I've never been known to do things the conventional way. I'm right-handed but left-eyed. When I was a baby, I crawled backward as much as I crawled forward. And a few years ago, when I founded the Diet Club, I launched it at the end of January, not on the first.

So here it is, mid-July, and I say it's time to put those New Year's resolutions into action. Come on, anyone can start a diet on Jan. 1, but it takes special people to do it midsummer.

For the next few weeks, we'll revisit the steps it takes to start, maintain and sustain a healthful regimen.

Today, we'll talk about getting started.

We've all, I'm sure, started diets before, and for a multitude of reasons. We got disgusted with how we looked in the full-length mirror. We thought being slender would magically improve our lives and fix all of our "issues." We had a health crisis and our options were limited to having a stroke or having a heart attack.

Some of us have even been bullied into going on a diet, tired of hearing our spouses, significant others or families badger us about our waistlines.

Whatever your reason for wanting to lose weight, there is only one acceptable one: You want to do it to improve your health and increase the likelihood of sticking around for many years to come.

It's OK to want the other things that come with weight loss and a healthier life. It's great to hear people tell you how good you look, or

being able to shop in the smaller sizes section, or even to wow someone with your great new body. But if that's the main reason you're doing it, your success is likely to be limited and short-lived.

We aren't just talking about cutting calories and limiting fats and sugars. To have real, lasting weight loss, you have to change the way you think about food, how it fits into your life, and how you use or abuse it. And that requires introspection. It also requires that you like yourself well enough to do this very difficult job.

Writing that still makes me a little uneasy because it sounds so new-age and touchy-feely. I picture a rail-thin Earth mama standing before me, dressed in tie-dye and Birkies, preaching about love and harmony and eating organic vegetables by the light of the moon. It's not a concept that my sensible parents raised me to have, but as I've walked this path, I've come to realize that no matter how you word it, loving or at least liking yourself is essential.

Many of us are overweight because we don't much like ourselves. We put others' concerns above our own.

We think that anyone and everyone is more important than we are, and we comfort ourselves in the foods that make us momentarily feel better.

So the initial step on this journey is to decide that you want to do it for yourself, and that you're worth the effort. It's the first, but it's the biggest.

Next time, we'll talk about choosing the eating plan that's best for you. In the meantime, post your thoughts and questions on the Diet Club forum at ContraCostaTimes.com/timesdietclub.

Reach Joan Morris at 925-977-8479 or jmorris@bayarea newsgroup.com.