Where
Diets Go Wrong
When we discover that we are heavier than we want to be,
we have
a natural invlination to eat less food. We may skip lunch
or
eat only a tiny amount of our dinner in the hope that if we
eat
less our body will burn off some of its fat. But that is not
necessarily true. Eating less actually makes it more difficult
to lose weight.
Keep in mind that the human body took shape millions of years
ago, and at that time there were diets. The only low-calorie
event in people's lives was starvation. Those who could cope
with a temporary lack of food were the ones who survived.
Our
bodies, therefore, ahve developed this built-in mechanism
to
help us survive in the face of low food intake.
When researchers compare overweight and thin people, they
find
that they ear roughly the same number of calories. What makes
overweight people different is the amount of fat that they
eat.
Thin people tend to eat less fat and more complex carbohydrates.
Losing weight is not something one can do overnight. A
carefully planned weight loss program requires common sense
and
certain guidelines. Unfortunately, there's a lot of
misinformantion floating around and lots of desperate people
are
easily duped and ripped off.
Every day one can open a magazine or newspaper and see
advertisements touting some new product, pill or patch that
will
take excess weight off quickly. Everyone seems to be looking
for
that "magic" weight loss pill. Millions of Americans
are trying
to lose weight, spending billions of dollars every year on
diet
programs and products. Often they do lose some weight. But,
if
you check with the same people five years later, you will
find
that nearly all have regained whatever weight they lost.
A survey was done recently to try and determine if any commercial
diet program could prove long-term success. Not a single program
could do so. So rampant has the so-called diet industry become
with new products and false claims that the FDA has now stepped
in and started clamping down.
Being seriously overweight and particularly obesity can develop
into a number of diseases and serious health problems, and
it is
now a known fact that when caloric intake is excessive, some
of
the excess frequently is saturated fat.
The myth is that people get heavy by eating too many calories.
Calories are a consideration it's true, but overall they are
not
the cause of obesity in America today. Americans actually
take
in fewer calories each day than they did at the beginning
of the
century. If calories alone were the reason we become overweight,
we should all be thin. But we are not. Collectively, we are
heavier than ever. Partly, it is because we are more sedentary
now. But equally, as important is the fact that the fat content
of the American diet has changed dramatically.
People who diet without exercising often get fatter with
time.
Although your weight may initially drop while dieting, such
weight
loss consists mostly of water and muscle. When the weight
returns,
it comes back as fat. To avoid getting fatter over time, increase
your metabolism by exercising regularly.
Select an exercise routine that you are comfortable with
and
remember that walking is one of the best and easiest exercises
for
strengthening your bones, controlling your weight and toning
your
muscles.
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