When it comes to weight loss, many people focus on the numbers. They want to see the scale go down each and every day, no matter what. But this type of thinking can actually lead to frustration and a lack of progress. In this blog post, we’ll discuss why focusing on numbers often doesn’t help with weight loss, and how you can start taking a non-diet approach instead!

It’s important to realize that the number on the scale is not a good indicator of progress.

Body weight can fluctuate from day-to-day for any number of reasons, and so relying on this one metric doesn’t give you an accurate picture of how healthy your body actually is. Instead, it’s better to focus on how you feel, and what changes you’re seeing in your body composition over time.

That leads us to the non-diet approach. This type of approach focuses more on developing a healthy relationship with food rather than an obsession with numbers. It encourages mindful eating and taking care of yourself.

What are the four steps to the non-diet approach?

1. Find a non-weight goal to focus on.
2. Focus on food quality over quantity.
3. Follow the plate method for meals and snacks.
4. Start focusing on hunger, fullness, and cravings.

We will examine each step in detail below:

Find a new, non-weight goal to focus on.

It’s important to focus on something other than the number on the scale. Here is a list of popular non-weight goals to focus on:

• Increased energy
• Being in tune with hunger and satiety cues
• Less guilt related to eating
• Incorporating new foods (i.e. trying new veggies & fruits)
• Fewer cravings
• Lower A1C, cholesterol, triglycerides, or other nutrition-related lab values
• Fewer binge eating episodes
• Regular periods
• Decreased thoughts about food
• Feeling more confident
• Improving physical strength and/or endurance

Focus on food quality over quantity.

When it comes to food, quality is more important than quantity. Try to focus on nutrient-dense whole foods like fruits, vegetables, lean proteins and healthy fats for the majority of your intake. These types of foods will help you meet your vitamin, mineral, and macronutrient needs without needing to worry about large amounts of calories.

Remember at the end of the day all food is fuel. For example, when you look at the nutritional value of a cookie versus a piece of fruit, the cookie is made up of carbohydrates and fats and the piece of fruit is primarily carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are used as fuel for the body, so essentially they will both provide energy. However, the fruit provides more nutritive value (vitamins, minerals, fiber) than the cookie that will help the body thrive, so making the majority of your meals high quality will help balance this out.

Follow the plate method for meals and snacks.

One way to make sure you’re getting quality food is to follow the plate method. This involves making a meal or snack based on half of your plate being non-starchy vegetables and then filling the rest with a source of protein and carbohydrates. For snacks, focus on a small protein or healthy fat paired with a complex carb or veggie. This helps ensure that most of what you are eating is healthy, nutrient dense foods.

Most of my clients aim for 3 meals and 1-2 snacks daily, depending their energy expenditure and level of hunger throughout the day. Eating at regular time intervals also helps with managing hunger and fullness. When we skip meals it signals to our body famine may occur, so when we eat at our next meal or snack we tend to gorge ourselves. This is not a “matter of self-control” but a natural response your body has to skipping meals and snacks. Rule of thumb, consume something every 3-4 hours.

If you’re unsure how a filling plate or snack looks like, I have plenty of free sample meal plans to share with you in my online store!

Start focusing on hunger, fullness, and cravings.

The best way to do this is by learning how your body communicates with you:

• Hunger signals = stomach grumbling, grouchy (aka “hangry”), dizziness, low energy, headache, etc.
• Fullness signals = Tight belly, pressure and in your stomach, diminished hunger, feeling satisfied.
• Cravings = thinking about a certain food(s) constantly, wishing for a specific food, desire to binge on a certain food

Before and after each meal or snack, rate your level of hunger before and fullness after. By doing this you will get a feel for how hungry you are when you eat, and how full you are after. For my clients who are new to this it takes time and effort to pause and reflect, so don’t stress! It’s not about perfection, rather it’s about gathering information that helps us understand your eating habits.

Cravings are such a hot topic. In all honesty, I believe that cravings mostly occur because people are not eating enough throughout the day. I know this sounds counterintuitive but hear me out. When our body doesn’t get enough calories, protein, carbs, or healthy fats, it signals to the body there isn’t enough nutrition to use. When this happens our metabolism begins to slow down to conserve energy.

Most of the time people will skip meals or snacks throughout the day when they are busy. When they get home and finally feel relaxed, their body notifies them “hey, we didn’t eat enough today!” and thus cravings occur to help the body get what it needs.

When clients eat more in the day, focus on quality over quantity at meals, and avoid skipping meals and snacks, they often see a big change in their afternoon or evening cravings. Some cravings are not that simple and require a different tactic, but most fall into this category.

The Bottom Line

Weight loss is not a one size fits all approach. Instead of focusing on the scale, focus on building healthy habits that help you become mindful with your eating and more in tune with your body. Working with a non-diet, body positive nutritionist is one way to gain more insight into yourself and create sustainable lifestyle changes that will help you reach your goals. If you’re ready to embark on your journey now, join my STRONG Program designed to help you build your strongest self using a non-diet approach and fun fitness!