Most women diet at some stage in their lives. That is a fact of life. Yes, you may have one or two women around you who seem to be able to eat as much as they like whenever they go out, but generally speaking, most women diet.

Unfortunately, it may start very early in life, with young girls, as young as 11!

It is amazing how many women struggle with their weight. When I talk to women about how they think of themselves with an extra 3 to 15 kg, they usually share feelings of disappointment, failure, being ugly, not sexy, not wanted or clumsy. This is all because they feel they do not fit the standard weight graph (which, by the way, seems to shrink every 10 to 20 years).

Most of them are very unhappy with their weight, but they have many excuses for being overweight.

Here a just a few examples of reasons women give for being overweight:

I cannot stop eating
I eat when I am upset
During my period, I eat more
It is not that I eat a lot. I just hate exercising

Pregnancy or just some extra weight?

If you are not a mother, dieting is much harder, because you cannot use excuses like: “I am pregnant” or “I am breastfeeding”. Every woman, when she becomes a mother, gets a break from the dieting cycle for about two years around each pregnancy, which is a great relief for many.

If you are already a heavy person, but you are holding a baby in your arms, people seem to forgive you more readily for carrying the extra weight. After all, babies are much more important than looking like a model.

If you are a mother, you can always use this great excuse: “It is because of my pregnancy”. People tend to be very understanding and forgiving when you say that.

I have used this excuse myself. 5 times, in fact. And I have to say that I was also much more forgiving towards myself at these times.

Pregnancy is the best excuse for carrying extra weight and, although forgiving ourselves is extremely important, every mother must take into consideration that this excuse is only valid around her pregnancies, but not for many years later.

If your reason for being overweight is pregnancy, make sure you use this excuse only for up to a year after your child’s birth. You are in serious denial if someone says to you “Oh, congratulations! So how old is your child now?” and your answer is “5 years”…

Yours,
Ronit