Showing posts with label fad diets. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fad diets. Show all posts

let's get honest...

Have you ever tried a fad diet?

I keep reading all this hype about how Kate Middleton & her mom, may or may not be on this Dukan Diet. 


And it just got me thinking about how insane some of these fad diets are that people try.

Speaking from experience, I've tried Atkins & I attempted the Lemonade Diet. This was all prior to my education on health & fitness.

Looking back, it's kind of sad because I was only 15 when I tried Atkins for the first time. I didn't last long by any means. But, to be so young & wanting to diet?

I attempted Atkins again my freshman year of college ~ it was HORRIBLE. I hated it. I hated the feeling that overcame my body by avoiding carbs, I never had energy, and I always had a headache.


I even tried diet pills. One in particular left me insanely shaky - it was actually pretty scary.

The Lemonade Diet was the devil. I couldn't stomach the mixture.

this picture just made me laugh - it's all the ingredients for the cleanse, plus a pack of diapers

What in the world was I thinking???

*This is a total soapbox moment*, but honestly, say someone does drop 10 pounds from one of these "fad diets"...there's a few things to consider & use to judge whether it was a "healthy" weight loss:

1. How quickly did the weight come off? Was it a week, 2 weeks, a month?
Set aside Biggest Loser & how quickly they lose weight...and how MUCH they lose in a week's time. (They are working out 8+hours / day, plus they eat no junk food, & their menus are tailored to their specific needs).
It's normally considered the healthy average to lose no more than 2 pounds a week - for the average person. So if someone on the Atkins diet has lost 10 pounds in 1 week...um, no good.

2. Was the person exercising?
Ever heard of "skinny fat"? If you drop weight, and don't incorporate any exercise, it's called "skinny fat".  

3. What was the person eating?
Nothing against Weight Watchers, but if a person on Weight Watchers was just getting their points per day from the WW snack items that come with point value on the label (like brownies or cookies) or even the "100 calorie" packs of oreos, crackers, etc.; where is the nutritional value in that?

There are other markers to look for, but chances are good, this person is going to gain their weight back once the diet ends, plus some. I've seen it first hand.

It really is all about a lifestyle change.

Eating the proper nutrients, weeding out the junk, and incorporating cardio as well as strength training.

And it's definitely not about depravity.

Our society is so much into instant gratification, that people are willing to put their bodies through these insane diets, rather than just getting off their butts & exercising, or changing up their eating habits & giving up McDonalds for dinner.  

I am just as guilty as the next when it comes to wanting results now - I get utterly annoyed when I send an email to a coworker & don't get a response in the next 2 minutes.  

Regardless, let's put a little effort in, & really do things the healthy way; so that these changes last a lifetime, & not just a week or a month.

Thoughts???