Do you have to give something up in order to 'diet'?

A blog I read, Maes Monkey Biz (Mariann) wrote this blog, and it really got me thinking. Mae's Monkey Biz: Is Giving Up Something Always the Right Road?: "I am not sure what it was this evening, but something got me thinking. Does Dieting mean Giving Up Something? Or Should it mean that rathe..."

Here was my comment:

My hubby & I recently had to give up Grains & Sugar, not by choice, but because his health & life depends on it. He's diabetic & grain intolerant (inflammatory process). It has been VERY VERY hard at times, one of his favorite foods in Potatoes & he can't have those anymore, but we are slowly finding alternatives to the things we love, tonight we had grain & sugar free pumpkin cheesecake. I know how hard it is to give stuff up and I have done it in the past with trying to low carb etc, but going grain & sugar free hard as it has been, has been one of the best things for my hubby & his health. I think if you truly want to give something up, you can, I just think there needs to be substitutions if that was your 'food crutch' so to speak.

& more of my thoughts on this:

I think a lot of times the reasons diets fail in general is too many people try to give up the foods they love then life or stress happens and you end up going overboard and oftentimes gain more weight back than what you lost. At least that is my pattern. I think if something is truly your 'crutch' or your comfort food, find a healthier alternative. I think it is 'healthier' to think if dieting as a lifestyle change as that is what my hubby and I have done, we no longer have to go down the candy aisle at the grocery store to grab what isnt' good for us anyway, didn't have to worry about eating the leftover halloween candy as we didn't buy any (we only had the doorbell ring like twice so no biggy). Yes we do still eat candy but it is sugar free, sweetened with sugar alcohols or splenda. We are VERY thankful for Russell Stovers (I think that's what it's called) for their wide variety of sugar free candies. It's nice to have a sweet sometimes. Is it frustrating to go to the grocery stores, YES definitely almost every time we go, as we have to check the label on EVERYTHING now and so much stuff has unnecessary CRAP in it, stuff that is not good for you, and not really needed, I mean seriously why do they need to put Sugar in breakfast sausage if it's not maple flavored? GRRR! But it has taught us a lot and helped us be more resourceful in what we eat/cook etc. It's been great as far as that goes.