In this generation, people are generally impatient and expect instant gratification. This is even true when they decide to lose weight, a decision more and more people make each day. Most people want to see results within 24 hours of starting a diet or exercise plan. The problem is that quick diets are often fad diets or starvation type diets. This is why quick diets seldom work.
Having said that, quick diets do actually do work over the short term and can be useful if one wishes to lose a limited number of pounds quickly for a special event or function.
Often people want to lose a quick 5 to 10 pounds in preparation for a class reunion or similar function so they will not appear fat to their peers. The problem is that once the person goes off the diet, the pounds come back rather quickly.
Most people are looking for long term, permanent weight loss as part of a decision to live a healthier lifestyle. For these people, quick diets are not the right answer. These people need to take a balanced approach to changing their eating habits for the better on a permanent basis. In order to do this, starving one’s self is not the right answer.
Instead, it is important to change what one eats and manage portion sizes differently than in the past. Instead of depriving one’s self, it is better to substitute foods that are naturally lower in calories and higher in nutrients for some of the convenience foods we tend to overindulge in. For instance, instead of ordering a burger and fries for lunch, one should have a salad and a baked potato. Done properly, this type of diet plan will never leave one feeling hungry, but will reduce the number of calories consumed by a significant amount.
Another reason quick diets seldom work is that most involve eliminating one single food group from the diet to the fullest extent possible. A classic example of this would be the Atkins and South Beach diets. Both of these are called “low carb” diets with the goal of reducing or eliminating carbohydrates from the diet. What such diets fail to take into account is the fact that carbohydrates are a necessary source of energy for the body that work to keep the cells working at their fullest potential. While reducing carbs may be ok for a short time, it is not a valid lifestyle choice and will have health repercussions down the road.
