Americans spend around 30-50 billion dollars each year on fad diets, quick fixes, and gimmicks. While spending only a small amount each on proper dieting methods like eating healthier foods and exercising regularly. Why is it that we spend so much more each year on the quick fixes as opposed to practising better eating habits? That is because healthy eating provides you with a weight loss of anywhere from less than 1/2 a lb. to 2lbs. a week with anymore than that being unhealthy and not long term. While fad diets promise a large weight loss with little or no effort and no exercise. Fad diets are made to get your attention when your thinking "Well my reunion is exactly a month away and I would like to lose 30lbs.", or "I really need to lose that extra 14 lbs. to fit into my bikini and I've only got two weeks to do it" Today I am going to review and talk about a few different diets in the two categories. I have been on every diet from Atkins to The Zone and countless fad diets, while also trying to keep in mind a few words of wisdom my mother has always shared with me especially when it comes to dieting, "If it sounds to good to be true then it probably is."
A few ridiculous fad diets I have tried in the past. Most recently: The One Day Diet - The very sound of this diet should have been a turn off, but because I am just like everyone else in America I think "Hey a diet I only have to be on for 24 hours!" This diet promises a weight loss of 2 lbs. a day if you don't eat anything except a few tiny diet "wafers" and water for 24 hours and then the next day you can eat what you like. After reading this I went out and spent the fifty dollars for the 2 weeks supply of "wafers" thinking that it was a magical wonderful thing. Well the truth is, it's NOT! I started out each day ready to do the diet but only after a few hours gave in to hunger because I was weak and so irritable and extremely miserable. I don't know what made me think eating every other day was going to be the answer.
The 48 hour "Miracle" Diet- This diet I can say is probably the most common fad diet I have seen, with beautiful thin people claiming they got their bodies from drinking this "miracle" juice two days out of the week. Well after viewing the commercials all the time on tv, and reading countless NEGATIVE reviews I decided to spend the twenty bucks on the juice and try it out. It promised a weight loss of eight to ten pounds in two days. I started out the first day with my first serving of juice and went on about the day, or at least I tried to. Drinking this juice caused a horrible diuretic effect which left me stopping at every gas station on the way to my destination. While also leaving me so pail from lack of nutrition it wasn't even funny. It was the worst 20.00 dollars I have ever spent.
The Cabbage Soup Diet- I went on this diet believing the promise of a weight loss of ten pounds a week. I was wrong! This diet lets you have as much of this special cabbage soup which you make yourself and let's you eat only certain foods on certain days such as all fruits one day, all veggies the next, and that sort of thing. This diet leaves you miserably hungry and unsatisfied, while also being another horrible diuretic, with losing very little or no weight and gaining it quickly back. It is hardly worth your time.
Conclusion on fad diets- Fad diets like I said are just gimmicks to get your attention don't waste your money. Any weight loss you get will be water weight or even worse muscle mass and these diets will have extremely negative effects on your metabolism.
With that being said here are a few diets that WORK. *My top three favorites.
Slim fast- When I was a young teen I lost around 70lbs on this diet. It worked really good, but the downside is that it is so expensive. If you can afford this diet then I recommend it to you. If you cannot afford it then don't do it, because when you don't have the money for the shakes or bars then it will just cause weight gain. I lost around three pounds a week. Learn more at www.slimfast.com
Definitely a good one: Atkins (or low carb)- This diet is an EXTREMELY wonderful diet. With the right foods in your fridge and eliminating the bad ones totally from your diet, you will lose a good amount of weight pretty quickly from my experience. After researching the diet a little make sure it's something you can stick with because you won't maintain the weight loss well if you can't stick with it. I lost around five pounds a week. Visit www.atkins.com for more information.
My number one personal favorite: Weight watchers- This diet is a GREAT one, everything is done in a system of "points" with EVERY food including fast foods having a point value. You get a target points number depending on how much you weigh. It is reasonably inexpensive because you have to spend no money on special foods and nothing is cut out of your diet. It is a great way of learning proper eating habits for the rest of your life. The only cost is about forty dollars when you first start, so you can get the start up kit with everything you need in it! You can continue to go to the meetings although not required help immensely, and are on average around eleven dollars a week. I lost around seventeen pounds each month and kept it off fairly easily. The costs vary. Visit www.weightwatchers.com for more information.
In conclusion I hope that this article was helpful to you in someway, and I wish you the best of luck on your weight loss journey. While you look for a plan that's right for you please keep in mind the quote from my mother I mentioned earlier, "If it sounds to good to be true then it probably is."
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lauren_Robertson |
Obesity's Connection To Cardiovascular Disease Remains Poorly Understood
Obesity rates have escalated dramatically in the last several decades and the condition negatively affects health, but its connection to conditions such as cardiovascular disease (CVD) is complex and not fully understood. In the March issue of the Journal of Investigative Medicine experts say more research is needed to discover the links between obesity and CVD, with particular attention to biological differences between women and men. [click link for full article]
Research In Childhood Obesity In Children Highlights Physical Activity Levels
A British study, involving 5,500 children and published in the latest issue of PLoS Medicine, used accurate methods to measure the 'fat mass' of the children and the amount of physical activity they were taking. The researchers, based at the University of Bristol, concluded that low levels of activity, particularly moderate and vigorous activity, play an important role in the development of obesity. [click link for full article]
In Obesity, Brain Becomes 'Unaware' Of Fat
Critical portions of the brain in those who are obese don't really know they are overweight, researchers have reported in the March issue of the journal Cell Metabolism, published by Cell Press. These findings in obese mice show that a sensor in the brain that normally detects a critical fat hormone - causing a cascade of events that keeps energy balance in check - fails to engage. Meanwhile, the rest of the metabolic pathway remains ready to respond. [click link for full article]
Potential Link Between Obesity And Environmental Chemicals
A team of researchers at the University of New Hampshire is investigating whether the increasing ubiquity of chemical flame retardants found in foam furniture, carpeting, microwaves and computers might be related to the climbing rate of obesity in the United States. [click link for full article]
Americans Still Not Eating Enough Fruits And Vegetables, According To Two Recent Studies
"Eat your vegetables" has been heard at the dinner tables of America for a long time. Has the message gotten through? Since 1990 the Dietary Guidelines for Americans has recommended consuming at least two servings of fruits and three servings of vegetables daily. However, two studies published in the April issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine clearly show that Americans are not meeting the mark. [click link for full article]
Obesity Drives US Surgical Procedure Volumes Higher
Millennium Research Group (MRG) has conducted a detailed analysis of surgical procedures in its US Surgical Procedure Volumes 2007 report. The report finds that over 11 million Americans are considered morbidly obese, and by 2011, over 13 million will be- driving the volume of surgical procedures in the US throughout the next five years. [click link for full article]
Foods To Prevent Obesity?
This, surely, is the oxymoron of the year. Reuters reports that the "Dutch hope to invent foods that prevent obesity". That single sentence encompasses the arrogance, greed, and plain foolishness that exists in the minds of those who "invent" foods. "We are working on certain food ingredients, which provoke more satiety than others do on the long run, so that...
Splenda Buys Hundreds of Anti-Splenda Domains
The makers of Splenda have been busy. Busy enough to purchase over 211 domain names - such as SplendaKills.com, SplendaPoison.com, SplendaVictims.com. It is an elaborate and insidious ploy to prevent any negative information being written on-line....