We’ve all heard of the Atkins diet, the blood type diet, the grapefruit diet, the beach diet… the list goes on. There are a few things that these diets have in common…
1. They are all diets i.e. you go on them for a certain amount of time but they are not sustainable.
You may lose a significant amount of weight on them, but more often than not, once you go off the diet and back to eating normally, the weight generally piles back on, your blood pressure will rise again as will your cholesterol and you will be back where you started.
2. All these diets expect you to remove certain food groups from your diet whether it be carbs, dairy, meat or something else. Eliminating foods from your eating plan often leads to a feeling of deprivation – whether you experience this on day one or months after you start, I promise, you will eventually hear that little voice in your head crying out “It’s not fair! I want some!”
From a nutritional perspective, our bodies needs carbs, protein, good fats, vitamins, minerals and fibre to keep our bodies ticking along and healthy. By removing a food group or two or even just specific foods, we are limiting the potential variety in our diets which may lead to limiting the range of nutrients and macronutrients we are consuming. This is generally not a major issue in the short term, however it can be very harmful over the long term.
3. All of these diets promise a quick solution.
Now this may sound a little crude, but it is only through a lifetime of habits that you have made yourself the person you are today – both inside and out! Getting into the shape and the level of fitness and health that you are currently at has taken years, if not decades. Thus you should expect that it will also take more than a few days or weeks to get fit and healthy.
Rather than deciding to go onto yet another diet, why not start making lifestyle changes? If you are looking for a long term solution to your health and fitness challenges, you need to take a long term approach. You can’t expect things to change if you don’t change anything.
That’s why at 12WBT we promote a lifestyle change. That is, it’s not a diet, it’s not a quick win exercise regime – rather it’s an introduction to nutrition, exercise and mindset – something that gives you the tools to take back control of not only your eating and exercise, but your confidence and self esteem.
At 12WBT we encourage our members to have a treat meal every week, so there is no missing out and our members don’t feel deprived. The recipes are budget and time friendly and really easy to make. If you are looking for a lifestyle change rather than just another diet, then check out 12wbt.com
