JLPT N1 Reading Comprehension Lesson 20

The 'just write it down' diet is said to be highly effective. Diets often require tedious or painful efforts, such as calculating calories, exercising, and restricting sweets and food. This method only requires recording what you ate in a day and your weight. However, you must record everything you eat, even a single candy, which gradually becomes a hassle. As a result, the ultimate 'just weigh yourself' diet was born. However, 'just weighing yourself' does not mean weighing yourself constantly. To stay motivated, I chart my morning and evening weights. Even without sudden changes, it is enjoyable to see the weight gradually decrease, which helps with weight loss. If the weight increases compared to the previous day, I write an excuse such as 'a dinner party.' This makes the cause of the increase clear, making the weight gain acceptable. Many people have successfully lost weight using this method. However, women often struggle to stick with it. The reason is that, due to female hormones, women have periodic phases where it is difficult to lose weight. If you don't know this and the numbers don't meet expectations, you get trapped in a mindset of questioning 'why' and eventually give up. Therefore, by informing you of this first, women are said to be able to succeed with this method as well. The reason why a weigh-in-only diet succeeds is that you can see the gradual weight loss. And the desire to lose weight becomes stronger than the desire to eat cake. The fact that there is no stress because you understand the reason for any weight gain is also a reason to continue.