I've been dieting and finding myself losing motivation to keep on track. It is particularly hard to keep going when you hit a weight loss plateau - no matter what you do you can't lose weight. It's so frustrating. So I was feeling a bit sorry for myself and complaining to a friend of mine and she just looked at me and said "You look and feel great! What more motivation do you need?"

I thought about this and you know what - she's right. I needed to change my mindset from feeling that dieting means depriving myself, to appreciating the health benefits that dieting is giving myself?

Anyway, don't I have dieting to thank for:

A smaller butt?
I can fit into a nice pair of jeans?
More Energy?
Less Indigestion?
Less Heartburn?
Lots more self-confidence?

You see, we forget about these things, don't we fellow dieters? We are so busy worrying about giving up candy, cream and peanut butter, that we forget about giving up the tiredness and the discomfort and all the other nasty things we put up with when we're fat.

That's why we find staying motivated while dieting difficult. We think it means giving up nice things. We think it means suffering. But this is nonsense.

The truth is, dieting means freedom. Freedom from embarrassment, freedom from tiredness and freedom from discomfort.

So, if you are on a diet, don't see it as something negative. See it as your private escape route to a new slim world. Because that's what it is.

So girls, it's time to change our attitudes! Stop focusing on all the things you're giving up, and start looking forward to bouncing out of bed in the morning and then bouncing all through the day. Because this is exactly what will happen when you get slim.

By losing weight your quality of life will improve, you will be physically more healthy and you will feel happier.

Food may taste good for a few moments, but you have to live with your body for the rest of your life.
Once you lose the weight and continue to exercise you can start to eat more of the foods you like but in smaller portions and not as often.

I have lost 50 pounds over the past year and I can't descibe how good it feels.

Billy