I have spent many years always creating fitness goals for myself...only to fail. After reading Maria Kang's book "the No More Excuses Diet" I realize how my goals were always doomed to fail from the start.
I never really laid out a plan for myself on just how I would reach my weight-loss goals. I just said to myself "I'm going to lose X amount of pounds by such-and-such date." That was it. I mentally told myself I would consume less, work out more, and yet it never ever happened. The lifestyle change is overwhelming and I never wanted to see it as something that was hard to do - or that I was actually going to be overhauling my entire eating/exercising habits that have been ingrained in me for as long as I can remember.
The 3-day, then 3-week, and finally 3-month approach is realistic. I have always heard that it takes 21 days to create a habit, so it makes sense that breaking down the diet/exercise goals into segments works.
Kang's tips on actually marking the goal dates on a calendar is so simple, yet something I never really bothered doing before.
Everything is helpful in this book. I know it is going to be hard, and she doesn't sugar-coat that it will be.
I have read the book in it's entirety, marking the points I wanted to remember, and now I am going back taking it step-by-step. I just completed the 3-days and am working towards the 3-week mark. So far so good. I am anxious to finish my first 3 weeks and continue on. It is obtainable and Maria Kang's words repeat over-and-over until you understand the importance of eliminating the sugars (giving up the soda a day or the dessert every night), but these things can still be enjoyed - as long as you know how to work for it.
I've never bought a diet book before, nor actually read one - but this is one that I feel works, and it doesn't eliminate foods from your diet (such as Atkins) or make you do crazy things (juice fasts), instead it focuses on your own personal goal and teaching you how to zero in on it and reach it.
*I received this book from bloggingforbooks.com in exchange for an honest review*
