Fad Diets

[Old Deaf Roadie]

I will preface this by stating that I am neither a dietician or coach and if you found a diet that works for you, congrats and stick with what you are doing. And, maybe my rant has more to do with marketing departments than any other thing.

It is diet season for those who like to be disappointed with not living up to their New Years resolution to lose meaningful weight, so the ads are all over the place. I had this whole screed I planned to write, complete with real life examples and a heavy dose of sarcasm, but scaled it back because…well, just because. You’re welcome!

But, in my simple way of thinking, why buy into a fad when the success to your diet doesn’t depend in the slightest on falling for slick marketing and scripted testimonials? Why buy that miracle pill or have that lap band installed if you have no real plan to keep that weight off? That success lies in your kitchen, what you do while wearing sneakers, and your own willpower related to how badly you want to shed pounds and keep them off. Nobody has lost weight by drinking some overpriced miracle formula and sitting in front of the TV for 14 hours a day watching diet pill commercials. For what my in-laws have spent on fad/miracle diets with no success, they could have bought me Joe Bonamasa’s guitar and amp collection. Maybe Steve Stills collection, as well.

What brought this all to mind is that while watching the morning news before heading out the door, a diet commercial comes on and in small letters across the bottom reads “Best results if combined with proper diet & exercise”. Isn’t diet & exercise simply what has been told to us forever when it comes to weight loss or am I wrongly viewing all this through jaded glasses?

 

[lammie200]

Don't know how much of a fad it is but I suggest eliminating sugar and its various forms. Your flab and teeth may thank you.

 

[bgmacaw]

 

[BigDaddyLH]

There's taking it off and there's keeping it off. The real challenge is the second one.

 

[Timbresmith1]

I will preface this by stating that I am neither a dietician or coach and if you found a diet that works for you, congrats and stick with what you are doing. And, maybe my rant has more to do with marketing departments than any other thing.

It is diet season for those who like to be disappointed with not living up to their New Years resolution to lose meaningful weight, so the ads are all over the place. I had this whole screed I planned to write, complete with real life examples and a heavy dose of sarcasm, but scaled it back because…well, just because. You’re welcome!

But, in my simple way of thinking, why buy into a fad when the success to your diet doesn’t depend in the slightest on falling for slick marketing and scripted testimonials? Why buy that miracle pill or have that lap band installed if you have no real plan to keep that weight off? That success lies in your kitchen, what you do while wearing sneakers, and your own willpower related to how badly you want to shed pounds and keep them off. Nobody has lost weight by drinking some overpriced miracle formula and sitting in front of the TV for 14 hours a day watching diet pill commercials. For what my in-laws have spent on fad/miracle diets with no success, they could have bought me Joe Bonamasa’s guitar and amp collection. Maybe Steve Stills collection, as well.

What brought this all to mind is that while watching the morning news before heading out the door, a diet commercial comes on and in small letters across the bottom reads “Best results if combined with proper diet & exercise”. Isn’t diet & exercise simply what has been told to us forever when it comes to weight loss or am I wrongly viewing all this through jaded glasses?

Eliminating hfcs and avoiding snacking on empty carbs can go a long way.

 

[Old Deaf Roadie]

Don't know how much of a fad it is but I suggest eliminating sugar and its various forms. Your flab and teeth may thank you.

A good example of the diet part of "diet & exercise"

 

[Old Deaf Roadie]

Eliminating hfcs and avoiding snacking on empty carbs can go a long way.

Another example of positive eating habits.

 

[swervinbob]

There's taking it off and there's keeping it off. The real challenge is the second one.

That's where the term "lifestyle change" comes in

 

[archetype]

Lots, LOTS of used bookstores will not buy used diet books. They're mostly the 'diet of the moment' that's become a pop culture fad and fades away in months as the publishers move on to the next 'diet of the moment' and capture the public's attention with marketing. Look at the castoffs in the book section in any thrift store. I'd be fine without ever seeing another copy of South Beach Diet.

The public still wants to find an effortless miracle that will deliver good health. It's hard for publishers to sell a small, thin book that explains small portions, not eating valuless garbage, and exercising.

 

[unixfish]

Diets don't work.
Changing your eating habits does.

Many people will tell you "eat less, exercise more". That is way oversimplified, and does not account for a ton of variables. That will work for some people - maybe most? - but not all. This is analogous to saying "we can achieve world peace by just getting along better". Oversimplified.

@Old Deaf Roadie does have a point about fad diets. Many are just "Lose the weight!" without addressing how it go there in the first place, and what the triggers are that will cause one to fail.

 

[BigDaddyLH]

That's where the term "lifestyle change" comes in

Another plus to working from home, thanks to a corporate change thanks to something we can't talk about, is that my work hours are more flexible. I found it hard to exercise at the end of the day, but now I block off time midday.

 

[imwjl]

There's taking it off and there's keeping it off. The real challenge is the second one.

Not falling any fads has really helped me with the latter. A very serious health matter kicked it off but 2007 - 2023 now of diverse, low fat, low alcohol diet has not just helped weight, but eliminated the need for statins.

When I had the very serious problems it was accompanied by regular extensive bloodwork and checkups. I could see what regular modest exercise and the diet did.

My best tip is approach it like learning an instrument or language. It takes some time. Modest amounts made it achievable.

My getting passionate about the topic is because I was not thin or athletic as it might seem or a natural. I was the chubby teased kid growing up. Knowing how it helped me, I've been volunteering to help kids like me and adults with issues do the sports that helped me. In it all I've seen it also help people deal with other problems.

We can all do some non-fad dieting and activity that's fun and hopefully help others because it can product so much happiness. It's especially important to help kids at it.

 

[uriah1]

Some lady we know swears by her paleo diet

 

[swervinbob]

Another plus to working from home, thanks to a corporate change thanks to something we can't talk about, is that my work hours are more flexible. I found it hard to exercise at the end of the day, but now I block off time midday.

I'm working from home also. My eating habits are much better.

 

[swervinbob]

Some lady we know swears by her paleo diet

I do great doing keto. My numbers when I get bloodwork done are usually better.

 

[BigDaddyLH]

Some lady we know swears by her paleo diet

My wife sees a number of people who lose weight on keto. They all seem to gain it back. (Yes, I am sure there are exceptions, out there)

 

[11 Gauge]

I've been told that the reason that no diet works long-term to keep weight off is because this is a neurological issue - your brain basically works nonstop to keep you at a given metabolic set point. So calorie restriction for an indefinite period would be necessary, which makes any amount of finite willpower typically a futile task.

It's my understanding that you really need something to intercede to disrupt things for long enough to change the metabolic set point. I don't think calorie restriction on its own is really capable of doing that.

 

[mycroftxxx]

My wife sees a number of people who lose weight on keto. They all seem to gain it back. (Yes, I am sure there are exceptions, out there)

When I stick to it, I lose weight and can maintain a healthy weight, and my blood numbers (lipids, glucose, A1C) look great and I feel good. The last six months, there have been substantial upheavals in my life (which are slowly resolving for the better, not looking for sympathy) and…I fell off the keto wagon, and gained about 25 lbs, which I’m in the process of losing again.

Keto absolutely works for me, but it’ll not the easiest eating plan to stick to; it works best when you plan it out thoroughly, make most of your meals from scratch, etc. If you’re not in a “place” where you can do that, it’s hard.

But at bare minimum, I agree with other posters - cut sugar and other simple carbs out of your eating! That gets you at least halfway to a much healthier existence.

 

[mycroftxxx]

It's my understanding that you really need something to intercede to disrupt things for long enough to change the metabolic set point. I don't think calorie restriction on its own is really capable of doing that.

This gets into the “good calories, bad calories” aka “a calorie is NOT just a calorie” debate, which to me seems silly - there are all kinds of basic, totally non-controversial biochemical reasons why, say, 200 calories of table sugar is metabolized and affects the body much differently than, say, 200 calories of steamed broccoli. The effects on blood insulin levels is dramatically different between the two, and blood insulin levels drive all kinds of specific metabolic pathways - this is all non-controversial biochemistry, understood since the 1940s if not earlier. Also relevant is the Minnesota starvation experiment, run on conscientious objectors during WW2; they did across-the-board calorie restriction and the results were interesting, to say the least. There’s a good book on the history of voluntary and involuntary calorie restriction, Hunger: An Unnatural History, by Sharman Apt Russell, really interesting and well-written.

TL;DR - restricting calories without changing the source of those calories is not a pathway to successful, long-term weight loss.

 

[Tarkus60]

Just eliminate sugar and bad carbs so easy. Eat your veggies and meat...all good!