The Petite Advantage Diet (4 page)

Since then, I have been fine-tuning my techniques, as there is tremendous new research available–some of which I will share–that proves that there is a right way and a wrong way to lose weight, especially for Petites. As a Petite, you need to embrace the fact that your size can and
should
be used to your advantage, and I will make sure that every inch of your body is sleek, slender, and sexy.

I have been perfecting this plan for years. In the process, I stumbled across some research that virtually mirrors my approach to weight loss. This study comes from the National Weight Control Registry, which looked at the common factors in people who have lost more than thirty pounds and have kept it off longer than three years. Here are the top seven factors, which I call the Seven Behaviors of Successful Weight Loss.
²

1.
Eat a low-fat diet. Only 23 percent of total calories should come from fat. That’s really not hard at all, once you eliminate a few extremely high-fat foods. And you also must differentiate between the good fats and the bad fats. I’m a huge fan of the good fats, and will actually give you even a touch more than 23 percent of your calories from fat. On my plan, you will be eating 25 percent of your calories from the right fats. Remember: selfish is good. Well so is fat–the “good” fat, that is. Consuming more fat helps keep satiety mechanisms high and hunger low.

2.
Eat a low-calorie diet. Successful average-size dieters consume between 1300 and 1500 calories each day. As a Petite, you must eat fewer calories–at times. You will soon learn that there is a surprising twist to my eating plan. Sometimes, you will get many more calories. Plus, you will not feel hunger with my plan, which is what frightens most people away from low-calorie diets. On my plan, eating a low-calorie diet is results-producing, satisfying, and sustainable over time. That’s the way you achieve long-lasting results!

3.
Eat breakfast and control portion size. Breakfast is a
must
on this plan and all portions need to be sized for Petites. If you are regularly skipping breakfast, please promise me that you won’t
ever
do that again. I mean it. Don’t do it, unless you are dying to gain weight. Breakfast is the “jump start” to your metabolism and the trigger for “satiety.” FYI, if you are skipping breakfast
and
exercising first thing in the morning on an empty stomach, then you are effectively telling your body both to starve
and
to stay fat. That’s not the goal.

4.
Get sixty to ninety minutes of physical activity per day. Don’t think of this specifically as “exercise,” which I will define in chapter 8, but rather as daily movement that comes from cleaning the house, commuting to work, gardening, walking to the bus or the car or a meeting, shopping, cooking, or standing while talking on the phone. This sixty-to-ninety-minute goal may seem daunting, but you will be surprised at how quickly your everyday activities can add up. I will share my tricks in chapter 8, but right now, if you stand up and read this book for a few minutes, you are helping your body. If you walk around and read, you help it even more. Movement is essential. But this is not exercise; this is simply adding more daily movement to your life without making it a big issue.

5.
Weigh in regularly. You must weigh in a minimum of once a week, although the research shows that daily weighing is even more effective. The belief that the scale doesn’t matter is so very wrong. The scale is essential to long-term success. Don’t be afraid of the scale. Embrace it! It’s your second, new BFF–right after my exercise program. You must weight in at least once a week, but to really work the plan and accelerate results, I urge you to get on the scale every day. It just shows you how your body is adjusting to the plan and also gives you valuable data regarding three important indicators:

•
Your water balance.
If your weight is truly bouncing around by more than a pound or two, then you are causing water retention. Look at the foods you are eating and the liquids you are drinking to find the culprit, as I want you to banish water bloat for good. I will discuss this in the next chapter.

•
Your regularity.
Again, I talk about this in the next chapter, but if you find that you frequently have regularity issues, you can correct them using my eating and drinking recommendations.

•
Your cycle.
I find that Petites get hit pretty hard with regard to water retention both during their monthly cycle and during ovulation. Still, get on the scale and change your mind-set to consider that as “data” not “failure.”

6
. Establish a support system. You
must
have a weight-loss buddy. I believe that your support system is as crucial to your success as your adherence to the actual plan. The people around you and the environments you are put in can make or break your success. I guarantee that they will help you succeed and I was truly surprised to see that research agrees.

7
. Watch less than ten hours of television a week. I have to be honest and say that this blew me away. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that many of the people I know who struggle with weight spend a good deal of time sitting. Now, the research on sitting and weight gain is pretty compelling. We will address this later on. Just know that limiting your “recreational” sitting is a must, especially if you have to sit during most of the day at work or at your desk at home. Also, look at the time you spend in the car. Many classic “soccer moms” spend hours each day in the car. I know that I sometimes spend all day Saturday just chauffeuring my kids between gymnastics training, theater rehearsal, playdates, grocery shopping, errands, etc. I plan my day so that I am on foot as much as possible; if that isn’t possible, I make sure that I hit the exercise hard in the morning and don’t allow myself to sit and watch TV later in the day. Instead, I write, read, or watch TV in the kitchen, standing up.

I will reference these seven behaviors repeatedly throughout this book, with the goal of changing your belief system regarding each one of them. Take, for example, the need to weigh in regularly. At my main studio in Chicago, we ask our staff to weigh each client
at least
once a week, although we actually prefer that it happen more often, even every session. The clients who agree to this practice generally lose weight. Those who refuse are not “losers” in a positive sense. They avoid the scale–no, they flatly refuse to get on the scale–and by doing so, they avoid the reality and hold on to their belief that they don’t need to weigh in to lose weight. Excuse me, but yes you do! You have conducted your own, personal research study that proves that, if you don’t regularly get on the scale, you won’t lose weight. Better yet, if you don’t regularly get on the scale, you will probably gain weight!

I am very committed when it comes to getting results. By getting on the scale, you hold
yourself
accountable, since I can’t personally be there. You think that you are working my plan. Then you get on the scale and it doesn’t agree with you. The scale is your “data.” It is what gives you the “red flag” you need to examine where you are straying from the program. Are you really sticking with the eating plan as it’s laid out? Are you really hitting your exercise with the intensity required? Are you truly sleeping seven to eight hours each night? The scale holds you accountable for success and nonsuccess. When you don’t lose weight, you are forced to reassess your commitment and behavior. Without the scale, you can live in denial, which you may have done in the past. That’s why it’s your second BFF. (I have a secret strategy to hold you accountable to your daily weigh-ins that I will share with you in chapter 9–an easy technique that can have an enormous impact on your results.)

Let me give you another example. I am a resource speaker for Vistage International, the largest CEO think tank in the world. I travel all over the world presenting to these CEOs, many of whom are entrepreneurs and highly educated, successful people. When I ask the members to describe their goals for health, weight, and energy levels, with virtually 95 percent consistency the breakfast-skippers struggle with weight. The reason I bring up this point is that, even with the research that I will share with you in chapter 2, which finds that breakfast is essential for weight loss, their
belief
systems remain intact with excuses like “I’m too busy,” or “I’m not hungry.” They aren’t willing to change, even when presented with overwhelming proof that breakfast and weight loss go hand in hand. It’s baffling how these highly educated people, who rely upon research, facts, and numbers, refuse to change.

If there is one of the seven behaviors listed above that you have already identified as problematic, then I urge you to start working on adjusting your belief system in that area now. Don’t wait. If you can identify your biggest stumbling block first, you will then have more time to devote to the necessary changes.

This is imperative for you as a Petite, because you do not possess the same margin for error that taller women do. Your body requires fewer calories each day and must possess a productive, high-powered metabolism. Each of these factors is proven to result in weight loss and must be honored. I can’t make you change the behavior required if I can’t change that stubborn belief system that disagrees with and ultimately sabotages your chance of success.

From this page forward, I want this to be your mantra:

• My belief system has been flawed. I now believe that selfish is good!

• My new belief system will lead to new behaviors that reinforce placing myself first.

• My new beliefs and behaviors will make me much more energetic, productive, and calm. My stress levels will diminish and that will benefit everyone around me, because I made the decision to place myself first.

• My new beliefs will enable me to lose weight and keep it off!

Just saying these things will make you feel better and, with repetition, you will really start to
believe
them and
live
them.

It’s a bit like believing you can “live your best life,” which has been Oprah’s message for years. Only with that belief intact can you actually start to “live your best life.”

Your homework, starting today, is to plan just five minutes to focus on yourself. In those five, pre-determined minutes–yes,
plan
them–I want you to:

1
. Think about what you are going to eat for the rest of the day and tomorrow.

2
. Plan when you are going to exercise in the coming week. You just need three thirty-one-minute chunks, so that’s not asking for a lot of time.

3
. Eliminate one unnecessary task from your day. No, that basement closet does
not
need to be cleaned out today. Instead, make a cup of tea, because tea boosts your metabolism and helps you lose weight. Isn’t that what this book is supposed to be about?

4.
Breathe. I give you a stress-relieving breathing exercise on pages
267–268
. Peek at it now if you feel you need it.

I’m only asking for five minutes. Clearly, you have that time to give to yourself–because you now believe that selfish is good!

M
etabolism: the set of chemical reactions that occur in living organisms to maintain life. FYI, these
chemical reactions
burn lots and lots of
calories
.

Effective, permanent weight loss is all about an optimized, “calorie burning” metabolism, which is why I call it your “weapon of mass reduction.”