By - Meri Raffetto RD, LDN
Fad diets have been around for more than 50 years and no matter how many come
and go, we are always intrigued and excited by the next one feeling almost sure
this will be the one to work. And they do work...for a while and then we bounce
around like yo-yo’s going up and down in weight over the years.
Fad diets generally ask us to remove certain foods and often whole food
groups from our diet. This most often results in a decrease in calories and
ultimately weight loss. Although people lose weight on most fad diets, they tend
to be too restrictive to follow over a long period of time. They aren’t
realistic in the real world and once we go on that trip out of town or life gets
too busy we drop the fad diet and go right back to our old eating habits. Once
we go back to their old eating habits, we regain the weight and often gain even
more than where we started. This is followed by feelings of guilt, and shame
that we couldn’t stay on “the diet”, which can and does greatly affect peoples’
self-esteem and the way they view themselves and their relationship with
food.
The secret to lifelong weight loss is looking at the old eating habits. After
all, this is where we keep gaining weight in the first place! By making small,
practical changes in our old eating habits we can achieve weight loss and have
the knowledge and tools to keep that weight off for a lifetime. How can you be
on an effective weight loss program if they don’t tell you how you were gaining
weight in the first place? Everyone has different eating habits. Some people eat
foods that aren’t the right balance, some get caught into the high calorie land
of frequent restaurant eating, while others are emotional or stress eaters.
Learn about yourself and where your eating habits are out of balance. People
who have achieved long-term weight loss did just that along with making small
changes to their lifestyle. Don’t let another fad diet lure you in to the
constant yo-yo effect. Empower yourself with knowledge and make small changes
that will last a lifetime.
© Meri Raffetto, 2005
Meri Raffetto is a Registered Dietitian and a recognized professional in the
area of nutrition and wellness. She is the owner of Real Living Nutrition
Services providing interactive online weight management programs. Sign up for
her free monthly nutrition newsletter at http://www.reallivingnutrition.com.
Posted 5/7/06
