants.
Most specialists shout about the willpower you need to abstain from temptations. They say that willpower will lead to weight loss. I don’t believe it’s really like that.
I would rather invest my will (mental energy) in being as patient as possible with my children.
I would rather invest my will in motivating myself to do my daily workout.
I would rather investe minimal mental energy in planning my day as best as I can in order to go to bed as early as possible. So I can wake up early and write these articles for you.
But what I find downright absurd is to have “cocaine” (euphemistically speaking, of course) in my house and to try to abstain, like a fool.
I’ll admit: after all those years of dieting and discomfort, I can’t abstain, I won’t abstain and I detest abstaining. I am the character in that famous joke:
I am on a seafood diet. I see food - I eat it.
✅ I EAT AT NIGHT
I see nothing wrong with that. I wake up, I open the friedge and I just eat some real food: bell peppers, cheese, ham, a high protein pudding or something.
This happens maybe 2-3 times a month. I don’t eat a lot. I just eat enough to feel good again and then I go back to sleep.
Now think about this: how about if I woke up at night and I had a jar of chocolate cream, or cookies or chips somewhere in my cupboard.
✅ THE BIG CLEAN-UP
I strongly believe that the golden rule, the true key to long-term success, is the BIG CLEAN-UP.
After you have made the big decision to start your weight loss process, the next step is to get a big bag and throw in there anything you have around the house that might tempt you: jams, chips, cookies, crisps, sweets, cereal, chocolate cream, Oreos or any other type of junk food.
Don’t forget about the big box of ice cream in your freezer.
Junk food belongs in the dumpster, not in the house.
Does it seem brutal or inadequate to you if I use the term “JUNK FOOD”?
I am here to tell you what you NEED to hear, not what you WANT to hear.
✅ SHOPPING
What you do next is go shopping and buy base ingredients for proper meals, with normal food. Eggs, vegetables, meat, fish, etc. You will start eating eggs, soups and proper main courses.
When you only have normal food in your house, you progress fast. Isn’t that what you want?
✅ THE LITTLE DRAWER OF AGONY
One more thing. If you’re thinking that you won’t / can’t give up on the “little drawer full of snacks for the children” – you better unsubscribe.
You can just go on Instagram and watch girls who have been skinny all their lives promote moderation. And eating a little bit of everything.
Or you can hire the services of fat or obese dieticians who only opine about weight loss, but don’t practice what they preach.
Why do I say this? Because in my experience of working with thousands of people in the past decade, the conclusion is very clear:
If you don’t do The Big Clean-Up, there are ZERO chances of weight loss and ZERO chances for you to maintain your figure.