Have you ever seen someone go on a crash diet and lose a lot of weight, only to appear smaller, but the same shape? Then a month or two later when you see them again, they’ve gained all the weight back and then some? We call that yo–yo dieting, and it affects everyone, including the rich and famous.
So how do we stop this vicious cycle and lose weight in a healthy manner once and for all? First, let me explain what happens when you try to lose too much weight too quickly.
Usually these quick weight loss plans involve not eating enough calories. The result - you’ll see huge drops in your scale weight, but don’t be so quick to jump for joy. Most of this loss will be mostly water within the first week, and then your body will start burning and stripping muscle tissue down for fuel in place of sufficient calories (energy). The combination of taking in too little food coupled with losing muscle mass equals a recipe for future disaster.
This combination will ultimately lower your body’s daily metabolic rate. Then when you resume eating normally, you’ll gain weight because now you’ll be taking in more than your body needs. After all, you can’t diet forever.
Unfortunately, now you’ve essentially slowed the metabolic machinery, which places you in an awkward predicament. Now you’ll be more overweight and less muscled than prior to your diet, so you’ll once again try another quick fix. And so the cycle continues with each successive bout being more devastating than the first. Nasty stuff, I tell you.
Now I’ll tell you how to not let this happen to you - PATIENCE! We are a nation obsessed with overnight, get skinny quick schemes, and I’m telling you they won’t work long term. I always say,“You didn’t get out of shape overnight; what makes you think you can get in shape that quick?” I mean seriously, if you’ve been sedentary with poor eating habits for years, does it really sound logical to you that in 10 or 12 weeks you’ll be fit, lean and toned? Come on, of course not. But, you CAN be better in that time.
The key to diet success is to approach your daily eating habits as a lifestyle, rather than a tool to lose weight. Your primary goal should be to eat your way to a healthier body and life, in which case weight loss becomes an added secondary benefit. But many times people start new plans focused on weight loss instead, which can lead to making choices that aren’t necessarily beneficial to your health.
You must be realistic about your expected weight loss goals. Sure, TV shows and diet books glorify losing 10 or 20 pounds a week, but that’s unrealistic, and the means used to attain those results are unsustainable. Our nations “want it now” mentality fuels these insane plans, but with 2/3 of Americans overweight or obese, clearly there’s a problem.
I usually recommend a one to two pound per week weight loss for those looking to lower their body-fat. Small dietary changes and gradual increases in activity are all you need to stimulate your body to shed unwanted pounds. Instead of adopting an entirely new eating plan, aim to change the ways in which you eat over a two month period. Start by becoming more conscious of what and how much you eat. Then begin making better choices; perhaps focus on breakfast for one week, lunch the next, dinner the following and then begin to plan for some healthy snacks. Before you know it, your entire eating lifestyle will have changed for the better without the shock of trying to change everything overnight. Doesn’t that make sense?
Above all, you must realize that even if it took you months (or years) to reach your weight loss goals, in the timeline of your life, it would be just a blip on the screen. It’s always better to do things the right way then to take shortcuts – they’ll almost always lead you back to the start.