When you walk into a grocery store, you see a million magazines with headlines reading "Lose 20 pounds in 10 days!" or "How to get the perfect beach body!" you open the magazine and are bombarded with body weight exercises and ridiculous restrictive diets. Many dietitians like to refer to these as "fad diets." These diets are usually very strange, with unusual rules that many individuals cannot follow. These diets will most likely lose weight, but what a lot of people do not understand, is that these diets do not last.
Usually, these diets last about 30 days or less and involve following a diet that restricts a lot of calories or even asks you to cut out an unbelievable amount of foods. When starting these diets, it will be a shock to your metabolism, and you will lose weight. However, it is not healthy and could be detrimental to your metabolism and overall health. Restricting your diet to that extent is not safe, and if dieting is necessary to your health, it is safer to go see a registered dietician that will put you on a diet that is safe and beneficial to your health.
When those 30 days are over, most people go back to eating like they did before the diet, since it does say "only 30 days" most of the time. The problem with this is that you will most likely gain all the weight back very quickly. The diet was a shock to your metabolism, and the restricting caused it to slow down to keep your body running correctly. When you go back to eating like you did before the diet, you're not restricting anymore. You're back to eating more calories, but your metabolism can't change as quick as your diet can. Since you'll have a slower metabolism, you won't be able to burn calories as quick, thus causing weight gain.
The safest way to "diet" is to not diet at all. As I stated before, if quick weight loss is important to your health, go see an RDN so you can find out what's safest for you. However, to keep your body healthy and to avoid weight gain, it is a better idea to make an entire lifestyle change. Start out small, try eating a handful more vegetable and fruits than you have. Start eating natural foods rather than more processed foods. This way, your body will be able to adjust accordingly.
Fad diets are not the best way to lose weight and keep your body healthy. In order to maintain your weight and keep your body running correctly, you must make a conscious effort to change your overall diet and lifestyle. Eat your veggies, and laugh at the headlines of those magazines. Dieting doesn't have to be quick or even seen as negative, dieting can be enjoyable. Dieting also doesn't have to be restricting, especially if you change your lifestyle. You'll learn to crave sweet fruits, rather than cakes and chips!
