I tell the clients doing personal training in Singapore with me, that their weight loss diet plan is, in most regards even harder to stick to than training.
Training is 4-6 times per week for 30 min to 90 min. That is only a fraction of your life. However, eating right is a constant battle since you should be eating often.
The great thing is that once you learn and have the habit of preparing food, eating correctly is not a burden at all. That's when you know that your weight loss diet plan is in full swing.
As a personal trainer in Singapore (which is a food crazy county!), I love cooking for myself (I don't love doing dishes but it's a necessary evil, and having home cooked food is worth the trouble) and once you do it, there is no turning back.
In fact I find myself having less and less cravings for poor food choices (Making it even easier to stick to the weight loss diet plan). In addition, when you eat well you are "fine tuning" your car (body) to like and accept only the top quality fuels.
Your taste preferences change and you reap the benefit of the improved fuel choices in your weight loss diet plan. Once you notice these benefits - health, fat loss, improved energy, no drowsy periods of the day etc, there is no turning back. The common "journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step" saying really does apply to dietary change.
Here is my "Singapore personal trainer tip-sheet" to getting that weight loss diet plan up and running.
Tip 1: Animal eating and other good protein sources - get some of these every meal the benefits of protein are just great!
Tip 2: Timing is important especially for starchy carbohydrates. Only in the morning and after training are these starches put to good use. If you are a former fat boy like myself I wouldn't even eat them in the morning.
Tip 3: Plan and prepare. This applies to cooking and shopping and even dining out. There is almost no way to consistently succeed in eating the right thing if you don't prepare. I know that I eat poorer not because of desire for junk food, but because situations that I was not prepared for came up and interfered with my eating plan. When dining out, feel free to ask for modified foods on the menu. E.g. "May I have the Lamb chops with no potato but more steamed veggies please"."
Tip 4: You don't need to be perfect, but you do need to be very, very good. Perfection is impossible and also unnecessary. Plan (yup there is that "p" word again) a few imperfect meals each week, time with family, friends and even a scoop of ice cream. No need to be a social outcast just because you want to be healthy. But the remainder of the time, be ruthlessly excellent with your eating.
Tip 5: Cut out non-water drinks. One of the easiest and most powerful habits to implement. Calories in drinks come mostly from high fructose corn syrup or plain white sugar. Both of these make the "badness" factor go up really quickly and without warning - it's scary. Ok fine, a black coffee in the morning, and some unsweetened herbal drinks/teas are ok.
Tip 6: If you are hungry, eat something. This means eating often - like every 2-3 hours. Don't fall into the "I'll get fit by starving" foolishness, or the "I'm busy, food doesn't matter" misconception (My experience as a personal trainer in Singapore tell me that these misconceptions are pretty widespread).
The former is just malnutrition waiting to happen, and the latter can be "planned away" so it doesn't occur. A missed meal is as bad for you as an unhealthy meal. Your many meals each day don't need to be fancy affairs. A cup of low fat yogurt and a handful of nuts is a good "meal" that can take you from mid-morning till lunch in a healthy way.