Posts Tagged ‘fad diets’

The Skinny On The Weight Loss Fad Diet

Tuesday, July 29th, 2008

Weight loss fad diets are everywhere! They’re in our magazines, on the television, on in internet and sometimes even on your radio.

A typical weight loss fad diet is often promoted by any or all of the above and others even add to the programs with their own self-made supplements and food ala’ Weight Watchers, LA Weight Loss and more.

What you need to watch out for is that some of these weight loss fad diets don’t have even the faintest medical or scientific backing.

Read on for some tips on weight loss fad diets.

Unhealthy?

Many experts that have tested and reviewed weight loss fad diet varieties often report that these diets can be unhealthy. Since they are termed -fad-, chances are, they are only good for a certain period of time and the limitations can lead people to binge eat when they’ve had enough.

Also if a person jumps from one weight loss fad diet to another it can be unhealthy the body as you may face nutrition deficiencies and general stress from the yo-yo dieting.

The Categories

There are 3 categories where a weight loss fad diet can be identified. These categories determine what kind of dieting is being promoted:

1. Certain foods are omitted from your diet
2. There is an emphasis on eating one very specific area of food
3. The benefits of certain foods and food groups are purported and exaggerated for curing particular diseases

Extreme diets

A weight loss fad diet can be dangerous to your health and overall can prove to be a highly ineffective means of losing weight especially long term.

Fad diets can leave you feeling lethargic, with vitamin/mineral deficiencies and going mad with cravings!

Claims

A huge number of weight loss fad diets cannot be supported by scientific studies or research. In other words, these diets claim to have fantastic results and scientific proof but they never follow the standard methods for proving their effectiveness and validity.

Some people from scientific and medical communities often remark that fad diets are a result of the lack of knowledge on dietary and nutritional facts paired with the desperation of wanting to lose weight.

According to them, there is a lack of evidence on weight loss due to calorie restriction. Furthermore, there is a lack of evidence supporting the claims that fad diets can help achieve and maintain sustainable weight loss. Also, they point out that these diets ignore the necessary associations between human health and dietary and nutritional patterns.

Examples of fad diets

There are thousands around but here’s a list of some of the most notorious:

* The Cabbage Soup Diet
* The Hollywood Diet
* Atkins Diet
* LA Weight Loss
* Cybergenics
* Master Cleanse

And the list goes on . . .

For a ANTI fad diet check out Red Carpet Ready by celebrity trainer Valerie Waters. Click the link for more info!

The Definition of a Fad Diet

Tuesday, May 13th, 2008

Fad diets are increasingly becoming a dangerous reality of modern living.

Everywhere you look there are more fad diet companies coming on the market ready to take your money with their outrageous claims of HEAPS of weight loss.

So what is the definition of a fad diet? Read on to find out so you know for sure :)

A official definition of a fad diet is ‘a reducing diet that enjoys temporary popularity.’

Make special notice of the "temporary popularity" - that is the epitome of fad diets!

Here’s how your fad diet experience will almost definitely go:

The fad diet will attract you with great sales pitches promising 10 pounds of weight loss in 5 days without any exercise.

You’ll get excited, buy the book/drink/food and get straight into it.

Eagerly you check the scales each day and watch the kilos melt away.

By Day 3 you’re starting to feel bored with the mundane soup or cranky from the lack of carbs.

Day 5 comes and you find yourself fantasizing about what you’re going to eat tomorrow after the diet ends.

The diet has come to an end and you’re clothes are fitting and you’re scales look great. You think it is all worth it!

Finally the diet is over and you think a celebration is in order. It’s time to treat yourself. You run to the shops grab every chocolate and pastry you can get your hands.

Over the next few days you try everything you missed during the strict fad diet in BIG amounts.

You check the scales and BAM it’s all back.

Fad Diet strikes again! :(

Fad Diets

I bet the above story rings a bell with most of you. I know it does for me. I’ve been there, done that.

Reality is that unless you change your lifestyle, unless you treat yourself from time to time, unless you exercise regularly you will NOT lose weight long term and you will NOT have a healthy body.

I am the first to admit that it is very tempting to lose weight fast. Everyone wants a killer body and everyone wants it NOW.

Here are some of the most common fad diets:

* Atkins
* Cabbage Soup Diet
* 3 Day Diet
* Negative Calorie Diet
* Grapefruit Diet
* Hollywood Diet
* Chocolate Diet
* Master Cleanse (aka Lemonade Diet)
* Juice Diet
* Chicken Soup Diet

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE don’t fall victim to the above, if for no other reason than for your health.

You might have seen my post on the effects of fad diets, if not click the link and read it now!

Anywayyyyy back to it . . .

Now you know the definition of fad diet and the signs to look out for I HOPE you will be better equipped to make the right choice :)

Top 10 Fad Diets To Avoid

Tuesday, May 6th, 2008

Fad diets are never the answer now matter how tempting they may seem. I admit I’ve been lured into the "LOSE 10 POUNDS IN 3 DAYS" spiel before because it seems so easy but fad diets never work long term!

Sure you might see results fast but only because they use drastic measures and even put your health at risk.

I’ve put together a list of the Top 10 Fad Diets to avoid.

The Cabbage Soup Diet

The Cabbage Soup diet is one of the least pleasant and most ridiculous fad diets around.

You will see results but only because ALL you eat is a mixture of cabbage soup for 7 days.

Your body simply cannot survive on a diet like this. Your body needs protein, carbs and healthy fats to survive and this soup mixture simply does not provide that.

Side effects of the diet include lack of concentration, dizziness, weakness and digestive problems including excessive flautulance. Gross huh!

The Grapefruit Juice Diet

This is another silly fad diet involving lots of grapefruits, a little meat and salad.

On the traditional grapefruit diet you are supposed to have half a grapefruit before every meal and stick to just 800 calories daily.

Even the promoters of this diet admit that the calorie content is too low for sufficient nutrition. The diet lacks protein and several other important vitamins and minerals.

Side effects of the Grapefruit Diet include nausea, dizziness and lack of concentration.

The 7 Day All You Can Eat Diet

The 7 Day All You Can Eat Diet is one of the weirdest ones I came across. While the foods involved are eating all on one day and none on the next isn’t healthy.

Even the promoters admit that most of the weight loss comes from muscles and fluids, as well as fat. Any weight lost on 7 Day All You Can Eat Diet can be easily regained.

The menu plan looks like this:

Day 1 - All the fruit you want (no banana)
Day 2 - All the veges you want
Day 3 - All the fruit and veges you want
Day 4 - 5 bananas + 5 glasses of milk
Day 5 - 4 servings of meat (3 oz) with veges
Day 6 - 4 servings of beef with veges
Day 7 - 4 servings of beef with veges

The restrictive nature of this diet will prove hard to follow and will most likely lead to you caving and eating more!

The Chicken Soup Diet

In the Chicken Soup Diet you are allowed to eat 1 breakfast then chicken soup for the rest of the day.

While chicken is a great source of protein eating it watered down all day every day is obviously not a healthy choice.

People who go for any form of soup diet will most likely suffer from dizziness, nausea and hunger.

Again this diet is too low in calories to be healthy and you will gain any weight you lose within weeks of returning to normal eating habits.

The Master Cleanse

The Master Cleanse has gained popularity in the last few years especially after Beyonce admitted she followed the diet but this should not be considered a good sign.

The Master Cleanse diet is effectively a starvation diet so yes you will see results and yes you will put the weight back on.

The diet involves 10 days of drinking nothing but a mixture of water, maple syrup, lemon and cayenne pepper.

Pair that with laxatives to conquer the lack of fiber and you have a dangerous diet.

The Negative Calorie Diet

The theory behind the Negative Calorie diet is extremely appealing. It works on the premise that your body has to burn energy in order to digest certain foods thus resulting in the negative calories.

For example looking at an orange, which may contain approximately 50 calories, it would take a certain amount of energy from your body to process all of the nutrients and vitamins within the orange. In doing so, you would burn more than 50 calories.

Sounds fantastic huh! So what’s the catch? Firstly there is basically no scientific proof to back up the claims and basically no further information.

The Hollywood Diet

The Hollywood Diet is a 48 hour diet that promises weight loss of up to 10 pounds. Effectively it is a detox cleanse and is not a long term weight loss solution.

The Hollywood Diet has a number of drink products which are supposed to replace 1 or 2 meals per day in the 48 hour time period.

While on the diet you are supposed to refrain from any red meat, dairy, sugar, diet sodas, salty snacks, fatty foods and sweets.

While detoxing from time to time is a good idea by no means should it be considered a diet or weight loss option.

The Grape Diet

This is one of the most dangerous diets I’ve seen.

In this Grape Diet you literally eat grapes and water for a week or so. Can you even imagine that!

This diet is deficient in most essential nutrients and can cause constipation, diarrhea, and cramps.

Do NOT fall for this one!

The Mono Food Diet

The Mono Food Diet is another one of the fad diets you might have heard of.

For the Mono Food diet you have to eat only one type of food per meal. Eat three meals a day, leaving at least four hours between each meal.

There are 3 groups of foods high protein, high carbs and high starches and you can only eat one of each at each meal.

This is not a great way of eating and you could lose weight far easier by eating a balance of different healthy foods.

The Sugar Busters Diet

While on this diet, you are allowed to eat red meat, poultry, fish, olive oil, dairy foods, and nuts and only certain fruits and veges.

Simple carbs such as pasta, white bread, white rice, potatoes and most sugars are also banned.

They way I see it is that any diet that bans types of fruit and veges is probably not the best idea. There is nothing bad about veges and they should take up approx 75% of your diet.

I hope now after all this list of the Top 10 Fad Diets to avoid this that you might have the will power to steer clear of the next fad diet that comes your way! :)

For a weight loss diet that doesn’t involve starving yourself or cutting out entire food groups click the link below. Trust me your body will thank you for it!

Effects of Fad Diets On Your Body!

Tuesday, April 29th, 2008

Fad dieting is an epidemic around the world and a dangerous one at that.

These diets are often borderline starvation and will undoubtedly do more harm than good.

The effects of fad diets on your body can be catastrophic and can cause long term problems.

Read on to find out the effects fad diets can have.

The best way to lose weight is consistent and gradual changes to your lifestyle including a healthy diet and regular exercise.

I hope that by seeing the list of fad diet effects you will choose to approach your weight loss the healthy way. It will work out better for you trust me :)

Here’s a list of some common fad diets you should avoid:

Sugar Busters Diet
Cabbage Soup Diet
The Grapefruit Diet
The Master Cleanse
No Carb Diet
Juice Diet
The Hollywood Diet

These are some of the more well known fad diets but the list doesn’t end there.

Basically any diet that promotes severe restrictions of entire food groups should be avoided.

For a healthy body you need a balanced diet of whole foods including fresh veges, fresh fruit, healthy fats and lean protein.

Effects Of Fad Diets

1. Slower Metabolism

2. Serious Dehydration

3. Lack Of Energy

4. Irritability

5. Stronger Food Cravings

6. Muscle Loss

7. Vitamin Deficiency

8. Lack Of Concentration

9. Damage To Your Reproductive Function

10. Nausea

11. Gastrointestinal Disturbances

12. Risk of Eating Disorder

13. Weight Gain

14. Organ Damage

15. Risk of Heart Attack

Is that enough of a deterrent? I truly truly hope so!

Red Carpet Ready is a healthy weight loss program that will help you reshape your body in just 6 weeks.

The author Valerie Waters has been a celebrity trainer for 15 years and trained the likes of Cindy Crawford, Jennifer Garner, Jim Carrey and Jessica Biel.

I thoroughly recommend this program as a safe way to lose weight and change your lifestyle.

Click the link below for more information: