Dietary Enlightenment

TABLE OF CONTENTS
THE PROBLEMS WITH DIETS
WHY WE KEEP CHOOSING DIETS?
WHAT IS REALISTIC WEIGHT LOSS?
THE SEARCH FOR DIETARY ENLIGHTENMENT
WHERE DO YOU FIT ON THE SCALE?
• NOT WORKING
• EASY WORK
• HARD WORK
• RIGHT WORK
• NO WORK
CONCLUSION & BIBLIOGRAPHY
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
01
01
02
03
04
10
10

WHY WE DIET AND WHAT’S WRONG WITH THEM?
For most people the only way they know to lose weight is go on a diet. Dr Rick Kausman(1) has outlined the vicious
cycle of dieting and researchers have also told us that dieting is a predictor of future weight gain(2)- and yet it
appears to be the only option available to people desiring to lose weight.
This model says that if you are feeling unhappy with
your weight you restrict food = go on a diet, and it
goes okay for a short period of time before you start to
feel deprived both physically and emotionally. At this
time you will rebel against your own rules – because
you are human- and this leads to you over eating,
which in turns leads to guilt and feeling bad, at which
point you say “Hang it” I’m busting out now and you
probably eat some more of the foods you are trying to
avoid to make you feel better…and then you feel fat.
If past performance is truly an indicator of future
behaviour then why do people go on diets over and
over again when they know they probably won’t
succeed?
One answer lies in social norms; if you feel you are
overweight then it’s best to be doing something about
it and if you talk to your friends and colleagues they
are all doing some kind of diet so it makes you feel
that you can’t all be wrong- or at least if you are all
wrong that you are wrong together so it’s not so bad.
• Is there actually another way?
• Could so many people be wrong?
• Could such a massive industry be missing a vital
part?
The weight loss industry is thriving because it works.
Most products and diets work to lose weight as they
satisfy the key ingredient for weight loss which is
eating fewer calories while burning more energy. The
research asserts that dieting is a predictor of future
weight gain- so it seems while a diet does help you
lose weight there is something missing in regard to
helping you keep the weight off.
Think I’m fat
Eat for comfort
Feel Bad
Feel Guilty
Overeat or Binge
All-or-nothing thinking
Rebel against the rules
Deprivation
(Physical/emotional)
Decide to restrict food
(Dieting/restrict foods)
www.bodywarfare.com.au
©Lisa Renn 2015
PAGE1
From not working to no work
take your attitude to weight loss from impossible to possible.

WHAT IS REALISTIC
WEIGHT LOSS?
The National Health & Medical Research Council
(NH&MRC)(3) has reported that a weight loss of 5-10%
of your original body weight is significant weight loss
if you can keep it off for 12 months. That means that if
you are 100kg and you get down to 90kg you have lost
enough weight to improve your health. The problem
starts when you have unrealistic expectations of
how much weight you should lose- unfortunately
this is backed up by the media and often by medical
practitioners. It is unusual to lose large amounts of
body weight without surgery- that is weight loss over
30kg, which is why the small print on weight loss
adverts say results are not typical and may vary.
Whether our inability to lose larger amounts of
weight is due to the hormone response from the body
which increases hunger levels or reduces metabolism
to ensure your body’s “set-point” or the food and
exercise regime being too hard to sustain is not clear.
Anecdotally, many clients have said they have lost
around 15kg but needed to lose 30+kg so they stopped
trying and put the weight back on. If only they had
been given the information that in fact they had done
a brilliant job and that maintaining a weight loss of
5-10% of original body weight is significant.
When searching for the key to sustainable weight loss
and fitting this into busy lives as easily as possible
people are caught between the search for a solution
that is easy to implement and gets big losses quickly
and their real understanding that healthy eating
is “everything in moderation.” I think most people
would be familiar with the moderation message
but somehow it doesn’t apply to them as the word
moderation doesn’t scream rapid and dramatic
weight loss. So the need for a quick fix overrides
common sense; I understand this desire to be “perfect
now” with as little effort as possible, it’s incredibly
attractive and with every women’s magazine, TV ad
and social media telling you it’s possible it’s hard to
make the sensible decision. Because you think, what
if the claims about this product are true and this one
really does work…
©Lisa Renn 2015
PAGE2

THE SEARCH FOR DIETARY ENLIGHTENMENT
This model describes the process that people need to go through in order to achieve sustainable healthy lifestyles.
Some may never get off the first or second stages, that’s a personal choice, but those who do maintain their weight
without undue fuss, stress or emotions will understand that when you feel compelled to make good decisions about
diet and exercise it really isn’t work at all…it’s just what you do because you want to.
The Search for Dietary Enlightenment ©Lisa Renn 2015
Understanding the puzzle of sustainable weight loss is …
like the classic murder mystery where all along you think
you know who dunnit but in the end there is a dramatic
twist which proves you wrong.
No Work
Right Work
Hard Work
Easy Work
Not Working
Compelled
Enlightened
Determined
Opportunistic
Resigned
80
70
50
30
20
0
©Lisa Renn 2015
PAGE3
Success Rate %

WHERE DO YOU FIT
ON THE SCALE?
NOT WORKING
At this level you have given up, you are not working
on your diet and the diets are not working for you.
You are feeling despondent and your belief that you
can actually do anything about your weight is low. You
are resigned to your predicament. It could be said that
most dieters come to this place perhaps many times
for short periods and there are some who will find it
easier to stay here. The success rate for implementing
healthy lifestyle behaviours is 0-10% but if you are at
least maintaining your weight that is a good outcome.
©Lisa Renn 2015
PAGE4

WHERE DO YOU FIT
ON THE SCALE?
EASY WORK
This is the lure of the quick fix – they are everywhere-
the pills, potions and machines - sounding so
convincing and easy to achieve that the temptation
can prove too great. Who doesn’t want their problems
solved quickly and easily? No one is blaming you for
wanting this option. You have always got your eyes
and ears open for the next opportunity to lose weight
fast.
However, here are three things to consider:
1. These options don’t change anything about
your relationship with food nor do they teach
you anything. So unfortunately once you stop
them you go back to normal, because there isn’t
anywhere else to go.
2. If these quick fixes worked we would not currently
have such an issue with overweight and obesity in
the world.
3. This is the boring reason- but really – anything
worth achieving does take some effort and weight
loss is definitely in this category of requiring some
change and effort and when you achieve weight
loss it can be incredibly rewarding.
Weight loss is not simply a function of calories in
and calories out –it would work if we lived in a cage
with someone else providing the food but thankfully
or maybe unfortunately this is not the case. Just
to clarify, I’m on the thankfully side but I know the
battle for weight loss can be really frustrating and
sometimes people might wish for an easier option
where their temptations are curbed for them and they
have no choice but to comply = cage!
In essence a diet is just a metaphorical cage
we put ourselves in.
Your success rate may be around 30% for short weight
loss but it is unlikely that it translates into sustainable
healthy behaviours or long term weight loss.
©Lisa Renn 2015
PAGE5

WHERE DO YOU FIT
ON THE SCALE?
HARD WORK
The next stage is where you look to diets and not
many people say a diet is easy – it’s the hard work. You
are often exercising when you don’t like to exercise,
you could be avoiding your favourite food and battling
cravings. There are some highs and lows as you lose
weight but then get into a stressful situation and your
emotional eating kicks back in. There is happiness,
satisfaction, grumpiness frustration and guilt =
emotional roller coaster = hard work.
The word that describes hard work is determined.
People who go on restrictive diets over and again are
very determined to lose weight. The problem is that
diets don’t work in the long term.
Your success rate for weight loss may be 50% but
again it’s unlikely to be sustained. People who go on
one diet after another probably have the greatest
weight fluctuation. The research(3) quoted earlier
suggested that most people would be better off if they
had never dieted; in this case you are probably better
off in the “not working” category.
Why do you sign up for the hard work over and over
again?
For a lot of people, if you are at least struggling to
lose weight by being on a diet, then you feel you are
not ignoring the problem. It takes time and effort
to look for a new solution and there is no guarantee
it will work therefore it’s risky- because you really
need to lose weight now, so you stick with what is
comfortable. At least with a diet you know if you work
hard enough you should get some weight loss.
There’s another reason people look to diets and
again it’s about hard work and it won’t necessarily
resonate with everyone. Diets are a punishment you
put on yourself for being overweight and the more
deprivational the punishment the better it is.
Acetic describes the motivation of a person who
dedicates themselves to leading a life of self-discipline
and self-denial, especially for spiritual improvement.
The example that comes to mind is a monk; it is a very
noble life to live but not many in the world manage to
do it for long.
Diets are the closest thing most people get to living
an ascetic lifestyle so when someone comes along and
says “you just have to eat healthy food” it doesn’t feel
like you are giving up enough; it’s not enough of a
punishment. Dieters are looking for the most bizarre
solutions and the more deprivational the better.
Remember, weight loss is about eating less high
calorie food- so any ascetic plan that takes away your
favourite things in life ticks the box- healthy eating
does not as you don’t feel you are giving up enough
there is not such an obvious element of sacrifice.
The bottom line is…
Do your diets work to get you where you want to be?
If you say “Yes” they help me lose weight when I need
to – that’s fine. But if you say “No” I need something
that works in the long term, I’m sick of diets – I’m with
you!
©Lisa Renn 2015
PAGE6

WHERE DO YOU FIT
ON THE SCALE?
RIGHT WORK
Read on if you are interested to know about the
“right work.” Be prepared as the right work is actually
occurring on a much higher level than a diet as it
means you have to look at your role in your weight
management. This is anything but easy but the
results are enlightening. Starting to do the right work
involves facing fears and looking at why your weight
loss has not been successful in the past. The right work
looks at your motivations and barriers and means
you have to take an active learning role- not just the
passive role of following someone else’s diet plan.
Consider the graph below as it compares the “hard
work” of dieting with the “right work” of addressing
your own food issues and planning around them for
sustainable change. The blue line on the graph shows
how you lose weight on a diet by decreasing calories
and increasing exercise, it’s a nice steady decline
in weight and you are pleased with your progress.
Then the diet ends or the 12 week challenge ends
and your exercise starts to drop off and a few of your
‘indulgences’ come back in –not as much as before the
diet, but they are creeping in- you stop losing weight
and may even be putting some back on and this
feeling of failure leads you to give up your efforts – in
essence it almost proves your inner thoughts:
• “I can only ever keep this up for 2/4 or 6
weeks” (insert your own time frame)
• “I’ve never managed to lose weight
successfully before”
• “I eat when I’m stressed, I knew it would
mess me up”
• “I’m addicted to sugar/chocolate/soft drinks/
chips” (insert your own food)
• “I’m lazy”
• “I don’t have the time needed to make this
work”
In order to achieve weight maintenance you need to
be able to keep up the new regime – the “diet” needs
to be something you can keep up forever- which is
never the case as diets are too restrictive for anyone to
keep up in the long term- so the weight gradually goes
back on. With a restrictive diet, as soon as the calorie
input or exercise output changes away from the strict
routine your weight will go up.
On the red line the weight loss is the same due to a
combination of healthy eating and exercise but the
difference is, if you are doing the right work you can
keep it up. This is the flat part of the graph which you
only get if you can stick to the regime. When you start
making changes that you can keep up your success in
sustainable weight loss and healthy habits increases.
You are still learning and you will slip back to old
habits sometimes but progress is being made.
©Lisa Renn 2015
PAGE7

The lines of the graph represent your calorie intake- as
your calories go down so too does your weight. On the
red graph the calorie intake remains about the same
so your weight is maintained. On the blue graph the
calories go back to normal as your life goes back to
normal and you finish the diet so your weight also
goes back to normal and a bit more.
The hard part of the right work?You have to
change your habits and thoughts, the way you think
about food and the way you use food in order to be
able to start eating well and then be compelled to
keep it going.
It’s an almost constant internal discussion you have
with yourself at this stage when you are starting to
get your head around the “right” work and learning
how you have tripped yourself up in the past.
If sustainable weight loss is your desired outcome
then doing the right work is what you need to be
aiming to do. The right work is learning to break
away from the vicious cycle of dieting and move
into accepting the idea that the answer to long
term weight loss is not going on a restrictive diet.
The answer is not sexy nor does it have the acetic or
deprivational qualities of a diet, but it does challenge
your beliefs and change the way you do things, which
is what you want.
If the diet is not working – do something different-
that doesn’t mean a different diet it means a different
philosophy.
Only take this on if you are sick of the yo-yo diet
approach – it may still be working for you but the
effect of weight cycling may be that it won’t work
forever. For most people there comes a time where
they say, “I used to lose weight so easily by dieting but
it doesn’t work anymore now.”
The right work does not encourage black and white
thinking. Black and white thinking is when you are
either on a diet or off a diet- one extreme is that
you are good the other bad and there is very little in
between. This all or nothing approach is what yo-yo
diets are all about and this is the very reason that
diets predict future weight gain. Unless you are a
monk, it is unlikely you will be able keep to a punitive,
restrictive regime forever; forever is what you need to
be looking at if you want the weight to stay off.
Once you learn what you can do forever you then set
about doing it.
©Lisa Renn 2015
PAGE8

WHERE DO YOU FIT
ON THE SCALE?
NO WORK
This is the part where you understand your role in
your weight issues, you have accepted it and made
changes to the way you think and live.
The changes you have made to the way you think and
the responsibility you take for your health ensure
you are doing well most (80-100%) of the time. Most
of the time is good enough as nobody is perfect and
the great news is you don’t have to be perfect to be
healthy and maintain your weight loss. Pressure is off
– no more diets.
One of my clients got to this point by acknowledging
and acting upon the fact that she was just as
important as her five children and her husband.
This sounds easy but if you are a mum how often
do your kids needs take priority over your own? Are
you prepared to change this so that your desires are
treated as importantly as their needs?
My client did and her children are not deprived and
more importantly nor is she. She changed a number
of beliefs she had around her role as a mother and
wife as well as her ideas of what you had to do to
lose weight. The end result was weight loss and a
compelling feeling to look after herself. She was able
to sum this up perfectly when she said:
“I now know I am doing this for myself not to
myself”
The key to making a healthy lifestyle no work:
• Concentrated effort on yourself
• Good support structure around you
• Knowledge of what you have to do
• Determination to change how you have done
things in the past.
Are you worth the effort?
©Lisa Renn 2015
PAGE9

CONCLUSION
The journey for dietary enlightenment is fraught
with self-doubt, questioning, successes and slip ups.
Like anything worth achieving it takes thought, time
and effort. In the end because of your continued
perseverance and growth you end up living healthily,
most of the time, which is perfectly acceptable and
the overall aim of this healthy living game. Perfection
is overrated and it’s one of the first things you need to
drop when you start doing the “right work.”
In a way it’s like parenting- it’s a nice idea to think we
have all the answers, but we don’t and it’s even more
attractive to have someone else step in for the hard
work. But the truth is, we are in it for the long haul so
we sit with doubt, we question our decisions, we have
success and slip ups and what we hope to get at the
end are happy, successful people.
The journey is what makes the result so
satisfying and worth keeping up.
It you are getting tired of the hard work that gets no
long term results in the end then sign up for some
of the right work- which is also hard- but holds the
promise of getting to a place where it’s no longer work
at all.
Please feel free to share this with anyone who you
think will benefit.
Good Luck!
Lisa Renn
BIBLIOGRAPHY
• Kausman R, (1998)‘If not dieting, then what?’Allen &Unwin NSW Australia
• Medicare’s search for effective obesity treatments: Diets are not the answer. Mann,Traci;Tomiyama, A. Janet;
Westling, Erika; Lew, Ann-Marie; Samuels, Barbra; Chatman, Jason American Psychologist,Vol 62(3), Apr 2007, 220-233
• http://www.nhmrc.gov.au/_files_nhmrc/publications/attachments/n57_obesity_guidelines_131204_0.pdf
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Lisa Renn is a dietitian with over 15 years’ experience
helping people to discover the guilt free healthy
lifestyle to be had beyond dieting. The focus of Lisa’s
programs is around helping people to understand the
things that get in the way of their ongoing efforts, why
they have trouble changing bad habits and to create
new habits of good planning as well as strategies for
motivation and increasing trust in your own abilities
to achieve those things that you haven’t managed to
in the past.
Lisa is a media spokesperson for the Dietitian’s
Association of Australia regularly providing expert
commentary on radio, print media and TV. Her book
“Body Warfare- The Secret To Permanent Weight Loss,”
a how-to book for creating healthy habits and kicking
unhelpful ones, has been described by readers as
their “bible” when it comes to staying on track with
weight loss. Lisa is also an accomplished speaker and
is training health professionals to use her strategies to
better assist their clients.
If you would like some assistance in your journey to
feeling like it’s “no work“ please connect with me.
lisa@bodywarfare.com.au
facebook.com/bodywarfare.nutrition
Lisa Renn
©Lisa Renn 2015
PAGE10

Dietary Enlightenment

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