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With
American’s current obsession with weight
and maintaining an attractive
appearance, an entire industry has
emerged selling diets and diet books,
meal replacements, nutritional
supplements and Internet-based
coaching--all targeted on helping people
lose weight.
But according to Gina Kolata, in her New
York Times article, “Diet and Lose
Weight? Scientists Say ‘Prove It’!,
research reveals little evidence that
diets and other commercial weight-loss
programs are effective in helping people
actually drop excess pounds—due to the
fact that rigorous studies of diet
programs are virtually non-existent.
Advertisements for weight loss plans and
products, featuring smiling, thin,
healthy people, often imply that success
is guaranteed for anyone who simply
follows the program.
Many Americans view a healthy diet and
lifestyle as too restrictive and
difficult to maintain. For example, most
diets dictate exactly what and how much
food to eat, regardless of individual
preferences and patterns of hunger and
satiety. Chad Tackett of Global
Health and Fitness says that
“dieting can help us lose weight (fat,
muscle, and water) in the short term but
is so unnatural and so unrealistic that
it can never become a lifestyle that we
can live with, let alone enjoy!”
To better understand the essential
shortcomings of dieting, it may be
helpful to review the three key factors
that contribute its ineffectiveness.
Specifically, diets:
The Bad
Habits of Dieting
Although dieting can teach you how to
shop for low-fat foods as well as offer
creative recipes and some guidelines to
follow when eating out or going on
vacation, they don’t teach:
-
Effective ways to exercise
-
How to
deal with cravings and desires
-
How to
attend to feelings of hunger and
fullness
In
addition, diets often cause the
development of unrealistic
goals--fueling hopes that this will be
the “magic bullet” that helps you shed
those unwanted pounds.
I Can’t Lose Weight No Matter What I
Do – Diets Are Frustrating
According to The HealthPages.com,
ninety percent of dieters who lose
weight regain all or part of it within
five years. "Dieting" is not the answer
to slimming down permanently. Certainly,
any decrease in the number of calories
you eat will result in weight loss. But
as soon as you go back to your normal
eating habits, the pounds will return.
The truth is that permanent weight loss
takes time and requires a modification
of both eating and exercise habits. So,
if you’ve tried unsuccessfully to follow
one or several of the hundreds of
popular diets on the market today and
have said to yourself – “I can’t lose
weight no matter what I do!” – now, you
know why.
Diets Control You
Think about it – you’re following a
detailed set of eating instructions
formulated by someone who doesn’t know
you, your habits, or your strengths and
weaknesses. You follow this prescribed
diet in hopes that it will work but
without your input or adjustments for
stress and other factors, most dieters
are destined to fail. According to
Netdoctor.co.uk, all too often,
dieters make comments like: “When I'm
slim I'll never overeat again” or “When
I've lost this weight, I'll go out and
celebrate with a cream cake,” or 'Why
should I change the family eating habits
just because I'm on a diet?” Such
thinking allows old eating habits to
creep back in, no matter how much weight
the dieter has lost, and in time, find
themselves back at square one.
Everything Must Change
Trying to maintain a healthy diet
and lifestyle is a worthwhile endeavour
and for some, it can be a lifelong
struggle. To effectively live a healthy
life, you must change more than the type
of food you eat and the amount you
consume--you have to change the way you
live. The bottom line is: Eat right, be
active, be smart, stay informed and
don’t look for quick fixes.
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