If you've ever flipped through the
channels late at night, you've undoubtedly seen infomercial after
infomercial for the latest cookie diet, weight loss drink, ab reducer or
even chin exerciser. These ads make compelling cases, often through
believable testimonials and authoritative-sounding research. What the
diet industry doesn't want you to know is that you have a better chance
of losing weight by eating your own money than by wasting it on their
products.Diet Pills Aren't Safe
Diet
pills and supplements are both costly and potentially dangerous.
They're not regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, so you
can't be sure they're safe or effective. Natural products don't increase
your safety odds, either. Nature makes plenty of natural and deadly
poisons. Keep in mind that "expert studies" and testimonials are easily
bought and sold by diet pill manufacturers to make their products seem
trustworthy. Skip any kind of weight loss aid that you haven't
thoroughly discussed with your doctor.
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Appetite
suppressants imply that you could lose the weight if you would just
stop eating. This notion doesn't take into account that you must eat in
order to lose weight. If you don't eat enough, your body grinds to a
halt and makes weight loss even more difficult. What's worse,
restrictive diets and food policing set up a psychological trap that
makes you continually crave what you can't have, according to "Intuitive
Eating" authors Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch. If you do need a little
bit of help adjusting to calorie control, exercise suppresses your
appetite naturally. Meals and snacks that contain fiber, protein and
healthy fats take longer to digest and help you stay full longer.
You Can't Spot Reduce
Those
famous ads that show a flabby belly instantly transformed into a
rock-hard six-pack with the newest crunch machine aren't based in
reality. It's not possible to lose weight in just one area of your body,
according to the American Council on Exercise. Products that target one
muscle group do just that -- they strengthen one muscle group. They
don't address the layer of fat on top of those muscles. You must lose
that fat through aerobic exercise and calorie control before you can see
the muscle underneath.
Fad Diets Don't Work
The
American Heart Association has been trying to spread the message for
years that fad diets don't work. If a diet asks you to give up any one
kind of food, such as anything white, or asks you to subsist on just a
few types of food, not only do you risk not getting the nutrients your
body needs, but you risk slowing down your metabolism. When that
happens, you gain all your weight back, and sometimes more, once you
inevitably stop eating such a difficult-to-stick-with diet.
You May Not Need to Lose Weight
The
diet industry thrives on unrealistic images of beauty for both men and
women. Models and actors often fall below their healthy weights. If
you're underweight, you face health problems, such an infertility,
muscle loss and decreased ability to fight infection. If you're at a
healthy weight, and you have a healthy body, there's no medically
necessary need to lose weight. Learn to love and accept your body and
take good care of it with healthy foods and regular physical activity.