Why you shouldn’t follow the crowd…

Have you ever heard something like “try this new diet and you’ll loose 20 pounds in two weeks!?” A lot of those are called fad diets. A fad diet is a diet that is popular for a time, without being a standard dietary recommendation, and often promising unreasonably fast weight loss.

Some reasons I found and agree with 100% include these two points…

PROMOTES WEIGHT GAIN

Fad diets actually promote long-term weight gain, not weight loss. Most fad diets require you to drastically cut your calories to promote rapid weight loss. And, while it may be encouraging to see the number on the scale drop, it won’t continue that pattern for long. This is one of my biggest reasons I encourage people to not go on fad diets. It is just not sustainable at all. I mean if you are just trying to get a quick fix, to be more slim for a season, then okay, just do your research. Know that you can’t keep that diet up, so once you stop you will gain it all back or more.

LIMITS NUTRIENT CONSUMPTION

Another reason I still wouldn’t recommend it is because it depletes your body from certain essential vitamins and minerals and food groups. For example the keto diet can defiantly help you lose weight. Although if you are on it for awhile it can cause low blood pressure, kidney stones, constipation, and an increased risk of heart disease.

Carbs are not the enemy. Carbs do not make you gain weight. Someone can literally loose weight eating McDonalds everyday. It would take longer, and I am not suggestion that at all. But they can, as long as they are burning more calories than taking in. To loose weight you just need to be in a caloric deficit.

Our bodies need a specific amount of both macro and micronutrients to thrive, and fad diets rarely take that into account. To maintain good health, your body needs adequate protein, carbohydrates, and fats, along with essential vitamins and minerals. Any diet that completely eliminates a macronutrient group or doesn’t allow for adequate micronutrient consumption is a disaster waiting to happen.

Overall if you are feeling great on these diets, than don’t let me discourage you. You know your body way more than me of course.

“Fad Diet” by davis.steve32 is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Works Cited:

Fad diets: Why you shouldn’t follow the crowd: Envision fitness blog. (n.d.). Retrieved April 21, 2021, from https://envisionfitnessmn.com/about/blog/entryid/52/fad-diets-why-you-shouldnt-follow-the-crowd