With the holidays over, many of us are now indulging in great gobs of introspection, soul-searching and breast-beating, making New Year's resolutions about how we are going to change and improve ourselves. For some of us, it’s a time to start dieting for weight loss and/or improved health. As worthy as those efforts may be, we also need to remember that we don't live in a vacuum. It isn't enough to plan to do better individually, we must also plan how we are going to protect ourselves from other people and outside screwing up our plans. Here are a few suggestions.

Try to develop different methods for handling stress. Eating at stressful timesis not just a psychological response – carbs have physiological effects. Low-carb eating just doesn’t have the same effect, so figure out what floats your personal boat, whether it’s bubble baths, or work-outs, or hiding away with a romance novel.
When you meet up with nay-sayers and diet saboteurs– and you will -- be polite but firm. Some will do it out of love and concern for you. Some will feel threatened because you are taking steps toward change and they are not. Others will feel threatened because the method of change you have selected is different from theirs. Others may be jealous of your success. And some people just like to debate everything.

One of the best things you can do for yourself is to read everything you can find about low-carb dieting. Once you have gathered information about your course of action, you can assure the concerned ones, and educate the rest of them. Keep in mind that it's just about impossible to teach people whose minds are already made up, but you can teach them that if they want to be with you, they will have to accept your diet.

If someone brings up a topic you haven't considered yet, ask them for references and citations. There's so much misinformation floating around that you shouldn't waste your time on anything that can't be checked out.
What are you going to do when you are served foods you shouldn't eat? The world is full of people who will thoughtfully serve you what used to be your favorite dish, or who believe that a balanced diet has far more food groups than you feel you need, or who think that a little bit won't hurt. Even people who understand and truly support your diet may occasionally forget. Always carry low-carb foods with you so that hunger never gets the best of you.

Watch out for saboteurs that are cloaked in low-carb words. It’s sad, but there are products and cookbook out there that claim to be low-carb, but which are far too high-carb for most of us. Sometimes, it isn’t deliberate -- after all, from the perspective of low-fat diets, anything under 300 grams per day could be considered low-carb. However, until there is a legal definition of the term low-carb, don't count on words -- check out the recipes, and the numbers on the labels. Then, double-check those numbers, too. Compare the ingredients list with the Nutrition Facts table, as well as any other claims. It will take a little study to become familiar with the ingredients usually used low-carb products, but the effort will pay off.