By Ezi Levi [from our archives]. Perhaps the best time of year in the Jewish calendar to start a healthy eating/ weight loss plan is the time from after Succos until Pesach, as this is the longest stretch in our calendar without a Yom Tov (except of course for Chanuka).

After almost a month of nonstop eating, people are truly in the frame of mind to lose weight. If you are so inclined to start a program now, then consider the following:

You can do the “quick results ” thing where you lose the weight fast, deprive yourself of good tasty food, and then in a few months when- in the best case scenario- you lost those pounds, you return to eating the way you have in the past and before you know it, you’ve gained it all back plus some. Or in another scenario, you lose the weight but have no idea how to maintain your new weight while incorporating some of the foods that you have been avoiding.

As one who has been dieting my whole life, I truly believe that successful weight loss comes when you retrain how you deal with food.

Is it challenging? Yes. 

Can it be tough at the beginning? Yes.

Will there be certain foods that it would be recommended to avoid? Most likely yes– although not necessarily.

Focusing on losing weight in a slow, steady way while at the same time training yourself how to make healthy, yet tasty choices, in addition to learning the tricks that will allow you  to avoid putting yourself in the position of making the bad choices, is the way to continued, long lasting and almost automatic weight loss. Hey. And you will feel great too!

Here are some questions you can ask yourself on a daily basis in which you should be able to answer yes, and if you can answer yes, then you will be on your way to a good foundation of healthy eating and living.

Did I drink 8-10 cups of water today?

Did I eat 5-8 servings of fruits/ veggies today?

Did I eat every 4-5 hours even if I wasn’t so hungry?

Did I limit my carbs to whole grains and/or minimally processed carbs?

Did I write down what I ate today?

Di I do any physical activity today?

You don’t need to answer yes to all of these questions every day but the more often you can answer in the affirmative the better off you will be.

If you need help, do it together with friends and family as a group or go to a nutritionist or a health coach.

Have a wonderful winter and hatzlocha rabbah in your endeavors!

Ezi Levi is a certified health and diet coach and is the director of the Men’s Weight Loss Center. The center works with men and teenage boys who are committed to losing weight in a safe and natural way by learning how to make healthier choices in their primary and secondary foods. To find out more or to schedule a free, no obligation health consultation please call (732) 903-4129 or Email at [email protected]