Are You Ready to Diet?

Thinking about dieting? Take this test before starting! The weight control specialist at Yale University devised the following test to help dieters assess whether the time is right to try to lose fat.

Exercise

1) Do you have a negative or positive picture about exercise in your mind?

Score 1 for completely negative
Score 2 for somewhat negative
Score 3 for neutral
Score 4 for somewhat positive
Score 5 for completely positive

2) How often do you exercise?

Score 1 for never
Score 2 for rarely
Score 3 for occasionally
Score 4 for somewhat
Score 5 for frequently

3) How sure are you that you can work regular exercise into your daily schedule?

Score 1 for not at all
Score 2 for slightly
Score 3 for somewhat
Score 4 for quite
Score 5 for extremely

4) How confident are you that you can exercise regularly?

Score 1 for not at all
Score 2 for slightly
Score 3 for somewhat
Score 4 for highly
Score 5 for completely

If you scored: 4 to 10, change attitudes that are blocking your way to regular exercise; 11 to 16, to feel more positive about exercise, think of ways that are fun and fit your lifestyle; 17 to 20, your path is clear to a more active life.

Goals and attitudes:

1) How certain are you that you will stay committed to a weight loss program for the time it will take to reach your goal?

Score 1 for not at all
Score 2 for slightly
Score 3 for somewhat
Score 4 for quite
Score 5 for extremely

2) Compared with previous attempts, how motivated to lose weight are you this time?

Score 1 for not at all
Score 2 for slightly
Score 3 for somewhat
Score 4 for quite
Score 5 for extremely

3) While dieting, do you feel deprived, angry or upset?

Score 1 for always
Score 2 for frequently
Score 3 for occasionally
Score 4 for rarely
Score 5 for never

4) Think honestly about how much weight you hope to lose and how quickly you hope to lose it. Figuring a weight loss of 1 to 2 pounds per week, how realistic is your expectation?

Score 1 for very unrealistic
Score 2 for somewhat unrealistic
Score 3 for moderately unrealistic
Score 4 for somewhat realistic
Score 5 for very realistic

5) Consider all outside stress in your life (work, family obligations, etc.) To what extent can you tolerate the effort required to stick to a diet?

Score 1 for cannot
Score 2 for can somewhat
Score 3 for uncertain
Score 4 for can tolerate well
Score 5 for can easily

6) While dieting, do you fantasize about eating a lot of your favourite foods?

Score 1 for always
Score 2 for frequently
Score3 for occasionally
Score 4 for rarely
Score 5 for never

If you scored: 6 to 16, it is not a good time to diet; inadequate motivation and commitment and unrealistic goals can get in your way; 17 to 23, think about ways to boost your diet readiness before you begin, 24 to 30, your path is clear.

Emotional Eating

1) When things don't go well with others or on your job, do you eat more than you would like?

Score 1 for never
Score 2 for rarely
Score 3 for occasionally
Score 4 for frequently
Score 5 for always

2) Do you overeat when you feel anxious, depressed, angry or lonely?

Score 1 for never
Score 2 for rarely
Score 3 for occasionally
Score 4 for frequently
Score 5 for always

3) Do you celebrate feeling good by overeating?

Score 1 for never
Score 2 for rarely
Score 3 for occasionally
Score 4 for frequently
Score 5 for always

If you scored: 3 to 8, you don't seem to let emotions affect your eating; 9 to 11, monitor your occasional tendency to eat in response to emotional highs and lows and find alternative activities; 12 to 15, you need to find other ways than eating express your feelings.

Hunger Cues

1) Do you have trouble controlling your eating when your favourite foods are around the house?

Score 1 for never
Score 2 for rarely
Score 3 for occasionally
Score 4 for frequently
Score 5 for always

2) When food is mentioned, do you want to eat even if not hungry?

Score 1 for never
Score 2 for rarely
Score 3 for occasionally
Score 4 for frequently
Score 5 for always

3) How often do you eat because of physical hunger?

Score 1 for always
Score 2 for frequently
Score 3 for occasionally
Score 4 for rarely
Score 5 for never

If you scored: 3 to 6, try to control the attitudes that occasionally make you overeat; 7 to 9, dieting will be easier if you try to resist external cues and eat only when you are physically hungry.

Control Overeating

1) After faithfully following your diet you decide to test yourself by eating a "treat."

Score 1 if you would eat much less
Score 2 if you would eat somewhat less
Score 3 if it would make no difference
Score 4 if you would eat somewhat more
Score 5 if you would eat much more

2) Although you planned to skip lunch, you are talked into going out to eat.

Score 1 if you would eat much less
Score 2 if you would eat somewhat less
Score 3 if it would make no difference
Score 4 if you would eat somewhat more
Score 5 if you would eat much more

3) You go off your diet by eating a fattening, forbidden food.

Score 1 if you would eat much less
Score 2 if you would eat somewhat less
Score 3 if it would make no difference
Score 4 if you would eat somewhat more
Score 5 if you would eat much more

If you scored: 3 to 7, you recover rapidly from mistakes, but should get professional help if you often alternate between strict dieting and eating out of control; 8 to 11, you have a flexible, balanced program that is not disrupted by unplanned eating; 12 to 15, your reaction to problem-causing eating events can be improved.

Bingeing and Purging

1) Have you ever purges to control your weight by using laxatives, diuretics or induced vomiting?

Score 5 for yes
Score 0 for no

2) If yes, how often during the past year?

Score 1 for less than once a month
Score 2 for about once a month
Score 3 for few times a month
Score 4 for about once a week
Score 5 for about 3 times a week
Score 6 for daily

3) Have you ever eaten lots of food rapidly and felt the eating was excessive and out of control?

Score 2 for yes
Score 0 for no

4) If yes, how often over the past year?

Score 1 for less than once a month
Score 2 for about once a month
Score 3 for a few times a month
Score 4 for about once a week
Score 5 for about 3 times a week
Score 6 for daily

If you scored: 0 to 1, binge eating and purging are not your problem; 2 to 11, get professional help if these eating patterns arise more often; 12 to 19, your potentially serious eating problem needs immediate professional attention.

We hope you have scored well and are prepared to fight the battle against obesity. Good luck!