Tres Prier Hatch, chef and University of Utah food educator, tried numerous diets and not one of them helped her lose 110 pounds. A change of attitude, on the other hand, did help.
"We are what we believe we are. If we want to become a healthy thin person, we not only have to think the thoughts of a healthy thin person — but we have to believe that this is who we are," said Hatch, author of the self-published "Miracle Pill: 10 Truths To Healthy, Thin, and Sexy."
"Miracle Pill" documented her weight-loss journey and analyzed where popular diets get it wrong. Hatch battled weight issues since her teenage years and suffered through numerous diets and even bulimia.
"I probably gained and lost a thousand pounds in my life," Hatch said. "The reason I wrote the book isn't because I lost 110 pounds. I went from somebody having a lifelong weight battle to somebody who no longer battles their weight. That's really the miracle in 'Miracle Pill' — that we can actually ... change the way we think."
• Myth: Diets should focus on quick weight loss.
Hatch said the focus should be on living a healthier lifestyle.
"There's a path to weight loss and then there's a path to permanent weight loss. Those are incredibly divergent paths. You approach them very differently," Hatch said.
"The one to permanent weight loss is health. It's less about eating and exercise and it's more about the way I think — because when I think like a healthy thin person, that's what my behaviors become."
Diet ads tout losing pounds quickly.
" 'Slow and steady wins the race' isn't very sexy," Hatch said. "People want it off by their cruise or want it off by their wedding. That's excellent marketing by the diet and weight-loss industry."
• Myth: Focus on cutting calories and food restrictions.
Which diet is for you? The one that eliminates carbs, breads or fatty foods?
They aren't sustainable, said Hatch.
The body is constantly telling you what it needs, according to Hatch. Go ahead and feed those needs. For example, when you're craving protein, eat some protein.
"Because in order to increase our metabolism, we have to have exactly what we need when we need it," Hatch said. "And we come equipped with the messages in our minds and our bodies to know when we need it.
"Any organism that gets exactly what it needs runs at optimum. So we don't have to restrict entire spectrums of foods."
• Myth: Avoid treats.
Snacks won't ruin a diet.
"We are designed to have two primary reasons for eating, and that is fuel and pleasure," Hatch said. "So to deny that isn't sustainable certainly."
Of course, that comes with a limit. Slow down and tune into the taste with a few bites rather than bingeing on that entire bag of potato chips.
• Myth: Take your vitamins and your diet pills.
Unless there is a medical need, Hatch recommends ingesting vitamins in their original form — from food. She said the delivery system for taking in vitamins was designed that way, not to eat junk food and take a multivitamin to balance it all out.
Hatch advises against diet pills.
"You may lose weight from a lack of calories," Hatch said, "but overall, the balance and the harmony of your body will be interrupted and your metabolism will not be running ... like a thin person."
• Myth: Weigh yourself daily.
Hatch writes in the book that it took several months before she noticed a difference on the scale. Unlike during her previous attempts, Hatch said she felt better and noticed the healthy change when she walked up stairs.
Now she uses a scale only when she visits the doctor.
"I know I am in balance," Hatch said. "My pants fit normal. My clothes fit fine.
"So I don't encourage people to use the scale as a barometer for losing weight. I encourage people to listen to their body."
