12 Healthy Ways to Get Lean, Mean, & Gorgeous

Photo by: Designed by Naomi Abel, R29

April: Ditch Your Diet (Really!)

Admit it: most of us only notice a fluctuation in weight if it's severe - like next-pants-size-up severe. But Stanford University Researcher Michaela Kiernan, PhD, says it's important to pay attention to our weight management and health habits under normal circumstances, not when we're putting every calorie under a microscope.

So instead of committing to another diet in ... more 

Photo by: Designed by Naomi Abel, R29

April: Ditch Your Diet (Really!)

Admit it: most of us only notice a fluctuation in weight if it's severe - like next-pants-size-up severe. But Stanford University Researcher Michaela Kiernan, PhD, says it's important to pay attention to our weight management and health habits under normal circumstances, not when we're putting every calorie under a microscope.

So instead of committing to another diet in our pursuit of getting lean, may we suggest an un-diet? With an un-diet, you'll pay attention to how your body and brain act when you're in maintenance mode, then fine-tune those habits to be a bit healthier you. Kiernan found that women who learned such "stability" skills before dieting wound up keeping weight off longer after shedding pounds than those who dove into a diet without, say, getting comfortable with weighing themselves every day. This, along with other maintenance mode practices, Kiernan says, "gives people a taste of what it's like to maintain with a more consistent and relaxed awareness, rather than 'I'm on a diet, I'm off a diet.' It's the idea of fine-tuning your behavior as opposed to more extremes."

More importantly, Kiernan says that the goal of learning to manage and maintain weight without the burden of a so-called "diet," is to make changes you know you ca less