Its not a diet its a......

I like to think in terms of lifestyle change only because of the negative association with so-called fad diets and to many people the word dieting connotes supper consisting of 3 lettuce leaves with a tiny dollop of cottage cheese in the centre.

As someone who has, more times that I'm proud to admit, tried shortcut diets the use of lifestyle change also encompasses becoming more active so, in reality, it is more than just a diet (at least for some of us)

I think for me when I started here, it was a (calorie counting) diet. But them through my time here I have become motivated to run, cycle and generally be a lot more active - so I can't very well just refer to it as a diet now, it actually IS becoming a lifestyle change. Having said that I'm not sure I'd put it that way if people asked me, because it does sound a bit pretentious, even though it's true (almost as if it suddenly infers superiority?). I'd rather bore people with the long story to my (eventual) success

Well the reason why they use that term is because you cant go back to how you were eating and keep the weight off . So diets where you starve and then go back to your old ways dont work but I know for me there is still a huge difference between the losing weight stage and the maintaining stage and what I eat

Highly irritating hearing that phrase..LOL

I understand the motivation behind it. It does get annoying, though. Especially when people are just using "lifestyle change" to mean "diet".

Diet to me is short term for a specific goal. I just say I want to be healthier and be proud of the choices I make for myself.

Diets, to me, always refer to either a strict plan or something like Jenny Craig where you're limited to precise portions, not a great variety of food, and it's not only expensive but it feels like torture so that when you are "free" from it you go crazy and end up right back where you started. The word just seems to carry the meaning of great restriction, of "I HAVE to do this" not "I WANT to do this."

If anyone asks I just say I'm trying to lose weight by eating better and exercising. I don't have a strict plan aside from my calorie intake limit every day or some foods I will not eat for anything. I'm not torturing myself in the vain hopes of one day getting in to a bathing suit that's a two piece and shows more skin. I'm making a necessary change to better my health and my body. Though if anyone calls it a diet I don't correct them since most times it's the only word people know what to use in relation to what you're doing so they can understand it.

I wouldn't say it that exact way but something along those lines, it bugs me to no end when people ask 'how's the diet going?' or 'what diet are you on?' to me a diet is a fad, something done over a short period of time for fast results.

But a lot of people have changed their lifestyle and aren't just here to lose weight.

I for example overhauled my whole life from mental health to physical health - eating better has been a side effect of feeling better and happier.

To me it is a life change because I've had a gutsful of "diets" and all it entails. Each to his or her own.

I've never told anyone who asks about my weight loss that it's a lifestyle change. In fact, unless it's someone asking for specific information to help them lose weight, I say very little at all---eating more healthy, watching portion size, something like that. However, I do consider this a lifetime commitment (or lifestyle change, if you want to label it that) and from the very beginning of my weight loss endeavors I have been determined to only employ eating and exercise habits that I would be willing to continue from now on. So if I am allowing myself some chocolate, I eat REAL chocolate, regular cheese not that low-fat or processed stuff, and I don't use artificial sweeteners. I buy very few specialty products (none of those 100 calorie packs, etc.), because (a) I don't want to eat that way forever and (b) I'm not willing/able to pay the higher cost for many of these items. I say I buy "very few," because there are probably some substitutoins I've made for regular products that cost the same or very little more and are just as satisfying (i.e., I've been drinking skim milk for years because I like it better than whole or even 1% milk). I make these choices because that is how I want to eat, even after I've lost the weight, not because I'm making judgments that eating otherwise is inherently bad. We each have to find a way to fuel our bodies and keep them healthy that works for us.

I ABSOLUTELY HATE that term!! To me it sounds rediculious. In my head, I think using the term 'lifestyle change' for 'diet' is like saying freak/fudge/frick etc instead of the real 'F' word. TomAto, tOmato....
I tell people that I am watching what I eat, making better choices and exercising. I have changed my diet, and my habits. This has resulted in weight loss, me being stronger and more active.
Ok- yes I HAVE changed my lifestyle and DID actually diet... I just can't stand either of those words. We don't call our exercise area at home a gym either.... again, it's the words that mean something negative in our heads. It's either the fitness center or exercise area.
We DO realize that the words all mean the same things, however, tricking our brains into thinking it's something else has taken the negative out of it for us. Whatever works for you.