A lot of us see the start of a new year as a chance to modify our lifestyles drastically, especially with regards to eating.
Sometimes, this entails adhering to a diet that is drastically different to your previous one.
At the start of a new year, it might be tempting to make drastic changes, but these can be hard to maintain; and, often, people rapidly revert to their old routines.
In reality, research conducted in the scientific community indicates that changing your diet drastically may not be the best course of action.
For instance, a 2018 assessment titled "Pros & drawbacks of certain popular extreme weight-loss diets" came to the conclusion that many extreme diets are not only imbalanced and even dangerous, but also unsustainable over the long term since many people quickly gain back the weight they lost.
According to a different study titled "Humans are hard-wired to follow the path of least resistance", people typically choose the option that presents the least amount of difficulty. This means that when it comes to changing our behaviours, whether they be dietary or otherwise, we're more likely to give up if the change feels too difficult.
The findings of the aforementioned research may be depressing if you're trying to change your eating habits this year, but health professionals advise that there are alternative methods to develop good habits.
How abrupt, drastic dietary changes might impact your health
It's challenging to maintain drastic alterations, says nutritional therapist Sasha Parkin, because it takes time for your body to adjust.
"You wouldn't expect your body to be able to accomplish it the day after you signed up to run a marathon," she observes.
Making significant dietary changes is somewhat similar to this. It is incredibly physically demanding, and when it doesn't work out, as research indicates is frequently the case, it is really demoralising.
Even if your drive wanes, trying to alter too much too quickly has a significant bodily impact. "It will be a shock to the system if we have been eating the same sort of food for months or years, then decide to significantly modify this in a short period of time," warns Parkin.
This may have detrimental repercussions, including poor blood sugar regulation, exhaustion, and even an increase in the stress hormone cortisol, which instructs the body to store more fat.
According to Parkin, long-term excessive dieting might eventually result in dysregulation of the hunger hormones, ghrelin and leptin, which is distressing since it can make it even more difficult to succeed if you decide to try again.
The effects of abrupt, drastic dietary changes can also be detrimental to mental health. Naturally, it's not only physical. When you change your eating habits, there is sometimes a lot of mental activity involved as well.
Studies have shown that when people drastically alter and restrict their diets, they often develop a preoccupation with food and have strong desires to eat. The amount of limitation is typically unsustainable since willpower and drive are limited, according to chartered psychologist Catherine Hallissey.
This increases your propensity to resort to traditional comfort foods for solace and might result in emotions of failure, self-criticism and guilt.
Making gradual, small dietary modifications might be the key to success. It all boils down to rapid satisfaction, according to Hallissey. We need results right away. But the only way we can actually make lasting changes is by postponing gratification and making simple, doable adjustments.
Making one or two little adjustments at a time is certainly simpler to keep to and less demanding psychologically and physically, whether it's increasing the amount of vegetables you eat at dinner or deciding to cut back on your portion sizes.
Starting modestly, according to Parkin, may make it less stressful on the body and more pleasurable, with a stronger emphasis on self-care than on self-deprecation. This encourages a sense of satisfaction when we can check off new behaviours, like eating a nutritious lunch or forgoing the second biscuit.
According to Parkin, the dopamine rush we experience after achieving something fuels the positive loop that motivates us to keep going.
The development of new habits takes time
It takes time to become a habit, which is another reason why tiny adjustments are simpler to keep. Although you may have heard that it takes 21 days for a new behaviour to become ingrained, other estimates indicate that it might actually take considerably longer.
A new behaviour might take anywhere between 18 and 254 days to become automatic, according to research that was published in the European Journal of Social Psychology.
Your new eating habits require time to become permanent. According to Hallissey, “Maintaining little adjustments takes less willpower. This indicates that they will gradually become simpler to sustain and more likely to become habits.”
Parkin notes that your unhealthy behaviours didn't develop quickly and that getting rid of them won't be easy either.
How to gradually alter your diet
So, how can you go about establishing healthy behaviours more gradually? According to Parkin, it varies greatly by person, but ideally you should give yourself three months to notice a significant improvement.
She suggests taking a meal-by-meal strategy and focusing on one adjustment at a time. “Have a nutritious breakfast to start. Once you are satisfied, go to lunch, and see if there are any changes you can make.”
Hallissey suggests taking a comparable tack. She advises concentrating on little actions you can do every day, such as gradually increasing your water intake from three to four glasses or gradually cutting back on the amount of sugar you put in your tea.
She suggests, "Once these adjustments become routine, consider putting in additional changes." She emphasises that it's better to include new healthy habits one at a time rather than attempting to implement them all at once.
Changing your environment to complement your objectives might help you maintain your new routines.
Hallisey says: "Changing your surroundings to support your new habit, rather than depending on willpower and desire, is simpler when you want to make a lasting change.“ When you're anxious, exhausted, or busy, this is even more crucial.
She suggests meal planning, keeping a supply of wholesome snacks on hand and keeping a bottle of water nearby to create an atmosphere that supports your achievement.
Hallissey also thinks it's important to let go of the perfectionist attitude. Remember that perfection is not the objective, and refrain from adopting an all-or-nothing mentality, she counsels. Utilise the two-day rule instead. By following the two-day rule, you just try not to skip the new habit a second time. This means that if you skip gym the one day, you would ensure that you went the next day.
It might be tempting to make drastic adjustments while working toward a new objective, but experts warn this is unlikely to produce long-lasting improvement.
That could seem discouraging, but the good part is that you can make gains without starving yourself or going to extremes. Positive adjustments are easier to make and are more likely to become new habits as a consequence. It’s a win-win situation.