Should You Diet Or Not?

So you've decided to lose a few pounds. Time to decide which diet you will try.

Well, let's see, there's a grapefruit diet, a zone diet, a high protein diet, a low carbohydrate diet (probably the same as a high protein diet), a liquid diet, Mayo Clinic diet, fruit diet, cleansing diet, nutrition diet cabbage, spinning diet, rice diet, 1200 calorie diet, 1500 calorie diet, 3 day diet, 4 day diet, South Beach diet, Adkins diet, Mediterranean diet and just to name a few. Then you have a long list of diet pills and patches that I wouldn't bother to list. Oh, in case you haven't heard, Alli has just been withdrawn. It looks like it causes liver damage. Thanks again FDA.

I only have one question for you. HAVE YOU DONE? OK, I have two questions. Do you have any idea WHY there are so many "diets" out there? Well, you might say "one diet may not work for everyone". There may be some truth to that theory, but let me tell you a quick story.

A friend of mine got engaged. It was a happy day for the lucky couple and all their friends. They are perfect for each other. She decides she needs to lose 15 pounds before the big day. The wedding was set for 8 months since then, so she has plenty of time.

To make a long story short, he went on a diet. Lose 4 pounds and never lose it again. He's on a different diet. Lose 2 pounds and never lose again. He repeated this process through 6 different diets. Now, all of that combined with doing aerobics EVERY day. He ended up losing 9 pounds. The wedding is now 2 months away, so she took liposuction to lose the last 6 pounds.

Can anyone guess why he couldn't lose the last 6 pounds? He messed up his metabolism so bad that he couldn't eat anything and only drank water for a week and he still wouldn't lose any weight.

I think that's why there are so many diets on the market so people who sell diets can make a lot of money. Yes, you may lose a few pounds following the diet for a few weeks, but can you keep it? Do you expect to continue your eating habits and maintain your weight?

Let me outline a simple weight loss concept. Eliminate preservatives from your diet. Think about it. What kind of foods do preservatives contain? The food is in a box or curly plastic bag. Packing with labels on them. Ever seen a list of ingredients on apples? What about celery stalks?

Now, I realize that dry goods like oatmeal and baking products come in packages, but you can read labels and choose items that don't have preservatives in them. If you can eliminate one thing from your diet, you could lose 5 pounds a month.

Eat fresh fruits and vegetables. Try to buy organic whenever possible. Cook your own meat. Don't buy anything frozen. Try to reduce fat. Use olive oil to cook and make your own mayonnaise. Learn to read your labels. If you can't mention it, don't eat it. Just my opinion.

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