12 Emotional Stages of Dieting: The Long Road From Hangry to Happy

We’ve all been there — you’ve packed on a few pounds and now you need to lose a bit of weight. There’s no way around it; it’s time to go on a diet. Similar to the various stages of grieving, these are the stages of dieting.

1. “I’ll start my diet tomorrow…”

2. The dread just knowing that your diet is about to start.

3. Finally starting that diet and feeling like a champ. “I got this!” is now your go-to motto.

4. Then the hunger pangs kick in. Your co-workers and significant other are terrified of your hangry side.

5. After a few hours of sticking to the diet and munching on carrots to ease your afternoon hunger attack, you are very much regretting your decision to diet.

6. You know it’s getting bad when you start dreaming about pizza and cake.

7. You spend all week meticulously planning your one, glorious cheat meal.

8. Fending off people who want in on your cheat meal. No, you can’t just have a slice of pizza. Yes, I plan on eating the entire thing.

9. The heartbreak that follows after you finish your cheat meal. You now have to wait an entire week for the next one.

10. Again, why did you do this to yourself in the first place?

11. Stepping on the scale, seeing that you’ve dropped a few pounds and feeling like a champ all over again. Totally worth the pain.

12. Celebrating the new, healthier and slimmer you. Go ahead, strut your stuff.

Okay, so now what?

The journey to a healthier you can seem daunting, so we’ve selected some of our most popular nutrition stories to help get you started:

• 5 Foods to Boost Your Immune System
• Try These 6 Tricks to Kickstart Your Metabolism
• 5 Spices With Brain Health Benefits
• Here’s Why You Get The Drunk Munchies
• 6 Tips for a Healthier You in 2017