1. Diets that promise drastic, quick weight loss.
We all know by now that you can only lose 1-2 lbs. per week if it is FAT loss. That's because there are 3500 calories per pound of fat. Between diet and exercise, the most FAT you can lose in one week is 1-2 lbs. So why do we want to lose more than this, faster than this? The only way it can be done is to lose water (which has no calories) or muscle (which has about 600 calories per lb.). Water just comes back later, and muscle lost just lowers your calorie-burning engine and metabolism--which is self-defeating.
2. Diets that claim no exercise is required.
Claims are made that a certain pill, cream, potion, or food combination will increase your metabolic rate so you don't need to exercise. While it may be true that a tiny metabolic rate increase is possible with some of these methods, there are usually negative side effects to using them. But the big downside is that when you compare these methods to the actual increases in metabolism that exercise provides--their effectiveness pales in comparison. And exercise has dozens of positive effects on health and function of the body as well.
3. Diets that are less than 1000 calories per day.
It's difficult to get all your nutrients on less than 1000 calories per day. And we all have heard by now that when you do this, your body goes into "survival" mode and lowers your metabolic calorie-burn rate. So it is self-defeating in many ways. You may have a moderate initial weight loss, but the rate will slow as your body adjusts.
4. Diets that differ drastically from the way you are eating now.
It's true that if your diet needs improving, you need to make some changes. But if it is too drastic a change, or a way of eating that most people cannot possibly continue long-term, then it will most likely be abandoned after the weight is lost. That's one more "yo" to the "yo-yo".
5. Diets that claim to be effortless.
OK, on this one we need to really kick ourselves for believing. "It was as easy as falling off a log!" Oh, really? Obviously, true weight and fat loss that can be maintained and is healthy cannot be achieved any other way than by good old "lifestyle change". Anything easier is either not truly effective, or has negative side effects from using long-term, and possibly even in the short-term.
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