Fad Diets Vs Real Life Diet?

Fad Diets vs Real Life Diet

Fad diets are popular. Some work, some don't. And the ones that work, tend to work only for a little while.

What is a fad diet? Answer: Whatever fashionable new diet that saturates the market through the "feel good" media. The are characterised by their focus on drastic elimination of certain types of food: eg. low calory diets, low carbs diets, raw vegies diets, and that type of thing.

But a clearer indicator is the "detrition" factor, namely how long can people keep doing their dietary regime for.

With most restrictive diets the detrition rate is high. People cannot bear the food deprivation and soon fall off the wagon, and get back to their bad old days... often gaining more weight than they lost in the first place.

The focus on food elimination is, I believe, the main flaw of fad diets.

A real life diet should allow you to indulge every now and then on foods that other regimes forbid.

A real life diet should actually teach you how "food management skills", that is the ability and willingness to eat what's good for you.

It requires a total reframing of habits and the way we perceive (and enjoy) food.

There are regimes such as Weight Watchers' (TM), and the CSIRO system. They are good because they promote a balanced approach to eating, and they let you enjoy a few indulgencies... as long as you follow the rules.

The mental factor is, perhaps, the most important factor of all when trying to lose weight in a healthy way. This factor includes the personal circumstances of a person.

I was reading yesterday about this new book by Maryon Steward called "The Real Life Diet Plan". This nutritionist says [fad] diets don't work because...

... "in the long term at least... most men and women who struggle to keep their weight in check have an underlying nutritional deficiency which makes them crave sugary foods."

Ms Stewart also makes a vaild point: people are also affected by their own personal circumstances. Have you ever tried to lose weight whilst going through a divorse? Doable? Yes. Easy to do? Nope.

She claims that her book will help you find the right diet for your personal circumstances. It will help you determine what essential vitamins and minerals you're lacking, and the reasons behind unhealthy cravings. All of this, taking into account whatever is going on in your life at the time.

I think that's a good point to take into account when deciding to lose weight.



Yours in Health,


Skinny Jeff