Starting a diet to lose weight is a worthy goal but embarking on the journey of shedding those extra kilos can be a bit overwhelming. An attempt at anything new has its own challenges especially when it involves Food – (one of the sensory pleasures for humans.) New Age is filled with all kinds of crazy diet plans and there is a new one propagated every few months with a promise bigger than its predecessor. In this age its important to understand:
What is a diet?
All Diets are essentially based on cutting down calories or eliminating a particular food group or eating a particular food for a time period, hence the propagation of the way of eating compromising on Nutrition.Let’s dive right into the Cons of Diet!
Con 1: Short Term Solution
What do the latest Fad diets promise? Unrealistic results in a short time!
Losing approximately 4-5 kgs in a week by following a fad diet may seem very tempting, but in the real life, this type of weight loss is mostly unhealthy and unsustainable. That’s precisely why these alleged magic formulas prove ineffective.
Con 2: Health issues and Nutrient deficiency
According to the National Eating Disorders Association the risks of losing weight rapidly include higher chances of developing heart disease, osteoporosis, high blood pressure, diabetes, cancer and reduced metabolism. That’s way too much risk at stake!
Con 3: Metabolism screw-up
Everyone is different in terms of physical composition and metabolism. Metabolic rates dip in vigorous dieting, a red flag indicating you have lost weight rather than calories cut.
To add fuel to the fire, your brain shoots signals to your body to increase hunger and reduce the number of calories you burn. This is a protective mechanism to keep you from starving.
Today, sluggish metabolism is a major cause of weight regain.
Con 4: May leave you irritable, grumpy, moody or cranky
The side effects to a calorie-deficient diet include moodiness or feeling emotional.
Turns out, the root cause of moodiness for disgruntled dieters is usually low blood sugar. Limiting calories excessively or having long gaps between meals results in blood glucose plummeting.
When blood sugar dips too low, your body is literally forced to increase its production of cortisol to maintain minimum glucose to the brain, which can cause massive mood swings.
Con 5: Nothing to take care of your of cravings
Chocolate! Salt! Sugar! When you are trying your best to lose weight, these cravings give a shout out to you.
Cravings are one of the biggest reasons why people face problems in losing weight.
Studies have shown that overly restrictive methods of eating trigger episodes of binge eating. And so, the entire purpose of dieting goes kaput.
Con 6: You may have to eat foods which you dislike
For most people the word “diet” brings a foray of feelings of misery and stress. Very often, even though you know a food is good for health and weight loss, you just can’t stomach it. For dieters, subsisting on vegetables - it’s a nightmare!
The process of elimination of your favorite dishes and adapting to health foods can be quite daunting.
Some diets are so difficult to adhere to, that the motivation of sticking to it vanishes into thin air.
Con 7: You may lose muscle weight or have unhealthy skin and hair
Don’t you want to lose weight, build muscle and feel fit? We all do! But by losing weight instantly you may invite protein, vitamin and mineral deficiencies knowingly or unknowingly.
Skinny does not necessarily equate to strong or healthy. Losing a great deal of weight in a short period may also mean loss of lean muscle tissue.
Your tissues need vitamins and proteins to stay healthy, strong and lustrous. In case you are suffering from increased hair loss or changes in the thickness or texture of your hair, rapid weight loss may be the culprit. It may even cause skin and nail maladies.
Looking at these Cons you must be wondering what one should do to shed those extra kilos
Simple!! Get on to a Good Nutrition plan rather than a Diet plan and your body will respond in a good way too. When you follow Good Nutrition your body works at its optimal capacity and that does the required magic to lose fat which it feels is extra.You may not see drastic results but what you see instantly is a good feel and enhanced energy levels and in the long run, fat loss is bound to happen which is sustainable fat loss minus the unhealthy muscle loss and fatigue.
What is a Good Nutrition Plan?
A healthy eating plan that includes good food which is nutrient dense and personalized to your lifestyle needs.
Healthy choices which include foods that contain:
- Calcium and Magnesium for bone health
- Optimum protein for muscle repair
- Fiber and nutrient rich grains for sustainable energy and digestive health
- Fruits and vegetables loaded with antioxidants to decelerate aging
- Healthy fats to preserve cellular and cardiovascular health
- Calorie intake which is suitable to the body's requirement
- Portion sizes which are sufficient for body's need.(Here you will have to listen to your mind)
But, try not to change everything all at once, take baby steps and you will surely move towards your weight loss goals with every step that you take. Training yourself to respect and savor healthy foods more than junk food would be the best way forward into the transition.
Let’s Sum up
Don’t just diet- choose right- eat right!
Shun the idea of magic diet plan in the hope of magical results and opt for Good Nutrition plan which leaves you lean, healthy and complete and carves your best version.
Also, lowering the threshold of satiety of your taste buds would help in adapting to lower portion size.
Begin by practicing mindful eating instead of mindless eating and you’ve won half the battle already!
