FADDIETS
Is it all too good to be true?
Whatdoesitallmean? Celebrityandpopularfaddietsthatpromisefastanddrasticweightloss
resultsthroughliquidmeals,detoxoreliminatingwholefoodgroupsshouldbeavoided.Somefaddietseven
recommendnoexercisewhichdemonstratesthelackoffuelthesedietsprovideforeverydayactivityletalone
athightrainingload.
Faddietscanseemappealingbecausetheypromisefastresultsthroughaquickfixforsomethingthatmay
ordinarilyrequirealotoftimeandeffort.Oftenthenatureoffaddietsdoesnotpromoteaneatingpattern
whichissustainableinthelongterm.Initialweightlossmayhappenintheshortterm,largelyfrommuscle
andfluidwhichwillslowdownmetabolism.Withoutmodifyinglifestyleandpasteatingbehavioursaddtothis
aslowermetabolismandweightcancreepbackon.
Isitsustainable?Withanyneweatinghabitsyouwanttofindahappymediumbetweentargetinga
fewkeyareastomodifyandmanaginglife.Adietshouldn’tcontrolyouoryouractionssoifyouareeating
inawayyoufindisunnaturalordoesn’tmatchyoursocialsurroundsandyouarechangingyourbehavioror
circumstancestosuityourdietitmaynotbethebestdietplantosuityourneeds.Foodhabitsshould
supportyourtraining,makeyoufeelhealthy,energeticandbeeasytomanagebecauseyouenjoyitandcan
seethebenefitsfromdoingit,notbecauseyoufeelit’swhatyoushoulddo.
MixedmessagesandnegativemessagesAlotofdietscontradicteachotherinwhatyou
shouldbedoing.Tryingtocombineallthedietmessagescanhaveyougoingaroundincirclesandstrugglingto
seeanyresults.Justbecauseawayofeatingsuitedoneperson,itdoesn’tmeanit’srightforeveryone!Ifyou
areeatingsomethingthatyouaresupposedto‘ban’‘cutout’or‘eliminate’itdoesn’tmeanyouhaveabad
dietoryouareunhealthy.Theirsuccesscancomefromthefactthereisjustlessfoodtochoosefrom.There
areanumberofreasonsdifferentdietsmightseemtoworkoverothersbutultimatelytheycomedownto
eatinglessandmovingmoreandconsiderthebasicstohaveahealthy,balanceddiet.
Lowcarbdiets AtkinsandtheZonedietwerethepioneersinlowcarb/highproteindiets.Nowits
beingrevisitedthroughthehighfatlowcarbdietforweightloss.Turningthecommonconceptsofdieting
onitshead,thepopularityofthesedietsislargelyduetothepotentialrapidweightlossseeninthefirstfew
weeks.Impressiveshorttermresultsonthescalesarepredominatelyfromareductioninfluidaseachgram
ofcarbohydratestoresretains3to4gramsoffluid.Thisrateofweightlossisnotmaintainedandstudies
haveshownthatafter12monthstheweightlossresultsfromlowcarbdietsarenodifferentthanthose
achievedonasensiblereducedkilojouleeatingplan.
Lowcarbdietsrestrictimportanthighnutrientfoodincludingwholegrains,fibre,fruitandstarchy
vegetables.Italsorestrictsthepreferredfuelsourceforthebodyandbrain,andforpushingyourselfin
training.Verylowcarbdietscanhavesideeffectssuchasheadache,fatigue,moodswings,poor
concentrationandfocus,badbreath,dehydration,verylowenergylevelsand constipation,allofwhichwill
FADDIETS
haveanimpactonperformance.Insteadofcuttingcarbsoutcompletelyconsidermodifyingintaketosuit
trainingtimesandifneedbereducewhenactivityisn’tashigh.
ConsiderthisfirstWithanysortofchange,youhavetowanttochangeandhavegoodreasonto.If
that’snottherenodietorbehaviormodificationwillbesuccessful,ifdietsaren’tworkingperhapsrevisit
whyyoureallywantedtogoonthedietinthefirstplacetoseeifthat’smatchingupwithwhatyouare
doing.
Don’tforgetthebasics,dothemwellandconsistentlyandtherewillbeagreaterchanceoflongterm
modificationsandsuccess.Insteadofcuttingoutcertaintypesoffood,controlportionsizesandhave
mealswithbalancedratiosofbothhighfibrecarbohydrateandleanproteinwithsomegoodfatsandan
increaseinnonstarchyvegetables.Thatwayyoucoverallthemajornutrientsthebodyneedstobe
healthyandsatisfied.
Readthefineprint,therereallyisnomagicpill.Mostweightlossproductstillpromote–“inconjunction
withabalanceddiet,limitedtake-awaysandalcoholandexerciseregularly.”