Now, why don't I find this surprising? In an article from the London Daily Mail comes the news that the average woman spends 31 years of her life on a diet.

According to a new report, British women spend an average of six months a year counting calories, and more than 20% are on a "permanent diet" throughout their lifetimes. Men spend 28 years dieting.

When you set that up against the fact of spiraling obesity, don't you just figure something is not working? Like high carb, low fat austerity? The article goes on to say that half of the dieters who quit their programs say it is because they "don't have enough willpower." A quarter say it's because their diet leaves them depressed.

I don't know how much of my life has been spent on a diet but it has been significant, and yet I still have a real weight problem. Which is why I'm trying to change my way of eating and thinking about food instead of "dieting" now.

The first diet I remember going on was in 8th or 9th grade, when my mom would ply me with hamburger patties and cottage cheese. Now that I think of it, it was a pretty nice controlled-carb diet. I did the Stillman Diet, the Rotation Diet, some horrendous liquid protein stuff. I did grapefruit diets, cabbage diets, and several rounds of Atkins that I didn't stick with. I did Nutrisystem--twice, and Weight Watchers at least four times. I've tried Sugar Busters and South Beach, and Carb Addicts. Hmmmmm. Did I mention the Scarsdale Diet, and the Wine Diet (a personal favorite)?

If you feel like a trip down memory lane for your own dieting adventures, check out The Fad Diet website.