When we try to do something consciously, it is much more difficult than when we do it subconsciously. Imagine if every little thing you did you had to consciously think of every movement, every step etc.  Life would become unbearable.  Losing weight is no different.

The trouble with diets is that not only are the incredibly difficult to stick to, but they are often ineffective in the long term.  A recent study suggested that as few as 10% of people who go on diets are successful long term.  It found that on average, 5 years after their diet, dieters were 20lbs over the weight they were when they started the diet.

Psychologically, the explanations for this vary from quite simple, to quite complex. First, when we start a diet we immediately crave all the things we can't have. This is normal. Our bodies feel like we're about to starve them, so they crave all of the things we are in the process of trying to avoid. Nonetheless, we stick with it for a bit, and feel very proud when we lose 5lbs in the first week, despite the fact that this weight is mostly water. Then in subsequent weeks, when we lose less than 5lbs, we feel demotivated and annoyed that we are giving up all our favourite foods for a few pounds each week.

Then, we crack. We give in. We can't stand it any longer so we give in and probably binge on whatever our particular vice is, be it burgers or chocolate or cakes or whatever. In no time at all we've gained back 3-4lbs and we feel ashamed. Then the guilt starts and the we start to feel as though we've let ourselves and everyone else down, and so we start our regime again, this time promising to have more will power and see it through.

That's the short-term story: on-again-off-again diets; weight loss, weight gain;  and guilt and torture for not being strong enough.

In the long term, this translates into a succession of failed diets. It is rare indeed to go to a slimming club and find a bunch of people who haven't "tried every diet under the sun". Most of them have tales to tell of high-fibre, low-sugar, carb-free, fruit only, and of course the holy grail of all diets, the "eat all you want". The very fact that these people find themselves congregating at yet another slimming club speaks volumes.

The reason diets don't work is that they fail in a single, yet vital area. They don't teach their disciples how to fundamentally change their approach to food and eating.  As a result, these people will always have a weakness for whatever it was that caused them to become overweight in the first place. Unless, and until we learn to approach food differently, we can't realistically expect any long-term change.

People with particular skills in certain areas like sports talk of their mindset. They understand that their mindset is vitally important to their success. Similarly, people trying to lose weight need to alter their mindset if they are to become skilled at losing weight and maintaining that weight loss.

Once we approach eating from a different perspective (that doesn't mean driving to the cake shop using a different route!), we can appreciate the difference it can make. It doesn't mean we have to give up all the things we like, but it does mean that maybe we need to fully appreciate what we're doing when we give in to those temptations.

Doing this subconsciously, with the help of hypnosis, is one of the easiest ways to do it. We can teach ourselves that our approach to food hasn't always been to our best advantage, and that a new approach doesn't have to be painful. Similarly, we can teach ourselves to become more motivated to exercise, to look after our bodies more diligently. By doing all of these things subconsciously, we bring about gradual and permanent change, rather than the temporary changes brought about by dieting.