Argh, when I hear the word ‘diet’, it makes me cringe!
Everywhere I look, I see the word. I hear it on the radio, on TV, on the cover of magazines. Everywhere!!
Used in the right context of course and ‘diet’ can just mean what you eat as opposed to ‘going on a diet’. I can say to people “I have a healthy diet.” It doesn’t mean that I’m dieting. Do you see the difference?
What’s wrong with going on a diet then?
Well, if you’re on social media (Facebook, Twitter etc), people talk about the latest diet ALL THE TIME! Every minute of every day. And do you know what? The SAME PEOPLE are STILL talking about diets months later!
It’s no coincidence that people who try every diet in the book end up putting the weight back on (and MORE) in the long term when they return to some sort of normal eating. Their bodies just can’t take it. Constant starvation, diet pills, juicing, fasting, 5:2, raspberry ketones, cabbage soup, blah blah…
The thing is your body needs FOOD! And it needs good quality food. It needs vitamins and minerals. It needs carbohydrates. It needs protein. It needs fat – this is a crucial point – you NEED FAT IN YOUR BODY! However, not the awful saturated fats from takeaways or from burger places. Good fats like nuts, seeds, avocado, coconut oil, grass-fed butter, grass-fed beef, fish, egg yolks, good-quality dark chocolate. The list goes on.
All a diet will do is cut your calories to a minimum and your body will then go into protection mode. It holds onto your fat because it ‘thinks’ you are starving. It needs fat to insulate and protect, to carry fat-soluble vitamins around your body, to provide energy and more. If you cut your fat intake to a minimum, you will be depriving your body of these crucial functions.
Try cutting out carbs in your diet and you’re asking for trouble. Carbohydrates provide energy in the form of glucose and your brain needs glucose to function. Good-quality carbs will also sustain your blood sugar levels – go for quinoa, brown rice, fruit, vegetables, beans, buckwheat, rye and more.
So please, no more dieting. Concentrate on the above foods and introduce some exercise into your life and you WILL get long term results.
Here’s my 5-Week Meal Planner again in case you missed it: CLICK HERE