Beat the TV Snacking Habit
Beat the TV Snacking Habit

September 4, 2024/gbrown

In a recent session, my client, Brie, shared with me that she’s been having a difficult time controlling her snacking […]

Wherever You Go, There You Are
Wherever You Go, There You Are

August 6, 2024/gbrown

In a session this week, my client Emily and I discussed her upcoming beach trip. During vacations in the past, […]

Treat Tank
Treat Tank

June 11, 2024/gbrown

My client, Jennie, has been having a hard time when it comes to not overdoing dessert lately. She’s had a […]

Supermarket Strategy
Supermarket Strategy

May 22, 2024/gbrown

A question to ask when you’re considering buying a specialty item is “Where does this food fit into my meal plan for the week?”

Breaking the All-Or-Nothing Cycle
Breaking the All-Or-Nothing Cycle

May 8, 2024/gbrown

We can’t artificially manufacture not craving dessert but we can plan for how much dessert we’re going to have and use strategies to stick to our plan.

Our Brains Get It Wrong
Our Brains Get It Wrong

February 22, 2024/sfleming

Why is it so difficult for us to achieve our health goals? One reason is that our brains get it wrong.

The Venn Diagram of Food Decisions
The Venn Diagram of Food Decisions

November 21, 2023/sfleming

One of the concepts I talk about with all of my clients is using a Venn Diagram (i.e. two overlapping […]

98/2
98/2

September 19, 2023/sfleming

Our Fall Weight Management webinar series is coming up in November! Join us for this engaging live six-part series and […]

CBT and the New Weight Loss Medications
CBT and the New Weight Loss Medications

August 22, 2023/sfleming

As the new class of medicines being used for weight loss, including Ozempic, Wegovy, and Mounjaro are becoming increasing popular, […]

Keep It Moving
Keep It Moving

January 12, 2023/sfleming

Our Spring 2024 Weight Management Webinar Series is Open for Registration! Begin your personal health and weight loss journey with […]

Ideal Plan vs. Reasonable Plan
Ideal Plan vs. Reasonable Plan

December 1, 2022/sfleming

When we first started working together, my client, Gina, was struggling to make healthy eating choices and establish healthy habits […]

Amazing. Confident. In Control.
Amazing. Confident. In Control.

September 15, 2022/sfleming

My client, Alyssa, was really struggling to get on track and feel in control of her eating. The hardest time […]

Refocusing on the Basics
Refocusing on the Basics

August 2, 2022/emattson

I’ve been working with my client, Jamie, for close to a year. When we first started working together, Jamie was […]

Consider A New Manager
Consider A New Manager

March 31, 2022/emattson

Over the course of our work together these past few months, my client, Jason, has slowly been realizing that he’s […]

Hair Trigger Hopeless/Helpless Mode 
Hair Trigger Hopeless/Helpless Mode 

March 8, 2022/mhayes

In session this week my client, Katy, told me she was having a tough time. She had a stressful work […]

Honeymoon Phase Eating
Honeymoon Phase Eating

November 19, 2021/Other

When I first started working with my client Jeff, he was feeling somewhat out of control of his eating. He […]

Shoulds and Shouldn’ts
Shoulds and Shouldn’ts

October 22, 2021/Other

One of the most important skills we work on with all our clients is giving themselves credit. Every time a […]

Hot Brain vs. Cool Brain
Hot Brain vs. Cool Brain

October 8, 2021/Other

My client Jess has been having trouble sticking to her weekend food plans. She’s doing great staying on track when […]

Doing Your “Best”
Doing Your “Best”

September 24, 2021/Other

There’s Still Time to Join Us in Our Advanced CBT Strategies for Weight Management Webinar Series! Registration for our first […]

Off-Track Mentality
Off-Track Mentality

August 27, 2021/Other

A few months ago, my client Jess was struggling. She had a sick family member, a stressful work period, and […]

Busy Work Period Blueprint

June 25, 2021/hgrossman

When I first started working with my client Jeff, he was in a period of struggle. He had fallen into […]

How Full Do I Want to Feel?

June 11, 2021/hgrossman

While my client April was out running errands last week, she realized that it was past lunch and she was […]

All-Or-Nothing Exercise

May 28, 2021/hgrossman

One of the biggest mistakes I see many of my clients make about exercise is that they display all-or-nothing thinking […]

Systematize Before Optimize

May 14, 2021/hgrossman

In session this week with my client Tara, we discussed the trouble she was having staying in control on weekends. […]

Fantasy vs. Reality

April 30, 2021/hgrossman

My client Jeff was in the habit of eating a whole pizza several nights per week. While he knew this […]

All About Response Cards

April 16, 2021/hgrossman

Response Cards are helpful phrases written down on 3×5 cards or kept somewhere on your phone. They are one of […]

Is It Time to Reevaluate COVID Habits?

March 26, 2021/hgrossman

Now that we have passed the one-year mark since life changed dramatically, I started thinking about habits that some of […]

A Different Type of Food Pusher

March 12, 2021/hgrossman

My client Megan had several hard days this past week. She told me that, on three separate occasions, she ended […]

Entitlement vs. Treat

February 26, 2021/hgrossman

Most of the clients I work with have “slippery slope” habits – old habits that they’ve managed to leave behind […]

Let It Slide?

February 12, 2021/hgrossman

My client Tara helps run conferences (which are currently all virtual), and she is in the thick of a busy […]

Thursday Think Tip – February 11, 2021

February 11, 2021/hgrossman

Thursday Think Tip: Taking care of yourself is a necessity, not a luxury. If you think, “I can’t take 10 […]

Wednesday Sabotage – February 3, 2021

February 3, 2021/hgrossman

Wednesday Sabotage: I’m too stressed to worry about my eating right now. Response: Even though I think maintaining control over […]

Planning in Advance

January 29, 2021/hgrossman

This week, my client Jennifer told me that while her days have been going well, things have been falling apart […]

Evening Treats

January 15, 2021/hgrossman

In session this week, my client Lisa told me she was struggling in the evenings. While she found it fairly […]

Start Now!

December 25, 2020/hgrossman

Most of us seem to be in the no-man’s land between the winter holidays and the New Year. If your […]

The Holidays

December 11, 2020/hgrossman

While some aspects of the holiday season are easier to manage this year (no office kitchens stocked to the brim […]

Eating Pizza

November 27, 2020/hgrossman

I’ve been working with my client Emily for a few months now. In session last week, she told me about […]

The Scale

November 12, 2020/hgrossman

This morning, I had a session with my client Rob, who has been having a hard time with the scale. […]

Halloween 2020 Do’s and Don’ts

October 30, 2020/hgrossman

While this year’s Halloween will undoubtedly be different from years past, one thing remains the same: Halloween treats everywhere you […]

What I Want

October 16, 2020/hgrossman

In session this week, my client Michael told me that in the evenings he keeps having the nagging thought, “Maybe […]

Flareups

October 2, 2020/hgrossman

I’ve been working with my client Jeremy for about six months. While it took him a few weeks to learn […]

Trick, Not Treat

September 18, 2020/hgrossman

This week, my client Julie told me that she had gotten a little off track the previous night and had […]

Huge Hunger

September 4, 2020/hgrossman

Right from our first session, my client Ellie told me she always has an incredibly difficult time stopping at a […]

TV Plus

August 21, 2020/hgrossman

One of the most frequent conversations I have with my clients centers around helping them gain control of their eating […]

I Want More

August 7, 2020/hgrossman

This week, I had a session with my client Sonia, a 45-year-old mother of four boys. Sonia told me the […]

Recovering from Mistakes

July 24, 2020/hgrossman

One of the most common diet-sabotaging thoughts is, “I’ve made a mistake. I’ve blown healthy eating for the day so […]

Making Your Nighttime Self an Ally to Your Daytime Self

July 10, 2020/hgrossman

Like many, my client, Jess, has been having a hard time getting to bed at a decent hour. Once her […]

Food Pushers

June 26, 2020/hgrossman

A few weeks ago, my client Natalie’s friend, Lara, broke her leg and has been in rehab ever since. Lara […]

Delaying Instant Gratification

June 12, 2020/hgrossman

Last week, I had a session with my client Sarah, who told me about an experience she had the previous […]

Three Things You Can Do When You Feel Like Eating, But It’s Not Time To Eat

May 29, 2020/hgrossman

Intuitive eating is a great concept, but we find that for many people who have struggled with their eating, their […]

Leave the Struggle at the Store

May 15, 2020/mhayes

A big way COVID-19 has changed many people’s lives is that they are grocery shopping far less often than they […]

Working from Home

May 1, 2020/mhayes

Over the past few weeks, I’ve been talking to most of my clients about how to manage their eating now […]

Don’t Push the Lazy Domino!

April 9, 2020/mhayes

As I help my clients navigate this unsettling time, one major topic of discussion has been helping people learn to […]

Why It Matters

March 21, 2020/mhayes

I’ve had many sessions with clients over the past two weeks who are understandably very uneasy, scared, and thrown off […]

The Number on the Scale

February 21, 2020/Other

In a follow up to my previous blog post, I’d like to return to my client, Jessica, who got off […]

I’m Doing It

February 7, 2020/Other

My client, Jessica, got off track during the holidays (which is far too easy to do!). When I met with […]

Other Sources of Pleasure

January 24, 2020/Other

This week I had a session with my client, Sarah. Like many dieters, Sarah has been having a lot of […]

Not Every Day Can Be Thanksgiving

January 10, 2020/Other

I recently had a session with my client, Mark, who has lost twenty pounds and would like to lose more. […]

Nighttime Struggles

December 27, 2019/Other

In session this week, my client, Rebecca, told me that nighttime (specifically the hours between dinner and bedtime) was hard […]

If You Want It, Plan It!

December 13, 2019/mhayes

This week I met with my client, Lauren. Lauren has been doing well the last few months, feeling very focused […]

Thanksgiving Night: How Do You Want to Feel?

November 25, 2019/mhayes

With Thanksgiving right around the corner, dieters should begin to think about how they’ll handle their eating on that day. […]

Halloween Survival Guide

October 18, 2019/mhayes

Halloween is just around the corner! It’s important to start thinking about what plans and Response Cards you need to navigate it successfully!

Regaining Dessert Control

October 4, 2019/mhayes

Today I had a session with my client, Melissa. For the past few months, Melissa has been working on not having dessert before dinner. This is a necessary skill for Melissa to implement because, like a lot of dieters, Melissa encounters dessert all day long.

Off-Track Mode

September 18, 2019/mhayes

Dieters get into “off-track mode” when they get off track, the scale has gone up, and they believe they are helpless in the face of their weight problem.

Friday Weekend Warm-Up – Semptember 13, 2019

September 13, 2019/mhayes

Friday: Dieters are prone to grazing on the weekend. You’re always better off sitting down with a defined snack and eating it mindfully.

Wednesday Sabotage – September 11, 2019

September 11, 2019/mhayes

I can’t believe I gave in to that craving. I can’t do this. I should give up. Response: Learning to lose weight and keep it off is a process and takes time.

Two Minutes Versus Sixteen Hours

August 23, 2019/mhayes

Jen realized that she was sacrificing around 16 hours of feeling good for a maximum of two minutes of enjoying a taste – not a trade she wanted to make!

Changes

August 9, 2019/mhayes

Lori told me that two nights ago she had a big work dinner and she was still feeling proud of how well she stuck to her plan. It was at a Mediterranean restaurant, and like all her work dinners, it included a lot of food.

Play it Forward

July 26, 2019/mhayes

Usually when dieters are faced with eating something they want to eat, in that moment they’re thinking about how good it will taste and how deprived they’ll feel if they can’t have it, rather than looking at what will happen once the food is gone.

Think Thin Thursday – July 25, 2019

July 25, 2019/mhayes

It’s important to build other means of comfort and stress-relief into your life so you have other things to turn to besides food.

Monday Motivation – July 15, 2019

July 15, 2019/hgrossman

it’s important to compare the disadvantages to the advantages of losing weight – better health, improved self-confidence, increased mobility, better quality of life. Focus on the advantages.

Progress Not Perfection

July 5, 2019/mhayes

For the last few weeks, my client, Jenna, has been working hard on overcoming emotional eating.

Off-Track Mentality

June 21, 2019/mhayes

My client, Scott, has had a really hard two weeks.  He’s been dealing with a lot of stress at work and his eating has definitely suffered. He’s struggled to track his calories (something he was fairly easily getting himself to do before) and was feeling too worn out to get himself to prepare healthy dinners at night, and consequently fell back into old habits of ordering takeout.

Plan Extra Calories!

June 7, 2019/mhayes

Liz realized that a lot of the time she wasn’t planning her extra calories in advance, which ultimately meant she didn’t have as strong a plan for weekends as she did for weekdays.

Premium Experience Eating

May 23, 2019/mhayes

When Kate started working on the skill of eating slowly and mindfully, for the first time in a very long time she told me she realized that not all food tasted as good as it looked or tasted as good as she thought it would taste.

Eating Without Information

May 9, 2019/mhayes

This week I had a session with my client, Lauren. Lauren told me that while she had a good week, one day she ended up going way over her allotted calories.

Just This One Time

April 25, 2019/mhayes

In session this week, my client, Tom, told me that over the weekend he’d eaten an unplanned snack in the middle of the day. Tom, like many of my clients, follows an eating schedule.

Cravings

April 12, 2019/mhagner

Like many dieters, Kim can recall countless instances of falling into the all-or-nothing sugar trap: eating way too much sugar, cutting it out completely, then falling off the wagon and eating way too much again. Repeat.

I Lost Weight…Now What?

March 28, 2019/mhagner

Her weight has mostly stabilized, although she’s still losing about a pound a month right now. She’s not quite sure how much more she’ll lose.

Change in Circumstances

March 14, 2019/mhagner

Sharon has worked in an office setting for the last twenty years, so suddenly being home a lot more during the day has been a big change for her. Unsurprisingly, she has had some trouble with her eating.

Feeling Good vs. Good Consequences

February 28, 2019/mhagner

When she thinks about eating more sugar, she’s focusing on the taste, not the consequences that follow. This is extremely common.

Reducing Bread

February 14, 2019/mhagner

My client, Jane, told me she was eating too much bread (which was translating into too many calories per day). 

Friday Weekend Warm-Up – February 8, 2019

February 8, 2019/mhagner

“Calories don’t count on the weekends.” FALSE! Calories count just as much on a Saturday as they do on a […]

Cheat Days?

January 31, 2019/mhagner

I was asked a question this week that I often hear from my dieters: Is it okay to have one “cheat day” per week? 

Making Mistakes

January 18, 2019/mhagner

Jen had been doing exceptionally well for months and months, but recently has gone through some hard times in her personal life, and was struggling more with eating. 

Tuesday Reality Check – January 8, 2019

January 8, 2019/mhagner

Often dieters are hesitant to bring their own food or make special requests because they don’t want to draw attention […]

It’s Where You Put Your Focus

January 3, 2019/mhagner

Her basic mindset was, “This trip is hard and it’s a struggle.” I wanted her to switch her mindset to, “This is trip is hard and it’s a struggle, but I’m doing really well! I’m triumphing!”

Craving Intolerance

November 8, 2018/beckadmin

Emily, has recently been having a very hard time dealing with the discomfort of having a craving or feeling hungry. When she gets a craving, or feels hungry, and it’s not time to eat, Emily has a running dialogue in her head that goes something like this: “I hate feeling this way. This sucks. I shouldn’t have to put up with this. If I just eat, this will go away.”

I’m Failing

October 25, 2018/mhagner

While it’s true that there were some things that had started to really slip (he all but stopped giving himself credit, started eating standing up again, started taking much bigger portions at meals, especially dinner, and stopped counting calories), it wasn’t true that everything was going poorly. In fact, when Mike looked at this list, he realized that a lot of things were still going well – he just wasn’t acknowledging or giving himself credit for them.

I’m Not Losing Weight Anyway

October 11, 2018/mhagner

Ellie noted that another thought she often has about overeating dessert is, “I just want the freedom of being able to eat what I want and not think about it.”

I Need Something

September 27, 2018/mhagner

My client, Megan, has been getting off track in the evening hours. She told me in session this week that she’s generally doing really well during the day, but ends up snacking too much in the hours between dinner and bed. I asked Megan what thought she might be having around that time, and she said, “It’s probably, ‘I need something.’ ”  Megan admitted that it wasn’t necessarily that she was hungry in that moment (she knew that if she had already eaten all her calories then her body has had enough food), but it was her mind that was feeling unsatisfied.

Getting Rid of Ice Cream

September 13, 2018/mhagner

Jen hadn’t had ice cream in close to a year because dairy just doesn’t work for her– it causes her stomach aches, inflammation, and swelling in her feet. Jen said that when she got sick, she just wanted to eat the food that was most comforting to her, and that was ice cream.

The Off-Track Mentality

August 29, 2018/mhagner

Lauren told me that she has felt very off track the last few days. She said that controlling her eating has just felt really hard, and she’s not sure it’s worth it. I discussed with Lauren something I know to be true for myself and virtually all my dieters: that the “Is it worth it?” question is just a product of the off-track mentality.

Take Time for Yourself!

August 9, 2018/mhagner

This week, I had a session with my client, Grace. Grace told me that over the past few weeks she has been struggling to stay on track, particularly in the evenings. I asked Grace what sabotaging thoughts she was having in the evenings, and it was usually something like, “You’ve been working so much and had a hard day, you deserve this.”

Scale Avoidance

July 26, 2018/slicata

Today I had a session with my client, Jane. I hadn’t had a session with Jane in a few months. She told me she has been feeling somewhat off track over the last few weeks. She also told me that her portions have gotten bigger again and she’s snacking at random times throughout the day, among other difficulties.

Dessert Planning

June 27, 2018/slicata

My client, Jen, recently gave up all sugar and desserts for a month leading up to her birthday because she wanted to prove to herself that she could do it. She knew that she wouldn’t give them up forever, but she wanted a bit of a reset. I worked with Jen to create a clear dessert plan, a helpful Response Card, and a compelling activity to help her achieve her goals.

Counting Calories

June 14, 2018/slicata

Jason started to get off track and stopped counting calories for the rest of the day. This is very common. Often when dieters get off track, they don’t want to face how many calories they’re eating so they tell themselves, “I’m already over for the day. I’ll just stop counting and start again tomorrow.”

Cutting Out Weekday Wine

May 31, 2018/slicata

In session this week with my client, Maddy, we spent most of the session discussing a new skill for her: no wine Sunday through Thursday. Maddy told me that she had gotten into the habit of having a glass or two most nights of the week, and at 120 calories a glass, she was easily spending 1,200 calories just on wine each week, which is a lot for someone trying to lose weight. Maddy decided it was realistic that she would have a glass or two on Fridays and Saturdays, but that cutting out the rest of the week’s wine would be reasonable.

Unexpected Food

May 16, 2018/slicata

Especially during stressful times, unexpected food is an inevitable obstacle. These guidelines will provide structure and advice for making smart eating decisions for any unexpected food in your house.

Getting Through the Witching Hour

May 2, 2018/slicata

I have found that many dieters I work with initially have a “witching hour:” a period of an hour or two each day where cravings are strong and staying on track feels much harder. For most dieters, this is either the period right before dinner (around 4 PM – 6 PM) or in the hours after dinner but before bed (8 PM -10 PM). Dieters often think that they just can’t get through it without eating, but this is only because they don’t have skills that they need.

Sticking to a Plan

April 12, 2018/slicata

When I saw that what we were doing just wasn’t working, I knew we had to try a different strategy. As usual, I asked Katie to describe some of the situations from the past week in which she went off track. She told me that she ate a roll at dinner when she didn’t plan to and she had unplanned desserts in the evening.

Working on Eating During a Crisis

March 20, 2018/slicata

My client, Megan, is going through a really hard time. Her mother is facing a major health crisis and when Megan and I met this week, she told me she was having trouble staying in control of her eating. She kept having thoughts like, “I just can’t deal with worrying about my eating right now. It’s too hard.”

Stress Eating

February 28, 2018/slicata

A client I worked with a few years ago recently had her second baby and was having trouble getting her eating back under control. Lara told me that during her pregnancy, she let herself eat whatever she wanted and ended up gaining more weight than was healthy. Now at six months postpartum, she’s still struggling to put the skills that we had worked on back in place.

Losing (and Even Maintaining) is Not Always Reasonable

February 13, 2018/slicata

It’s not always reasonable in every situation to lose weight, or even to maintain weight. If the scale goes up, it doesn’t mean you didn’t do well; it just means it wasn’t reasonable not to gain a little.

Recommitting

January 17, 2018/slicata

If you’ve gotten off track with your New Year’s resolution, this is exactly what you need to do, too! Stop expecting yourself to do everything and instead figure out what feels completely doable this week. Recommit to it, do it (and give yourself so much credit for doing so!), and then add one or more things next week.

Getting Weekends Under Control

January 3, 2018/slicata

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Holidays

December 20, 2017/slicata

Not having a strong plan can exponentially increase the chances of getting off track because of how many spontaneous decisions you’ll have to make all day.

Vacation Plan – Part 2: A Realistic Strategy

December 12, 2017/slicata

A realistic strategy is the most important thing to bring on vacation. Eric lists the Sabotaging Thoughts and responses to help him stay on track.

Vacation Plan – Part 1: Is it worth it?

November 29, 2017/slicata

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Planning a Trip Overseas

October 10, 2017/slicata

Make a reasonable vacation plan and stay committed to being in control. You’ll feel successful throughout your trip and enjoy new, exciting foods.

Dealing with Bereavement

September 27, 2017/slicata

Recently, my client Jeff’s mother passed away. While she had been sick for a while, her death was still somewhat […]

Making a Plan

September 20, 2017/slicata

Creating a plan allows you to eat a reasonable amount, enjoyed the food you eat, and feel proud of yourself for making healthy decisions. Learn what Kate could have done before attending a potluck dinner to make a helpful plan for her eating.

Confessions of a Diet Coach

September 5, 2017/slicata

I use the skills in the Beck Diet Program for myself as well. After I graduated college I lost weight and more or less kept it off in the ensuing 12 years. On January 30th of this year, I had my daughter, Diana, and things changed. You might think that since this is what I do for a living I’d have an easy time returning to my healthy eating habits – and that’s what I thought, too.  But, boy was I wrong! 

Thoughts, Not Actions

May 3, 2016/beckadmin

What Jenny didn’t know was that our goal was not to make her sabotaging thoughts go away entirely – because we can’t do that. We can’t control her mind. Our goal actually was to have her get really, really good at responding back to her sabotaging thoughts and not giving in to them.  I reminded Jenny that instead of being distressed that she was having so many sabotaging thoughts about dessert, she should instead be proud of herself for overcoming all of them.

The Cycle of Maintenance

February 16, 2016/beckadmin

Not enough is written about maintaining a weight loss, and this is a problem because for most dieters, that’s where […]

Getting Home from Work: A Tricky Time for Many Dieters

February 16, 2016/beckadmin

When we first start working with new clients, they often report that they have trouble staying on track when they […]

Why We Eat Dessert – And You Should, Too!

January 12, 2016/beckadmin

We believe that eating dessert, and for many dieters (ourselves included) eating a reasonable portion of dessert every day, is […]

How to Eat Dessert EVERY DAY

January 12, 2016/beckadmin

We hope you’re more open to the idea that eating dessert in reasonable portions is an essential component of lifetime […]

Treats in the Office Kitchen – Update

December 16, 2015/beckadmin

Yesterday I had a session with Jennifer, whom you read about in our previous blog post.  One of the main […]

Treats in the Office Kitchen (Part 2)

December 8, 2015/beckadmin

This week I had a session with my client, Jennifer. Jennifer told me about a very troubling email she got […]

Top 10 Holiday Diet Tips

November 19, 2015/beckadmin

We asked our Facebook Community for their favorite tips and tricks for sticking to their plan during the holiday season. […]

Common Holiday Sabotaging Thoughts

November 13, 2015/beckadmin

Everyone knows that it’s harder to stay on track with healthy eating during the holidays, and most people assume that […]

Treats in the Office Kitchen

November 13, 2015/beckadmin

One of the biggest challenges that makes staying on track with healthy eating difficult during the holidays is what dieters […]

In Session with Debbie: Mistakes

November 11, 2015/beckadmin

I’ve been working with my client, Rachel, for about a month. In session last Thursday I found out that one […]

In Session with Debbie: Facing Dessert

October 28, 2015/beckadmin

I’ve been working with my client, Joe, for a few months and he has been doing exceptionally well at getting […]

In Session with Debbie: Realistic Perspective

September 23, 2015/beckadmin

This week, I had a session with my client, Joe.  Joe has been doing well the last few weeks but […]

Eating While Driving

September 9, 2015/beckadmin

One of the early skills we work on with clients is the skill of eating everything slowly and mindfully. This […]

In Session with Debbie: Party Plans and Leftovers

July 14, 2015/beckadmin

This past weekend marked my client, Liz’s, 40th birthday and she had a party to celebrate.  In session last week […]

In Session with Debbie: Motivation

June 11, 2015/beckadmin

This week I had a session with my client, Jon. I’ve been working with Jon for about three weeks and […]

In Session with Debbie: Hunger

May 28, 2015/beckadmin

Like many dieters before her, my client Jill was having trouble sticking to her food plan in the evening. She […]

In Session with Debbie: No Exceptions

May 13, 2015/beckadmin

[getty src=”463709205?et=aOtC9wsDTSlhqfhnf8NPlA&viewMoreLink=on&sig=ceKy_ZRJTknub3kB_R3RlYd3aPFr1taVu2xeFt7HkeA=” width=”469″ height=”366″] My client, Helen, has been struggling recently. When she came in to see me this week […]

In Session with Debbie: Slowing Down

April 30, 2015/beckadmin

This week, my client, Theresa told me that she was having trouble controlling portions at dinnertime.  I asked her to […]

In Session with Debbie: Stress Relief

April 22, 2015/beckadmin

This week I had a session with my client, Jennifer, with whom I only meet every few months for booster […]

In Session with Debbie: Being Too Restrictive

April 1, 2015/beckadmin

This week, my client, Katie, told me that she was having trouble staying on track during the weekend.  She said that […]

In Session with Debbie: I Can Recover

March 25, 2015/beckadmin

This week I had a session with my client, Rob.  Rob used to struggle with the common diet trap of […]

In Session with Debbie: Dinner Decisions

March 6, 2015/beckadmin

In session this week, my client, Rachel, told me that over the past few weeks she has been struggling with […]

In Session with Debbie: Off-Track Mentality

February 25, 2015/beckadmin

This week, I had a session with my client, Jane, who last week returned home from a vacation. Before she […]

In Session with Debbie: Kitchen Cleanup

February 18, 2015/beckadmin

In session this week, my client, Brian, told me he was having trouble getting himself to refrain from eating while he […]

Holiday Party

December 16, 2014/beckadmin

Over the weekend I want to a holiday party.  And I got off track.  Yes, even professional diet coaches make […]

In Session with Debbie: Overeating Dinner

October 7, 2014/beckadmin

In session this week, my client, Emily, told me that while she has gotten much better at moderating her eating […]

In Session with Debbie: Losing Weight While Traveling

September 16, 2014/beckadmin

My client, Deanna, just came back from a week-long trip and something great happened upon her return: She found out […]

In Session with Debbie: Cravings Script

July 1, 2014/beckadmin

My client, Rachel, was having trouble resisting cravings.  While she was able to resist them much of the time, she […]

In Session with Debbie: Breaking up With Food

June 10, 2014/beckadmin

This week I had a session with Leslie, a veterinarian in her 40’s.  Leslie and I have been working together […]

In Session with Debbie: Sleep

May 13, 2014/beckadmin

In session this week, my dieter, Jason, and I discussed an issue that he was having trouble with: Getting to sleep […]

In Session with Debbie: Two Events

March 26, 2014/beckadmin

In session last week, my client, Jeremy, told me that he was feeling worried because he had two events to […]

In Session with Debbie: Food Gifts

March 5, 2014/beckadmin

My dieter, Karen, is a well-loved teacher, whose students frequently bring in treats and baked goods for her.  Karen is […]

In Session with Debbie: The Drive-Through

February 4, 2014/beckadmin

My client, Jason, works long hours and isn’t much of a cook. When he gets off work and wants dinner, […]

In Session with Debbie: Treats in the Office

December 18, 2013/beckadmin

Last week I had a session with my dieter, Joe.  Joe works in a large office and told me that […]

In Session with Debbie: After Party Plan

December 4, 2013/beckadmin

This week I had a session with my dieter, Audrey, who is having a holiday-themed housewarming party on Sunday.  In […]

Thanksgiving Night: How Do You Want To Feel?

November 26, 2013/beckadmin

With Thanksgiving right around the corner, it’s high time dieters begin to think about how they’ll handle their eating on […]

In Session with Debbie: Weekend Strategies

November 19, 2013/beckadmin

This week I had a session with my client, Rachel.  Historically, Rachel was a dieter who was able to eat […]

Are You a Social Eater or a Secret Eater?

October 22, 2013/beckadmin

In my work with dieters, I find that many of them tend to fall into either the category of “Social […]

In Session with Debbie: Getting Through a Hard Time

September 19, 2013/beckadmin

My dieter, Diane, is going through a hard time. In session she told me that, over the past week, it […]

In Session with Debbie: Vacation Plans

September 4, 2013/beckadmin

A few months ago my client, Susan, went on vacation with her friend, Caroline, and Caroline’s two kids.  After the […]

In Session with Debbie: Getting Back on Track

August 21, 2013/beckadmin

I recently had a session with my client, Allison, with whom I’ve been working for a few months.  In session, […]

Eating Slowly and Mindfully

August 1, 2013/beckadmin

Early in treatment we teach our clients the skill of eating everything slowly and mindfully.  For many people, this skill […]

Our First 2 Day Workshop!

July 17, 2013/beckadmin

Last week we had our first two-day Diet Workshop for Professionals and it was so great to spend more time […]

Advantages List – Part II

July 2, 2013/beckadmin

I described in Part I how I helped Angie make her Advantages List.  This was only half the battle, however, […]

Advantages List – Part I

June 6, 2013/beckadmin

The first thing we do with all of our clients is have them write an Advantages List –a list of […]

In Session with Debbie: Mindset Change

May 16, 2013/beckadmin

In session last week, my client Joe told me about a big conference dinner he would be going to the […]

In session with Debbie: In Defense of Dessert

May 2, 2013/beckadmin

This week I had a session with my client, Mark. It was Mark’s birthday last week, and when I asked […]

In Session with Debbie: Exceptions to the Rule

April 18, 2013/beckadmin

Over the past few weeks, my dieter, Jennifer, has been working hard on all of her initial skills, like reading […]

In Session with Debbie: Easter

April 3, 2013/beckadmin

Last week, my dieter, Kim, and I spent time in session coming up with a strong Easter plan.  This week, […]

In Session with Debbie: Slipping

March 13, 2013/beckadmin

This week I had a session with my dieter, Rachel, whom I previously hadn’t seen in about eight months because […]

In Session with Debbie: Planning for Travel, Part 2

February 27, 2013/beckadmin

Last week I had a session with Edie, who was leaving the next day to go on vacation with her […]

In Session with Deborah: Valentine’s Day Candy Success

February 13, 2013/beckadmin

In session this week my dieter, Amy, told me about a major triumph she had during a long and stressful work meeting […]

Keep Your Weight Loss Resolutions

January 24, 2013/beckadmin

Have you made a resolution to eat more healthfully and/or lose weight this year? Have you started to lose motivation […]

Success Story: My Journey to Thinking like a Thin Person

January 17, 2013/beckadmin

This week, we received the following letter from Carol, who explains her struggle with weight loss and her ultimate triumph: […]

Ask the Diet Program Coordinator: Ideal Weight

January 10, 2013/beckadmin

Question:  I have read the book, re-read parts, and implemented the techniques but the scale is not budging.  I have […]

The Year In Review

January 3, 2013/beckadmin

Over the past year on the Beck Diet Solution Blog, we’ve written about many topics dealing with everything related to dieting/healthy […]

Ask the Diet Program Coordinator: Office Treats

December 19, 2012/beckadmin

Q: There are so many treats in my office right now, and although I try hard to resist them, it’s […]

In Session with Deborah: The French Fry Plan

December 6, 2012/beckadmin

This week I had a session with my dieter, Sarah.  Although in recent weeks Sarah has been doing well with […]

4 Reasons to Begin Dieting During the Holidays

November 29, 2012/beckadmin

I recently started working with a new dieter named Kelly.  One of Kelly’s major concerns was that the holiday season […]

Components of a Thanksgiving Plan

November 21, 2012/beckadmin

If you’ve read our newsletter, our Daily Diet Solutions, or past blog postings, then you probably know that we are […]

In Session with Deborah: Difficulties Going Home

November 8, 2012/beckadmin

This week, I had a session with my dieter, Emily. Emily told me that she and her sister are planning […]

In Session with Deborah: I deserve a treat

November 1, 2012/beckadmin

This week, I had a session with my dieter, Rachel.  Although she very much enjoys her job as a manager […]

Bariatric Surgery Sabotaging Thoughts

October 23, 2012/beckadmin

Last week, Dr. Judith Beck and I presented at a Bariatric Surgery conference and we spoke about helping bariatric surgery […]

In Session with Deborah: Making a Food Plan

October 10, 2012/beckadmin

I recently had a session with my dieter, Kara, who is a busy stay-at-home mom to her four boys. In […]

In Session with Deborah: Reviewing Response Cards

October 3, 2012/beckadmin

An integral part of our work with dieters is having them make and read Response Cards.  Response Cards are simply […]

In Session with Deborah: Green Days

September 24, 2012/beckadmin

Two weeks ago I had a session with my dieter, Jennifer, who has devised for herself a rating system to […]

Between Sessions with Deborah: Language

September 5, 2012/beckadmin

Earlier this week I received an e-mail from my dieter, Rachel.  In this email, Rachel described how she got off […]

Fact or Fiction

August 29, 2012/beckadmin

Fact or Fiction:  If my weight is up one day, it means what I’m doing isn’t working. Fiction.  On any […]

5 Strategies to Get Through Hard Times

August 23, 2012/beckadmin

In our work with dieters, one of the first things we let them know is this: When they start out, […]

In Session with Deborah: Regaining Focus

August 15, 2012/beckadmin

When my dieter, Janine, came in to session this week she told me that she had a hard time getting […]

In Session with Deborah: Vacation Goals

August 8, 2012/beckadmin

My dieter, Mark, came in to see me this week.  Over the past month, Mark’s weight loss has slowed down […]

In Session with Deborah: The Hangover Effect

August 2, 2012/beckadmin

Over the past few weeks, my dieter, Karen, and I have been working on strategies to help her stay in […]

Ask the Diet Program Coordinator: Staying Motivated

July 25, 2012/beckadmin

Question: I always start out the week feeling energized and motivated to stick to my diet, but by midweek I […]

When a Dieter Becomes her own Diet Coach

July 11, 2012/beckadmin

  Whenever I first meet with a new diet client, I always make sure to explain to them that the […]

In Session with Deborah: Tempting Treats

June 28, 2012/beckadmin

In my last blog post, I detailed a session I had with my dieter, Amy, in which we focused on […]

In Session with Deborah: Birthday Plan

June 19, 2012/beckadmin

Earlier this week I had a session with my dieter, Amy, whose birthday is coming up this weekend.  Amy and […]

In Session with Deborah: Do Cravings Really Go Away?

June 7, 2012/beckadmin

Earlier in the week I had a session with my dieter, Jeremy, during which we talked mostly about cravings. In […]

In Session with Deborah: Memorial Day Weekend

May 25, 2012/beckadmin

This week I had a session with my dieter, Amy.  Amy told me that while she is excited for the […]

Ask the Diet Program Coordinator: Getting Back on Track Today

May 17, 2012/beckadmin

Q: One of my main problems is that I always say, “I will eat what I want today, then I […]

In Session with Deborah: Fantasy vs. Reality

May 10, 2012/beckadmin

Earlier this week, I had a session with my dieter, Mark. Mark had had a hard week and was struggling […]

Success Story: Getting Past Excuses

May 3, 2012/beckadmin

Last week we received the following letter: As a child and through my teenage years I did not struggle with […]

Ask the Diet Program Coordinator: Sugar Cravings

April 26, 2012/beckadmin

Question: I’m in the process of losing weight and have been doing fairly well. However, the one thing that keeps […]

A Peek inside a Diet Session: Overeating Pizza

April 5, 2012/beckadmin

My dieter, Jason, had a major victory this week.  He was, for the first time in a long time, able […]

Dr. Judith Beck describes the Ideal Weight

April 4, 2012/beckadmin

At the most recent Beck Diet Solution Workshop, Dr. Judith Beck defines ideal weight. This is the weight a dieter […]

A Letter from a Dieter

March 29, 2012/beckadmin

We recently received the following letter from Mary, a dieter using The Beck Diet Solution program. Like many dieters, she […]

Realistic Diet Expectations

March 28, 2012/beckadmin

At the most recent Beck Diet Solution Workshop, Dr. Judith Beck explains the problems dieters have sticking to low calorie […]

Job Stress and Eating

March 22, 2012/beckadmin

My dieter, Jeff, is a police officer and after a long shift he usually feels exhausted, both physically and emotionally. […]

A Peek Inside a Diet Session: Going on Vacation

March 15, 2012/beckadmin

My dieter, Lisa, is leaving soon to go on vacation for a week.  While Lisa is very excited for this […]

A Peek Inside a Diet Session: Cravings

March 8, 2012/beckadmin

I recently had a session with one of my dieters centered on cravings and we came up with a “Cheat […]

Ask the Diet Program Coordinator: Getting Back on Track

February 29, 2012/beckadmin

Question: A couple of years ago I lost 22 pounds mostly following the program in the Beck Diet Solution, but […]

They’re Working at it, Too

February 16, 2012/beckadmin

Jamie came into session this week and reported that she has a revelatory experience over the weekend. She was at […]

Ask the Diet Program Coordinator: Super Bowl Cheat Sheet

February 3, 2012/beckadmin

Q:  The Super Bowl is this weekend and historically I have used this as an excuse to have a free-for-all […]

How to Write Response Cards

January 23, 2012/beckadmin

Response Cards can be very effective because they remind dieters of the important ideas they will need to help them […]

Ask the Diet Program Coordinator

January 6, 2012/beckadmin

Q: I was doing really well following my diet and using my skills for a few months and now all […]

The Secret to Holiday Success

December 21, 2011/beckadmin

What’s the secret to holiday success? Having a plan. Yes, it really is that simple. Every dieter’s plan is different, […]

When the Struggle Just Isn’t Worth It

December 13, 2011/beckadmin

Jamie came to see me a few weeks ago and one of the items she wanted to put on our […]

5 Reasons to Start Your Diet Resolutions Today

December 6, 2011/beckadmin

Perhaps one of the most commonly heard holiday-related sabotaging thoughts is, “My resolution is to eat healthfully so I’ll start […]

What Worked this Thanksgiving

December 2, 2011/beckadmin

We have met with and talked to many dieters since Thanksgiving, and we asked each of them, “What worked for […]

According to Research

November 7, 2011/beckadmin

The findings of a research study published in the August 2011 edition of the Obesity Journal state that “in comparison […]

Handling Hunger

October 26, 2011/beckadmin

Jamie came in to see me this week and discussed a situation that had happened the day before. Jamie told […]

Beck Diet Solution Success

October 20, 2011/beckadmin

We received the following letter a few weeks ago from Kari, a woman who read and followed The Beck Diet […]

Instituting Exercise – Part II

October 11, 2011/beckadmin

I asked Jamie to think about the week to come and what sabotaging thoughts she might have that would get […]

Instituting Exercise – Part I

October 5, 2011/beckadmin

Last week in session, my dieter, Jamie, and I tackled the question of exercise. Should she do it? How much […]

Workshop on Cognitive Behavior Therapy for Weight Loss and Maintenance

October 3, 2011/beckadmin

This weekend Dr. Judith Beck and I (Deborah Beck Busis, Diet Program Coordinator) presented a workshop at the Beck Institute […]

Sabotaging Thoughts and Unhelpful Cognitions

September 16, 2011/beckadmin

When dieters first come into our office, they have all kinds of unhelpful cognitions (which we call “sabotaging thoughts”) about […]

Out of Sight, Out of Mind

August 30, 2011/beckadmin

Sometimes the old adage, “out of sight, out of mind,” can be extremely useful for dieters to keep in mind. […]

Angry Eating

August 18, 2011/beckadmin

When Jamie came in my office this week, she reported feeling disappointed.  Jamie thought she had kicked her emotional eating […]

Eating with Distractions

August 8, 2011/beckadmin

Since getting back on track, one of the hardest things for Jamie has been to try to eat things without […]

Ice Cream and Regrets

July 26, 2011/beckadmin

Jamie came into session today and reported that she had a significant experience over the weekend at an ice cream […]

What Type of Eater Are You?

July 22, 2011/beckadmin

The Emotional Eater is one who eats when she feels strong emotions – either negative or positive.  When she feels […]

Out to Dinner

July 19, 2011/beckadmin

Jamie came into session today and told me about a great experience she had with eating out the night before.  […]

Weighing In

July 15, 2011/beckadmin

Here at the Beck Institute’s Diet Program, we don’t necessarily have a firm guideline on how often our clients should […]

Holding Out

July 6, 2011/beckadmin

After dinner and evenings have always been the hardest times for Jamie to maintain her control.  She finds that she […]

Introducing Jamie

June 29, 2011/beckadmin

Jamie, 34, is a dieter with whom I (Deborah Beck Busis) worked a few years ago.  By following the Beck […]

Want to Lose Weight? Eat Breakfast

June 27, 2011/beckadmin

Breakfast is often touted to be the most important meal of the day. Your mother may have told you that, […]

Welcome Back!

June 23, 2011/beckadmin

Welcome back to the Beck Diet Solution Blog!  Although there hasn’t been too much activity on this blog in recent […]

Dieting and the Unfairness Issue

April 1, 2011/beckadmin

The unfairness issue crops up often among chronic dieters. “It’s unfair that everyone gets to eat whatever they want [and […]

5 Ways to Gain Weight When You Don’t Want To

March 14, 2011/beckadmin

How often have you noticed that formerly normal weight people have gradually gained weight throughout the years? Or dieters who […]

Are You a “Normal” Eater?

February 24, 2011/beckadmin

People who have never been overweight and have not had significant issues with their weight eat, think, and behave differently […]

Stress and Emotional Eating: Using Cognitive Behavior Therapy to Break the Habit

November 24, 2010/beckadmin

Most of the dieters whom I treat overeat when they’re feeling stressed or experiencing a negative emotion such as anxiety, sadness, anger, shame, and so on. They often have one or both of the following unhelpful ideas:

“There’s nothing I can do to calm down when I’m upset.”

“I deserve to eat when I’m upset.”

NEW! Beck Diet Solution Newsletter, Diet Workshop, and Weight Loss DVD

November 18, 2010/beckadmin

Inside my latest Beck Diet Solution newsletter [click here] you’ll find details on our new Beck Diet Workshop, planned for January 29, 2011 at the Beck Institute in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Jennifer’s Struggle

August 16, 2010/beckadmin

Jennifer recently shared with me her struggle over whether to eat certain foods, particularly during evenings. Jennifer would finish dinner, and then, it was as if treats and desserts would start calling out to her from her refrigerator.

2 Reviews of Beck Diet Books by the American Dietetic Association

June 29, 2010/beckadmin

Reviewer Suzanne Farrell, MS, RD praises The Complete Beck Diet for Life for not sugarcoating the time and effort that […]

Inflexible Eating

June 25, 2010/beckadmin

When I introduced the notion of following a food plan inflexibly to Robert, he initially experienced both anxiety and skepticism. Robert asked me why he couldn’t just make substitutions when he felt like it as long as the calorie count remained the same. Here’s what I told Robert:

Amy’s Business Trip

June 18, 2010/beckadmin

Amy came in this week feeling quite defeated. Although she had previously been doing quite well with making food plans and sticking to them, she had been on a business trip earlier this week and hadn’t been able to write down her food. She viewed the trip as a complete “failure,” which left her feeling demoralized and unmotivated.

Cindy’s Anxiety

June 11, 2010/beckadmin

Cindy has been having some anxiety about the future. She successfully lost 43 pounds and has been maintaining that loss for over 8 months, but she still has negative thoughts and images that pop into her head from time to time. The most common one is that she sees her future self standing in front of the mirror, trying to zipper her jeans, and realizing that they have become too tight.

Katherine’s Changing Tastes

June 4, 2010/beckadmin

A dieter, Katherine, was recently talking to me about a subject matter I hear over and over again from dieters. She told me that one of the biggest changes she has undergone since starting the program is that now she is much happier and satisfied with less food. In the past, Katherine said she always liked to eat very large portions of food, and didn’t feel satisfied until she had eaten an enormous amount.

When Did Special Treats become the Everyday Norm?

May 24, 2010/beckadmin

When did it happen? When did we Americans go from an occasional piece of pizza to having multiple slices throughout the week? When did we go from the occasional soda to drinking sugary soft drinks throughout the day? When did we go from a weekly overindulgence, such as a big dinner on Saturday night, to excess food every evening?

Planning to Eat More and Gain Weight

May 18, 2010/beckadmin

I asked Julie what was the hardest part of sticking to her maintenance diet. “I’m just tired of what I’m eating. I want to eat more. I want to eat different things for lunch and dinner. I want to have a glass of wine when I go out with friends and dessert every night. I want to have an afternoon snack, like pretzels or crackers or chips. But I know if I do,” she said glumly, “I’ll gain weight.”

Calorie Counts on Menus

May 5, 2010/beckadmin

Earlier this year, Philadelphia joined New York in requiring that chain restaurants print calorie counts on their menus. Even I was astounded, when I ate out a few days ago. I was fascinated by how high the calorie counts were for almost every item.

One for the Memory Box

April 21, 2010/beckadmin

Joanna, who has been overweight most of her life, lost 65 pounds in the past two years. She told me a great story. This week her husband spontaneously picked her up and carried her over the threshold. He had not been able to do that when they had married four years ago.

Why Doesn’t It Taste as Good as I Thought It Would?

March 16, 2010/beckadmin

Lisa, who had had an absolute rule (which she occasionally broke big time) against eating junk food, had recently started allowing herself to have a moderate portion of a favorite food every day. Some of the food she enjoyed immensely, in fact, more than before, because she was able to eat it guilt free. But sometimes the food, for example, certain kinds of candy, just did not taste as good as she had remembered.

You Can Have [Some] Cake and Eat It, Too

March 8, 2010/beckadmin

Lisa was confused. For a very long time, before she started the program in The Beck Diet Solution, she had tried, as much as possible, to avoid certain foods completely, for example, candy, ice cream, and cookies. She was frankly a little astonished when I suggested that she should allow herself to have one favorite food a day.

Regaining Weight

February 23, 2010/beckadmin

Many dieters and maintainers are mystified when the scale starts to go up. “But I’m doing everything the same!” they usually proclaim. That’s when I ask them a series of questions to try to figure out what has changed:

Dr. Judith Beck to Appear on the Dr. Oz Show— Thursday, February 18, 2010

February 17, 2010/beckadmin

Dr. Beck will appear on the Dr. Oz show tomorrow, Thursday, February 18th, advising a family whose health will likely become compromised if they don’t change the way they eat.

Fear of Food

February 12, 2010/beckadmin

Marie avoided eating potato chips, French fries, onion rings, and crackers. Although she loved these foods, they would trigger cravings and once she started eating them, she found it quite difficult to stop. Marie actually developed a fear of these foods. She was sure she would lose control if she ate them.

Fast Food Dieting

February 4, 2010/beckadmin

A recently article in the New York Times asks, “Can fast food help you lose weight?” I applaud the restaurant industry for offering healthier food choices. But for the consumer, it’s buyer beware.

Peanuts and Mr. Ed’s Elephant Museum

February 2, 2010/beckadmin

Carly was really proud of herself—and deservedly so. She, her husband, and kids went for a short road trip for a few days and she was able to stick to her plan, almost completely. On previous trips, she and her kids would have “perpetual snacks” in the car. On this trip, Carly ate only at her regularly scheduled snack and meal times. She occasionally reminded herself, “It’s not time to eat now. I’ll eat when I’m supposed to.”

Advising Food Pushers on Television

January 28, 2010/beckadmin

Yesterday I went to New York to tape a segment for the Dr. Oz Show. He interviewed a family who likes to eat—a lot. The mother had not realized the extent to which she is a food pusher, constantly urging her children and husband to eat more and more. She also had not realized the potential health consequences of her family being overweight and potentially obese.

10 Tips To Stick To Your Diet

January 19, 2010/beckadmin

I was recently asked for 10 tips for sticking to your diet. I quickly made the following list but I didn’t necessarily include the 10 most important tips, especially because each dieter is different. Which tips (on or off the list) have been most important to you?

Time to Get Serious

January 13, 2010/beckadmin

Okay, it’s 2010. Time to get serious about your health and lose weight for the last time. Do you really want to find yourself in January 2011 heavier than is healthy for you?

Dealing with Food Pushers

December 30, 2009/beckadmin

Laura was bothered by a comment her sister-in-law, Rosemary, made at a family gathering two weeks ago. “Wow, you’ve really lost weight. Well, I don’t know if I can associate with you any more,” she said, with an edge in her voice. Laura knew that Rosemary was probably a little jealous, as her sister-in-law had struggled with her own weight for many years.

Diet Hurdles and Bumps Along the Way

December 21, 2009/beckadmin

Andrea, a dieter I’m counseling, was so glad I had prepared her well for a more difficult time. At her second session with me, I asked her to write a response card to read every morning, in preparation for the first day that dieting would seem hard. It said:

Vacation and Your Weight Loss Plan– An Article in the Albuquerque Weight Loss Examiner by Marsha Thole

October 20, 2009/beckadmin

In her recent article for the Albuquerque Weight Loss Examiner, Marsha Thole provides a helpful guide for dieters on vacation. First, Thole spells out what typically goes wrong for dieters on vacation. Then, using tools and techniques from the Complete Beck Diet for Life, she describes what must be done in order for dieters to remain on track and stick to their plans.

Trashing Food

September 30, 2009/beckadmin

A dieter emailed me recently after she had watched a three-minute TV segment in which I suggested putting food in the trash. She was concerned, and understandably so. For this dieter and for most people, the notion of trashing food, instead of saving and reusing it, is absurd.

I explained to the dieter that while the TV segment she watched was three minutes long, I had actually been interviewed for about two hours. So, unfortunately, viewers didn’t get to see the whole story about the Beck Diet program or about throwing away food.

Our Diet Workshop Was A Success!

September 25, 2009/beckadmin

Our diet workshop, here in Philadelphia on Sunday, September 13th, was a success! We had over 120 dieters and health and mental health professionals, from 20 US states and 3 countries. We’re excited to announce that Julie Soller, from UCLA, filmed the workshop, and will use part of it for a documentary on The Beck Diet Solution.

Making Friends With Food– An article in SHAPE Magazine

September 22, 2009/beckadmin

In the October 2009 issue of SHAPE magazine (see p. 70), a dieter tells readers how Dr. Judith Beck (and “The Beck Diet Solution) is helping her develop strategies to target her emotional eating . . .

Sue: Part 12

September 16, 2009/beckadmin

Sue has made so much progress! She has mastered the art of eating only while sitting down. Once in a while, she legitimately forgets but she never says to herself, “Oh, I don’t feel like sitting down to eat this.” She is now convinced that this positive eating habit is essential to her success.

Sue: Part 11

September 9, 2009/beckadmin

Sue has been weighing herself daily and graphing her weight loss. She has now proven to herself several times that the number on the scale goes down some days, stays the same some days, and goes up some days—even when her energy input and output is the same!

The Beck Diet Solution Newsletter is Released

September 4, 2009/beckadmin

On September 2nd, Dr. Beck released her inaugural issue of the Beck Diet Solution Newsletter. This brief, once-monthly newsletter is geared toward professionals and consumers and includes special news and announcements on the diet and weight loss front, helpful articles, and frequently asked questions.

Sue: Part 10, The Tyranny of the Scale

September 1, 2009/beckadmin

Sue has been weighing herself once a week. She was confused and disheartened that her weight had gone up a little this week. After all, she told me, she had stuck to her plan and, on top of that, had done considerably more exercise than usual.

Sue: Part 9, Self-Criticism

August 27, 2009/beckadmin

Today Sue and I touched on the topic of self-criticism again. She was able to see how “beating herself up” every time she made a mistake undercut her motivation and her sense of self-efficacy. We reiterated how important it is to become problem-solving oriented, instead. “Okay, I made a mistake. What can I learn from this for next time?”

Sue: Part 8

August 18, 2009/beckadmin

Sue is doing so well, but I wanted to prepare her for making mistakes.  We reviewed the concept that mistakes […]

Sue: Part 7, Fear of Losing Control

August 11, 2009/beckadmin

Sue is still afraid that if she eats something wrong, she’ll lose control and not be able to get back in control. We had the following discussion:

Sue: I’m just afraid that one false step will be the beginning of the end.

Sue: Part 6, Perseverance

August 3, 2009/beckadmin

Sue and I were talking about times in the past when she had started to gain weight. It appeared as though each time started with a small weight gain; then she started thinking that dieting was too hard, then she abandoned her plan.

Sue: Part 5

July 27, 2009/beckadmin

I told Sue that it was great that she has become so much more aware of when she’s tempted to eat standing up. For example, this past week, unprompted by me, Sue made the decision not to eat at her kitchen counter.

Bombarded by food?

July 20, 2009/beckadmin

A dieter emailed me about difficulties she had “arranging her environment,” to keep tempting foods out of sight, out of mind, at home and in the workplace. She’s a waitress and wanted to know if I had any extra advice for someone who can’t help but be bombarded by the sight of delicious, fattening foods for several hours a day.

Sue: Part 4

July 13, 2009/beckadmin

Sue is getting good at giving herself credit—saying “That’s good!” every time she reads her list of advantages of weight loss, every time she stops herself from eating while standing, every time she chooses healthy food to eat. . .

Sue: Part 3

July 6, 2009/beckadmin

Sue did a great job of reading her list of reasons to lose weight twice a day, every day this week. Doing so really prepared her for the tempting French fries on a communal serving plate at lunch with her coworkers.

Sue: Part 2

June 30, 2009/beckadmin

Sue has a very demanding job. She can’t predict when she’ll have time to eat or what food will be served. We talked about the necessity of always bringing a back-up meal with her on workdays, something that won’t spoil. If it turns out that the food that’s served is healthy, she can save the back-up food for another day.

Sue: Part 1

June 23, 2009/beckadmin

I started working with a new dieter today. Sue has already lost 50 pounds on her own. In fact, she has lost 50 pounds several times in her life—and always gained it back. She doesn’t want that to happen this time. She’s committed to learning the lifetime skills she’ll need so that this time, she can be successful.

Forget about Perfection

June 15, 2009/beckadmin

Many dieters have an interesting sabotaging thought: “Because I wasn’t perfect on my diet just now (i.e., because I just cheated), I may as well give up (and start again tomorrow).” It’s a cleverly hidden excuse.

Dieters who have read The Beck Diet Solution (or one of the other books) may also have a sabotaging thought about the program contained in it. “Since I’m not following the program perfectly, I may as well stop following it altogether.”

But these ideas really don’t make sense.

The “Right” Way to Weigh

June 3, 2009/beckadmin

People often ask me why I suggest that dieters (without eating disorders) weigh themselves daily, instead of weekly, monthly, or not at all. Here’s why:

Wait on Your Weight Goal

April 27, 2009/beckadmin

A new dieter, Alan, consulted me this week. He weighs 265 pounds and is 5’6”. He would like to weigh 100 pounds less. “It’s a mistake,” I told him, “to set a big goal like that. First, we really don’t know whether 165 pounds is a reasonable weight for you to get down to and maintain. Second, it’s too far away.” Alan immediately became discouraged and we had the following discussion (see pages 113-114 of the Beck Diet Solution).

Reworking the Plan

April 20, 2009/beckadmin

Melanie, a dieter who consulted me a few months ago, recently contacted me for a “booster” session. She was doing great, still losing about 3 pounds a month. She was no longer writing down her food plan in advance, nor did she need to. Instead, she was able to decide at each meal and snack what she wanted to have and to eyeball her portions instead of measuring her food.

Talk Back to Cravings

April 13, 2009/beckadmin

This past week, I met Jon socially, at a party. We had known each other slightly. He told me he had read my cognitive therapy books on dieting and wanted me to know which technique had helped him the most. It had been emailing his “diet buddy,” when he was tempted to eat something he wasn’t supposed to. With his permission, I cut and pasted below an old email he forwarded to me.

Spring Holiday Eating

April 6, 2009/beckadmin

A number of dieters have come to see me in anticipation of the holidays. Here’s what I asked them:

When Passover or Easter is over, how do you want to feel about yourself?

Proud that you followed your holiday eating plan? Motivated and in control? Pleased with yourself? Confident that you’ll return to your usual eating routine?

OR

Upset that you abandoned your plan, distressed that you gained a significant amount of weight, and unsure that you can get back on track?

What a Relief

March 30, 2009/beckadmin

When Mark sat down in my office this week, he said, “Before we start, can I just tell you how relieved I feel?” When I said, “Of course,” Mark told me:

“I finally get it. I do. Cravings go away. I don’t have to eat to make them go away. When I’m tempted, the more I say, ‘Don’t worry, you’re going to eat again at ______ o’clock, the easier and easier it gets.’ ”

BACK TO BASICS

March 24, 2009/beckadmin

Marta was dismayed. After 20 months of maintaining her weight loss with relative ease, she had gone off track and had gained back five pounds.

“Best Diet” Research Misses the Boat

March 16, 2009/beckadmin

There has been a good deal of research lately on what constitutes the best diet for weight loss: low fat? low carb? high protein? high fiber? I think the researchers are asking the wrong question.

Regularize Your Eating

March 10, 2009/beckadmin

It was important for Emilia to learn how to regularize her eating by sticking to three meals and three snacks […]

Dieters Need a Complete Diet for Life

March 2, 2009/beckadmin

I’ve been bombarded with questions about how my new book, The Complete Beck Diet for Life, is different from my […]

How to Keep Your Weight Loss Resolution

March 2, 2009/beckadmin

If you want to be successful, DON’T START OUT BY DIETING! In my experience, the major reason that people have difficulty losing weight or keeping it off is that they jump right into following an eating plan before they have learned how to diet.

Why Is It So Hard to Throw Away Food?

February 23, 2009/beckadmin

Some dieters are so surprised when I suggest that throwing away food is an essential skill for long-term success (pages […]

Slippery Slope

February 11, 2009/beckadmin

I hadn’t seen Ellie for several months. At our last appointment, she had been doing quite well, having lost 30 […]

The Complete Beck Diet for Life

January 30, 2009/beckadmin

I’m very excited about my new book, published this month. It’s a thoroughly honest book that helps you how to […]

The Other Side of Emotional Eating

February 18, 2008/beckadmin

Over the weekend our dieter, Kathleen, received some very good news: her son announced his engagement to his long-time girlfriend.  […]

Rules for Traveling

January 30, 2008/beckadmin

When traveling and staying in a hotel, dieters may be tempted by the treats in their hotel rooms. Hotels are […]

Back to Maintenance Weight

January 22, 2008/beckadmin

Our veteran dieter, Brian, came in for a booster session this fall. He had maintained his sizable weight loss for […]

Taking the Full Dose

January 16, 2008/beckadmin

Our relatively new dieter, Tammy, came in this week and reported that she’s been feeling reluctant to do several of […]

Turning Challenge into Success

January 11, 2008/beckadmin

Our dieter, Rebecca, told us this week that she had given in to an impulse and bought a large slice […]

Making Decisions

January 7, 2008/beckadmin

During this week’s phone session, our dieter Liz told us how overwhelmed, stressed, and tired she’s been lately, especially since […]

Feeling Hungry: Evan

December 31, 2007/beckadmin

Before he started working with us, our dieter Evan had lost a significant amount of weight following an all liquid […]

Recapturing Confidence: Rose

December 26, 2007/beckadmin

Rose has returned to diet counseling after having been away for two and a half months, dealing with a family […]

Holiday Cookies

December 21, 2007/beckadmin

This week, our dieter Alex walked into his office kitchen to make a cup of coffee and discovered a big plate […]

Gym Reluctance

December 18, 2007/beckadmin

Our dieter Lucinda really wanted to start taking a yoga class but was extremely fearful that she would be judged […]

Holiday Sabotage

December 14, 2007/beckadmin

Our dieter Eric was having a tough time committing to making a holiday plan.  We went over with him how […]

Beck Diet Solution Workshops

December 12, 2007/beckadmin

We’ve received questions following our last blog about the nature of the workshops we gave in California last week. These […]

Holiday Rules

December 10, 2007/beckadmin

Holiday time is here and with it come a whole host of potential problems – office goodies, vacations, celebratory meals, […]

Back From Our Travels

December 6, 2007/beckadmin

You may have noticed that we took a hiatus from the blog for two weeks. In addition to attending Thanksgiving […]

Thanksgiving Plan: Rose

November 20, 2007/beckadmin

We’ve talked before in this blog about the importance of always having a plan, but we think it bears repeating, […]

Dealing with Hunger

November 15, 2007/beckadmin

Mark, a dieter that we recently began working with, reported that during the past week he’s been feeling extra hungry, […]

Traveling and TBDS

November 9, 2007/beckadmin

We received this letter from a Beck Diet Solution reader and frequent traveler: My concerns are that I travel nearly […]

Regaining Momentum: Jenny

November 5, 2007/beckadmin

Our dieter Jenny has been going through a rough time because her step-mother (whom she was very close to) passed […]

Making Time: April

October 31, 2007/beckadmin

One of our dieters, April, was having trouble this week finding time to get to all of her diet activities: […]

Giving the Beck Diet Solution

October 19, 2007/beckadmin

How do you suggest to someone that s/he give the program in the Beck Diet Solution a try? We don’t […]

Always Have a Plan

October 3, 2007/beckadmin

A few months ago, our dieter Jennifer attended a local festival in her town.  Before she went, she wrote down […]

Emotional Eating

October 1, 2007/beckadmin

Our dieter Rose has a very stressful situation coming up this week and so we spent a lot of today […]

Specific Advantages

September 12, 2007/beckadmin

The Advantages List – a list of all the reasons why people want to lose weight – is one of […]

The First Session

September 5, 2007/beckadmin

We recently started working with three new dieters and, as always, we covered a lot of material in the first […]

Expect the Tough Times

August 22, 2007/beckadmin

One of our dieters, Rose, has lately been having a tougher time sticking to her diet and exercise plan.  She’s […]

Just Do It!

August 16, 2007/beckadmin

One of our new dieters, Sarah, had to go on a week-long trip because her two kids were competing in […]

Staying on Track: Maria

August 9, 2007/beckadmin

On Monday we had our now monthly meeting of our lunchtime diet group and it was great to see everyone […]

Is It Worth It?

August 3, 2007/beckadmin

One of our dieters, Andrea, has been doing extremely well lately.  She’s been working out hard at the gym, following […]

Credit Where Credit is Due

July 25, 2007/beckadmin

Some dieters in our new class are struggling with giving themselves credit (discussed on Day 4 of The Beck Diet […]

Our New Class: Starting Their Diets

July 17, 2007/beckadmin

We have started a new weight-loss class here at the Beck Institute.  Our new dieters have just finished the tasks […]

Going back to Planning: Roxanne

July 3, 2007/beckadmin

About five months ago, Roxanne made the decision to stop losing weight and start maintaining.  Since making that decision, Roxanne […]

Emotional Eating: Diana

June 25, 2007/beckadmin

Some of our dieters have been recently dealing with the issue of emotional eating.  Diana in particular has noticed this […]

Switching Diets: Brenda

May 30, 2007/beckadmin

In two weeks, Brenda is going on a week-long vacation to Jamaica, which she is very excited about.  During the […]

Dieters Helping Dieters

May 24, 2007/beckadmin

During our diet group this week, we wanted to have our dieters benefit from each others’ wisdom.  Brenda began by […]

Philadelphia Daily News: Maria

May 17, 2007/beckadmin

We are so excited that one of our wonderful dieters, Maria, was featured today in an article in the Philadelphia […]

Lifestyle Changes: Roxanne

May 8, 2007/beckadmin

Roxanne, who was now reached maintenance, recognizes that she needs to use the skills she learned in The Beck Diet […]

Celebratory Splurges?

May 4, 2007/beckadmin

On our post about Lori’s Busy Week, one reader asked whether she would be able to celebrate special occasions like […]

Priorities: Maria

May 1, 2007/beckadmin

One skill that Maria has gotten very good at is putting herself first – making sure that she continually has […]

Craving Chocolate: Diana

April 24, 2007/beckadmin

Diana was tempted by chocolate this past week. She reported to our group that there was a few days ago, […]

Nighttime Demons: Brenda

April 20, 2007/beckadmin

Brenda has been having a bit of trouble lately with “nighttime demons” – those voices in her head  that around […]

Busy Week: Lori

April 17, 2007/beckadmin

In the meeting yesterday, Lori talked about what a busy week she has coming up.  Lots of meals out, a […]

BDS Buzz

April 12, 2007/beckadmin

Lots of exciting things are happening here with The Beck Diet Solution.  This has been an especially big day for […]

Hunger, Cravings, and the Desire to Eat: Linda

April 9, 2007/beckadmin

During our diet group today, we talked a lot about differentiating among hunger, cravings, and the desire to eat.  The […]

Coming to Terms: Melissa

April 3, 2007/beckadmin

Over the last few months, Melissa has noticed that she’s experienced a big shift in her thinking.  When she used […]

America vs. Italy

March 27, 2007/beckadmin

We had a special visitor during our diet group today, our colleague from Rome, Dr. Antonella Montano.  During the meeting […]

Lemon Cake: Carolyn

March 23, 2007/beckadmin

Carolyn has pretty much mastered the skill of working any food into her diet.  Unlike a lot of dieters, she […]

Standing Firm: Maria

March 20, 2007/beckadmin

It was Maria’s daughter’s birthday last week, so over the weekend Maria threw a sleepover party for her and her […]

More Birthdays!

March 16, 2007/beckadmin

Three of our dieters – Roxanne, Charlotte, and Diana – had birthdays in the past 2 weeks, and they reported […]

Birthday: Diana

March 14, 2007/beckadmin

Diana’s birthday is on Wednesday and with it comes a multitude of food temptations – meals out, a party, cake, […]

Slippage: Maria

March 9, 2007/beckadmin

During the group on Monday, we talked about the notion of “slippage” – letting bad habits infiltrate back into your […]

Wasting Food: Brenda

March 7, 2007/beckadmin

One of the topics we discussed during our group meeting is the importance of throwing out extra food.  Keeping leftovers […]

“If I hadn’t joined the group…”

March 1, 2007/beckadmin

We asked our diet group to complete the sentence, “If I hadn’t joined the group…” Here’s what they have to say […]

Spreading the Word: Roxanne

February 27, 2007/beckadmin

Some of our dieters have been noticing an interesting side effect from their own efforts toward healthy eating and exercise: […]

Breakfast in Bed: Maria

February 23, 2007/beckadmin

Maria had an interesting experience on Valentine’s Day: her young daughter woke her up by bringing her breakfast in bed.  […]

Overcoming Cravings: Diana

February 20, 2007/beckadmin

This afternoon Diana had a really strong craving for something sweet.  She knew it was a craving and not hunger […]

Dealing with a Plateau: Diana

February 15, 2007/beckadmin

Diana’s weight loss had reached a plateau for quite a while. We discussed with Diana the fact that this often […]

Reaching Maintenance: Carolyn

February 13, 2007/beckadmin

Week 32 of our diet group and the pounds continue to come off!  Our meeting on Monday was special because […]

Restaurant Eating: Brenda

February 8, 2007/beckadmin

This week Brenda ate at one of her favorite seafood restaurants.  In the past she would usually order one of […]

Give Yourself Credit: Charlotte

February 6, 2007/beckadmin

Charlotte, a 63 year old researcher, is unlike many of our other dieters. She didn’t start dieting until the age […]

Planned Indulgences: Lori

February 2, 2007/beckadmin

Lori, a 44 year old attorney, started dieting at the age of 14.  She says that she has attempted to […]

Tolerating Hunger: Susan

January 30, 2007/beckadmin

Susan returned last night from her 10 day business trip and after weighing in today, was so pleased to see […]

Movie Theater Popcorn: Brenda

January 23, 2007/beckadmin

Brenda loves going to the movies, partly because she loves movie theater popcorn.  In the past, she would get a […]

Prepare for Travel: Susan

January 18, 2007/beckadmin

In a few days Susan is leaving for a business trip.  Knowing that eating and dieting can be much trickier […]

Put Yourself First: Susan

January 15, 2007/beckadmin

Week 28 and our dieters continue to lose weight!  One of our dieters, Susan, initially lost 7 pounds.  During the […]

Getting Through Hard Times: Maria

January 10, 2007/beckadmin

Week 27 of our Diet Group and our dieters are finally returning to a normal schedule and putting the holiday […]

Weighing In: Brenda

January 4, 2007/beckadmin

We have now reached the six-month mark for our diet group. Our dieters are all back to work and recovering […]

Get Back on Track: Roxanne

December 27, 2006/beckadmin

Our dieters are doing well despite all of the added pressures of the holiday season.  This week, almost everyone lost […]

Don’t Fool Yourself: Brenda

December 21, 2006/beckadmin

Another Beck Diet Solution Dieter is Brenda, a 49 year-old self-described lover of carbs.  Throughout the past two decades, Brenda […]

Holiday Eating: Maria

December 20, 2006/beckadmin

Our Cognitive Therapy weight loss group has now been meeting for 6 months.  In spite of the fact that our […]

Welcome!

December 14, 2006/beckadmin

Welcome to the Beck Diet Solution Dieters Blog!  I’m Debbie Busis.  Dr. Judith Beck and I run a weight loss […]