As part of reviewing the 'rules', I've been doing a bit of Googling, and I came up with this list of 'success factors', which were posted on the LivinLaVida Low carb blog. It's obviously American, but I thought it was really interesting nevertheless. See how many of these apply to you:
"OBSERVATIONS ON WHAT WORKS"
by Michael Kirtley
I would like to preface this by saying I?m not a dietician or a ?health expert." I am just someone who has talked with thousands of people who have come through the door here at our store in the past couple of years. Some have been successful -- others have not, but there are some similarities that are present in almost all of the success stories, whether the goal was weight loss, blood sugar control or better health. So I thought I would share with you some of the comments that I hear repeatedly from the people who have had the most success.
- They rarely, if EVER say, ?I did it following a ?modified plan? or ?my own version? of a plan?.
- They read labels, and know what the ingredients are.
- They are informed about their plan, they understand how it works and why.
- They count all carbs, except fiber.
- They don?t pay much attention to dietary cholesterol.
- They rarely use products with sugar alcohols, and when they do, they prefer Erythritol or Xylitol.
- They exercise.
- They don?t really count calories. They just eat until they are full (not stuffed).
- They choose their carbs wisely.
10. They don?t pay much attention to fat, but they do avoid trans fats (partially hydrogenated oils).
11. The majority of what they eat is meats, vegetables, nuts, cheese, eggs, berries, and some fruits. It?s interesting to note that many of these foods don?t require a nutritional label.
12. They drink lots of water.
13. They take supplements daily.
14. During their weight loss they were at 20-40 carbs per day.
15. They prepare most meals at home.
16. They can tell you exactly how many carbs they eat per day.
17. They don?t consider it a ?diet?; it?s just how they choose to eat.
18. They picked a specific plan, read the book, and followed it.
19. They don?t ?go on and off of it? depending on the circumstances or when it?s convenient.
20. They know their ?carb equilibrium?, which is the number of carbs they can eat per day and not gain or lose weight.
21. They don?t skip meals.
22. They eat foods with nutritional value, not ?empty calories.?
23. When you ask them if it was difficult, they say ?Not after the first few days.?
24. They take it seriously.
25. They eat several times a day.
26. If a product disappears from the marketplace, they just find something else that works.
27. They keep track of what they eat during the day.
28. They have been criticized by an uninformed person.
29. They plan meals ahead of time.
30. They aren?t too concerned about sodium.
31. They notice the ?serving size? on packages.
32. Not one has ever said ?I did it with carb blockers?, (or any other type of magic pill, potion or formula).
33. They are very creative in preparing foods.
34. If they have ?fallen off the wagon? or ?splurged?, they don?t make excuses or blame anyone, they just get back on their plan ASAP.
from this blog