Losing Weight With A "Gimmick"

One of my really good friends has told me, "I promised myself that I will not do any diet with a gimmick.  I am done portioning food into colored containers, eating only a program's specific diet food, moving sliding windows when I ate something....I am just not going to do that anymore, because once I stop, the weight piles back on....and then some!"

Here is the definition of gimmick:

gim·mick

/ɡimik/

noun

1. a trick or device intended to attract attention, publicity, or business.

   synonyms:

   publicity stunt, contrivance, scheme, stratagem, ploy; informalshtick "the trivia contest was a gimmick to sell more newspapers"

Let's face it.....many diet programs have some sort of "gimmick".  These diet companies are trying to draw your attention, so you will join them.   Many of my co-workers are doing the 21 Day Fix.  The premise is that you have a certain number of servings of specific colored containers.  You fill the container with the food specified, and then you are done with that group.  Nutrisystem and Jenny Craig, you purchase their meals and eat a certain amount each day.  Weight Watchers has you counting point values for the food you eat, and you subtract it from a total amount of points you have each day.  You name it, diets tend to try to outdo themselves to make their plan seem the easiest to follow and lose the weight.

I am doing Take Shape For Life, which uses Medifast foods.  I make one lean and green meal, but eat 5 of the Medifast packaged foods each day.  Is that a gimmick?  Some say yes, some say no.

Is losing weight by using a gimmick bad thing?

I believe it depends upon how you look at it.

Is your "diet" going to be followed for a certain amount of time, then go back to unhealthy habits?

Will you give up during your "diet" and just go crazy eating pizza, ice cream, chips, etc?

Or, are you looking to make changes that will last a life time?  Are you just looking to lose weight, or are you looking to be healthy?

I am looking to get healthy.  Losing weight is a part of that, but I need to relearn how to eat.  I need to learn how to make better choices.  If a "gimmick" is getting you into a mode where you can rethink how you eat, is that really a gimmick?

I think that the only diet that is a trick, is one that makes you believe that you can eat whatever you want, anytime you want, and still lose weight.  The only way to lose weight is sticking to a plan, but once you reach your goal, it is not over.  You may be over losing weight, but you still have a lot of work to do.

I remember reading about people who made it to their goal, and started to transition.  Those people said that losing weight was the easy part.  Easy part?  Really?  Even though I am not saying losing weight is easy, keeping and maintaining a healthy weight doesn't seem like a piece of cake either.  I mean look at me....I was eating "normal" food and gaining weight without even thinking about it.

Anyway, I wish my friend would try Take Shape for Life with me, but she won't because she thinks it's a gimmick. So far I have lost 18 pounds.  I am pretty sure this is the gimmick I need to get me to think about my choices and change my habits for a lifetime!