How to diet with a friend and reap the weight loss benefits!
Thursday 09 August 2012
Dieting on your own can be a long and lonely road - motivation can slip and temptation can be all too easy to succumb to. But, get yourself a diet buddy like these celebs and you'll be reaping the benefits in no time.
A recent study shows that dieting and exercising with a friend improves your chances of success, and it seems celebs have reaped the benefit of training with pals for years.
George Clooney's girlfriend Stacy Keibler was spotted working out with fellow former WWE wrestler Torrie Wilson - who's dating Cameron Diaz's ex Alex Rodriguez - this week in the Italian sunshine.
The pair are currently holidaying together in the sunny location but are making sure to stay in shape during the trip - having been spotted running and power walking together.
In a survey of 3000 women by car insurance company Diamond, 61 percent reported it was hard to summon the energy to exercise alone. Seventy percent said exercise was less of a chore when they did it with friends, although over half admitted talking non-stop during the workout!
Sharon Osbourne also famously started training with her daughter, Kelly after she became so impressed with her weight loss. Kelly said: "Mom's started to work out with me and my trainer, Sarah Hagaman. She loves it."
Make sure you and your diet buddy have similar goals – you don’t need to want to lose the same amount of weight but you should be equally committed to the process. You should pick someone you know will be honest with you, even though their feedback could be tough to hear sometimes.
Your diet needs to be realistic and should be a learning curve for you both. You don’t necessarily have to be on the same diet but it helps as you’ll gain a deeper understanding of the food you’re eating through each other, swapping tips on how to cook it etc. But a word of warning - if you come up with a strict and unrealistic diet and exercise plan, you will both be left hungry and grouchy and may even fall out over it.
If you are dieting with a friend, it needs to be someone you trust and who is reliable. You don’t want to pair up with a pal who’ll repeatedly abandon you at the spinning class if she gets a better offer. And you may not feel as comfortable sharing your diet highs and lows with her if she’s not prepared to tell you hers too.
The key is also not to make your diet a competition. The aim is to help each other and provide emotional support and motivation to keep going. Take up an exercise class that neither of you have tried before so no one is at an advantage. According to researchers at the University of Pittsburgh women who work out with a partner lose a third more weight than those who exercise alone. And the Diamond study found the average female will shed more than 10 pounds when she has girlfriends who are willing to eat healthily and train with her.
It’s important to keep your contact with your diet buddy regular. Call, text or facebook your friend at the weekend to share your meal plan for the week ahead, and ask if she can think of any healthier options. Then get in touch daily to tell each other how you’re doing. And if you feel a doughnut craving coming on, an emergency call will hopefully result in her suggesting you try something healthier first.
Together as you share tips and suggestions you’ll discover what doesn’t work as well as what does, and all being well, you can both go shopping together for that sexy ‘we did it!’ dress when you reach your target weight.
Why don't you try dieting with your best pal with www.closerdiets.com? No fads here; Closer Diets offers a healthy, balanced way of losing weight. Recently launched their new website, Closer diets promises that, if followed properly, their plans will be all you ever need to lose weight for life.
Closer Diets works on the promise that you will never go hungry, you can still have treats and your family can enjoy your food too. They promote a healthy weight loss of 2lbs per week to ensure you move at a steady and realistic pace with the weight staying off. More importantly, there are no fad, quick-fix diet plans here.
If you’re interested, head over to www.closerdiets.com now.