Transformative Principle #1: Transformation is about belief.  But belief can develop through habit.

To be transformed in your relationship to food and health, you must deeply believe that eating and living in a particular way are central to who you are.  That is quite different from understanding intellectually that eating well is good for you.  No one who begins the process of transformation has yet developed this connection.  The journey toward developing it is the soul of what we call "maintenance".

In my office, a common refrain from patients is, "I really, REALLY want to lose 30 (50, 80, 100) pounds."  Another is, "I really, REALLY want to keep it off this time."  Unfortunately these "wants" are easily subverted by other cravings.  Those who are still simply dieters and not yet transformed still also want to live life as they did before. This is natural.  They still want to eat spaghetti dinners and have dessert. They still would like to find a place for fast food.  They believe in some deep recesses of their minds that there is a bargain that can be struck that will allow them to resume a controlled version of this life after weight loss.

Transformed maintainers generally find eating and being the way they were distasteful.  This isn't to say that a piece of cheesecake doesn't still look good, but through the daily practice of new habits they have come to appreciate what it feels like to live in health.   The balance has shifted. They don't want it to change.

No one who is new to the process of transformation can expect to feel this way at the point that maintenance begins.  The good news is that practice, leading to habit, can create this new belief. I think the Nike people really knew what they were doing when they designed their "Just Do It" logo.  When you "Just Do" something long enough, its value starts to make a deep imprint.

Transformation occurs via doing and initially that doing has to be a conscious effort.  You will have made the quantum leap when you go from wanting to stay away from unhealthy foods to really not wanting to eat them anymore in some visceral way.  Patience and practice is key.