Stages of Change - Diet

Stage One - Not Ready (Pre-Contemplation)

You may wonder why I would have this page at all. After all, if someone isn't ready, they wouldn't be reading this, would they?

It's true that one of the hallmarks of Pre-Contemplation is avoiding information on the subject. However, these phases aren't discrete categories - they are more like signposts on the road. So, while people in this phase who are "Hard-Core-Not-Ready" aren't going to be anywhere near this site, people who are edging closer to "Thinking About It" may accidentally find it!

Why wouldn't we want to make changes in our diet?

Do any of these ring a bell with you?

1) Habit - too much work to try to figure out new things to eat/ways of cooking/ etc.

2) We like what we eat and don't really want someone to tell us to "do it differently".

3) We associate "dieting" with hunger and deprivation. X

4) Past diet failures - too demoralizing or embarrasing.

5) Have analyzed weight loss diets and believe that they don't work in the long run.

6) Family members won't go along with the change.

7) Too many social situations where it's fun to eat whatever I want.

8) Costs too much money to eat nutritious food.

9) Don't think I could improve my health with diet.

10) Add your own!

Guess what? These are good reasons! I believe they make a lot of sense under certain circumstances. If any of them are yours, and you want to hear ideas about them, click on the blue x at the end of each line.

The Positive Side

On the other hand, there are good reasons to change our diets for the better. The one that finally tipped me to make a change was realizing that I wasn't headed for the "Golden Years" that I wanted. I wanted to be active and be able to enjoy life, and I realized that was not the track I was on, which was one to arthritis and immobility. Here are a few others to think about:

1) Increased Energy/Ablility to accomplish more

2) Disease Prevention

3) Weight loss/Clothes fit better (but beware of unrealistic expections in this area)

4) Reduction of some symptoms - (gastrointestinal symptoms, pain, lack of concentration - a surprising array of symptoms can be alleviated by the right diet).

What can I do to move ahead?

If you are still reading this, you are probably fairly close to moving on to the "Thinking About It" stage, if you aren't there already. To nudge yourself closer, you can:

1) Make lists such as the ones above of the pros and cons of making a dietary change.

2) Do a history of your past dietary adventures.

Move Along to Thinking About Diet Change (Contemplation)

Back to Introduction to Stages of Change