There has been a recent surge in the experts weighing in (pun intended) on popular and celebrity diets to rate them in terms of effectiveness, nutritional adequacy, and balance. Look at the latest crop of magazines, Internet news reports, and television specials.
What is a semi-motivated would-be dieter to do?
Every diet listed seems to give rise to a chorus of criticism. Either it contains too few fruits and vegetables, not enough fiber, not enough fat, or too few calories. The glycemic index is too high or too low, the nutritional content of its staples are not good enough, there is too much or too little of something.
Who rates what we are eating now? We simply pig out on everything from pizza, to fast food, to snacks (did you know that potato chips are the most popular snack food in America - accompanying 32% of our lunches?), desserts, ice cream and beer.
While it would be nice, I suppose, to have a population who ate only healthy foods, in moderation, exercised daily, and took care to ingest at least the minimum requirement of vitamins and minerals, that is not reality, my friend. We overeat on all the wrong foods, we avoid regular exercise like the plague, and huff and puff our way into enlarged bodies that are twenty to fifty pounds heavier than our frames deserve.
Any way that we can take off some or all of that weight is worthwhile. No one is going to stay on any of the popular diets for a lifetime, let's face it. We look at them as temporary (which is part of the problem, but I digress) fixes. The last thing we need are experts who make us afraid to start because we might not be obtaining the right nutrition. Or do we take a certain degree of self-satisfaction in telling ourselves that we can't start until the "perfect diet" is identified?
Are we eating the right way without a diet? No, our nutrition is still deplorable, it's just that we are eating a lot of everything. Let's have at least one expert come out and truthfully report that no matter the deficiencies of any specific diet - going on it is absolutely better than eating the way we are now!
Let's get our collective weight down, and then start worrying about nutrition and health. Diabetes, heart attacks, and gall bladders care a lot less about what we eat than how much.
Start a diet, ANY diet, and follow through for a few weeks and I guarantee you'll be in a much better place, physically and mentally, to start looking after your health and long term fitness than when hemmed in by too much blubber, reading scare stories from the media about how your intended diet is somehow unbalanced.
Virginia Bola is a licensed psychologist and an admitted diet fanatic. She specializes in therapeutic reframing and the effects of attitudes and motivation on individual goals. The author of The Wolf at the Door: An Unemployment Survival Manual, and a free ezine, The Worker's Edge, she recently completed a psychologically-based weight control book: Diet with an Attitude: A Weight Loss Workbook. She can be reached at http://www.dietwithanattitude.com
shuttle from O'Hare Orland Park .. Lockport Chicago limo O’HareIn 1994, I had a RNY surgery. At 350 lbs... Read More
There's recently been a LOT in the weight loss news... Read More
This is a perfect example of how on-line weight loss... Read More
When it all comes down to losing or gaining weight,... Read More
Like millions of men and women, I started resolving to... Read More
I've worked with hundreds of people who were interested in... Read More
Research from Harvard, recently published in the highly respected peer-reviewed... Read More
You may be considering weight loss surgery if you are... Read More
That's a pretty "in your face" statement, but really it's... Read More
IntroductionObesity is the most common health problem facing children today.... Read More
Everybody you know is on the latest weight loss bandwagon:... Read More
Success stories on the gastric bypass are everywhere, but how... Read More
Dieting will continue to fail most dieters, unless personalized weight... Read More
Dieting Dilemma No 1: When Life Gets in the WayThat... Read More
The overweight and obesity epidemic is a worldwide problem. There... Read More
More than any other time in history, people are all... Read More
For about 50 years now, Americans have been eating low... Read More
For those of you who aren't familiar with ephedra let... Read More
The Review Diaries She Unlimited MagazineThere are masses of carbohydrate... Read More
Individuals who are interested in bariatric surgery need to be... Read More
Yes, there is more to the Mediterranean than sun, beach... Read More
RISING POPULARITYGastric bypass surgery has become a popular surgical procedure... Read More
Are you overweight?Most people are afraid to admit they are.It... Read More
This is a very important topic that needs to be... Read More
Ever thought of, known someone, or gone on a diet?... Read More
Lincoln Town Car rentals Addison ..Natural Weight Loss Is PermanentOnly natural weight loss can be... Read More
The problem isn't that you don't have enough will power... Read More
Just about every one of us struggles with our weight... Read More
We all eat. But how mindful are we of every... Read More
Yes, you must be aware of the following 7 points... Read More
If you know someone that has been trying to lose... Read More
Include in your diet things that contain more water like... Read More
Magnetic weight loss is the newest fad diet supplement to... Read More
The debate about whether supplements for weight loss are healthy... Read More
You may have read the old stories about how much... Read More
I have been seriously working on losing weight for about... Read More
Diners have become more health-conscious the last few years, and... Read More
WHAT DOES BEING FIT REALLY MEAN?The "INSIDE-OUT" approach to fitness... Read More
Today obesity, diabetes, and heart disease run through us at... Read More
It's really difficult for a person to socialise if he... Read More
There are a few different ways to determine if you... Read More
--ONE--Learn how to reduce the fat, sugar and salt content... Read More
It's now official. The simple act of fidgeting can mean... Read More
The weight loss protein debate centers around the effectiveness of... Read More
Some of you will not like what I have to... Read More
Are you working hard in the gym 3 times a... Read More
Weight Loss tipsAll throughout my childhood and teenage years I... Read More
Just like any other diet, the Atkins diet can become... Read More
Recently, I read an article from Japanese magazine that by... Read More
Are you tired of getting the same old advice when... Read More
Weight Loss |