Dieting became easier once I stopped trying so hard

When you see someone who has kept up with their diet,
they might look like someone who is "doing a lot of things."

But looking back,
for me, it was actually the opposite.

The reason I was able to keep going
was not because I added something,
but because I quit quite a few things.

Thing I don't do #1: Judging my daily weight

I used to
view my weight as "good" or "bad."

I would get depressed just by gaining 0.3kg,
and feel relieved if it went down.

This judgment
was the most exhausting part.

Since I started keeping up with it,
I stopped judging my weight.

I just look at it.
I just record it.

Just by doing that,
the weight on my mind in the morning has decreased significantly.

This feeling
is clearly different from "when I was being pushed around by the numbers."

Thing I don't do #2: Reflecting on days I couldn't do it

On days I couldn't do it,
I would naturally want to reflect on it.

But,
even if I thought about it on a day I was tired,
I couldn't find an answer.

What I quit was
"trying to find meaning in it on that same day."

What I did instead was
weigh myself the next day,
or do nothing at all.

That was about it.

Back when I used to blame myself,
saying "I failed again,"
this feeling was the most painful.

Thing I don't do #3: Changing everything at once

When I couldn't keep up with it,
I was trying to do everything from the start.

Diet, exercise, and lifestyle.

Since I started being able to keep it up, I have hardly added anything new.

The only thing I kept doing was measuring.

That was what worked for me.

Thing I don't do #4: Blaming myself for feeling down

There are days when I feel down. I still have them now.

But I have stopped blaming myself for it as much as I used to.

"Today was just one of those days."

Even on days when I can't think that way, I don't let it be the end.

Just by doing that, it became harder to break the momentum.

Thing I don't do #5: Trying to keep going through sheer willpower

Willpower doesn't last long.

I failed many times because of that, too.

Now, I just make sure things are set up so that willpower isn't needed.

The story of how I didn't need to add anything

When people talk about dieting, they tend to think about "what to do."

For me, the biggest thing was that the number of "things I don't have to do" increased.

Don't judge. Don't blame. Don't rush.

You don't have to quit today.

But if you can quit, it might become a little easier.

With that kind of distance,
it continues.