Females- Do you do this?

skywa

Woman, especially young woman tend to get impatient with weight loss. They wan't to lose 2-3 lbs a week or they lose there confidence. And that's what fad diets offer. Only problem is they only last about a week.
For example: Apple diet, cabbage soup diet, cottage cheese diet, ect ect. It works until your body realizes your starving it of all nutrients.

I personally am taking my time and trying to get to a HEALTHY weight because i don't want to relapse and develop an eating disorder again. I have a life i need to live and focus on. And absurd diets can't be a part of that.

CoryIda

I don't do this and am extremely vocal about my opposition of fad diets, but it is an unfortunate fact that a LOT of women do this.

skywa

I think there are many - NOT ALL, NOT MOST - people - NOT JUST WOMEN- who are desperate for health and weight loss, but are not willing to put in the time & effort that we all know is required. The bigger issue that they were discussing is not simply the dieting, but putting the families first and caring more for them than they do their own health. I see this a lot.

i totally agree with this. people are to lazy and impatient to put in any real effort and lose weight on the long term by doing it in a slow and healthy manner.

LorinaLynn

I've never been one for fad diets (although I used to cut calories too much), but I definitely put others' needs above my own.

Case in point: Before I started making myself a priority and eating better, I'd have Hot Pockets, Spaghettios and Hamburger Helper, and my cats and dog would get high end premium food.

I knew it was time for a change when I loaded the conveyor at the grocery store with a ton of frozen, processed and high sugar foods, and one bag of baby carrots.

The carrots were for the dog.

The first twelve ingredients in his Merrick dog food?

Turkey, Turkey Broth, Turkey Liver, Fresh Sweet Potatoes, Fresh Carrots, Fresh Green Beans, Fresh Whole Granny Smith Apples, Potato Starch-modified, Olive Oil, Flax Seed Oil (For Omega -3), Dried Cranberry, Dried Blueberry

Spaghettios?

Water, Tomato purée (Water, Tomato Paste), Enriched Macaroni Product (Wheat Flour, Niacin, Ferrous Sulfate, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), High Fructose Corn Syrup, Contains Less than 2% of: Salt, Enzyme Modified Cheddar Cheese (Cheddar Cheese [Cultured Milk, Salt, Enzymes, Calcium Chloride], Water, Disodium Phosphate), Enzymes), Flavoring, Potassium Chloride, Vegetable Oil (Corn, Cottonseed, Canola and/or Soybean), Enzyme Modified Butter (Milk), Skim Milk, Paprika Extract, Citric Acid.

Some little doggie is quite spoiled. :grumble:

brittanyjeanxo

I think it's a big generalization to make, but for the most part, an accurate one. I've done fad exercise crazes like 30DS and C25K, but never any fad diets. I don't even diet now. That's why I hate it when I'm eating something and people say, "Oh, are you off your diet?" No, *****, I'm eating some chips. :grumble: but, I digress. I think that women are far more likely to try anything to lose weight, regardless of the health risks, though most women on this website seem to have things handled pretty well as far as doing things the healthy way

ninerbuff

I don't get why this is labeled as a woman thing, as if men aren't desparate to lose weigh as well sometimes. I've always hated things like this that assume things about everyone based on what some people do... it's like saying the average person eats 11.7 lbs of baby bunnies a day so you probably had one for breakfast.

Edit to add: I never even thought about fad diets and went straight to "eat 500 calories less, healthier food, and exercise".

I posed it that way because the show was aimed at women. Had it been aimed at men or general population, I would have worded it that way.
I know inside that not everyone is that way, but there have been a few on here that have said that their female family and friends are. I just wanted to see the responses.



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ItsCasey

I think it's okay to try different LEGITIMATE methods of eating to find something that will work for you long-term. Going low-carb is not necessarily a fad. I know a lot of people who simply don't eat carbs from grain sources or potatoes. I get about 20% of my carbs from whole grains and the rest from fibrous fruits and vegetables. It's not because I think starchy carbs are the devil; it's because after 2 months of limiting my intake of those foods, I realized that my body simply feels better (and performs better in the gym) when I don't eat them. That's not true for everyone, but it works for me.

Fasting is another example. Some people simply can't go 24 hours without eating, at least from a psychological standpoint. I can, and I believe in the research that shows that intermittent fasting helps to control fat storage hormones, so I fast twice a week. I still eat 9000 to 10,000 calories per week (1300 to 1400 per day, roughly), so I am definitely not starving. I don't go completely nuts and sit around brooding about food on fasting days, nor do I binge and eat 3000 calories on days when I'm not fasting. Again, it works for me.

I would consider low-carb a fad for someone who intends to go back to a "normal" carb intake after losing weight, and the same goes for fasting. So I think the "fad" label has more to do with how long you intend to keep up your "diet."

ninerbuff

I think fasting is a terrible idea. You teach your body and metabolism to be stingy and hold on to fat that way. Body builders eat numerous small meals throughout the day to keep their metabolism going - even when they are in the weight cutting phase. They have the right idea.

I'll disagree. Bodybuilders eat numerous meal so they DON'T lose muscle mass. And they are NEVER in a weight cutting phase (no bodybuilder wants to cut weight, they want to weigh as much as possible) they only go into fat reduction phase pre competition.
Fasting has it's place. There are some days that I only eat 2 meals a day, but always meet my calorie allowance even if I do. Science has shown that temporary fasts can be beneficial if used correctly.




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muffyjog

When I was 12, 16, 18, 22, 26...yes I did. Let's see...The Scarsdale Diet, The Atkins Diet, NutriSystem, The alphabet diet, the fruit juice diet, high protein diet, fasting diets...I would say yes, I did all those. And what I learned is that they all work. Yep. Each and every one. And then you stop "dieting" and it all comes back, plus 10% because your body feels deprived and doesn't like that set point.

I think back and wonder what would have happened if I never once dieted and whether or not I'd have reached over 300 lbs. I sincerely doubt it. It's an industry that produces its own clients. Kind of nifty, eh?

HeikkiLaukkanen

I think fasting is a terrible idea. You teach your body and metabolism to be stingy and hold on to fat that way. Body builders eat numerous small meals throughout the day to keep their metabolism going - even when they are in the weight cutting phase. They have the right idea.

I'll disagree. Bodybuilders eat numerous meal so they DON'T lose muscle mass. And they are NEVER in a weight cutting phase (no bodybuilder wants to cut weight, they want to weigh as much as possible) they only go into fat reduction phase pre competition.
Fasting has it's place. There are some days that I only eat 2 meals a day, but always meet my calorie allowance even if I do. Science has shown that temporary fasts can be beneficial if used correctly.

You've never heard of bodybuilders "cutting" in the month prior to competition? You're wrong about the weight cutting phase.




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ninerbuff

You've never heard of bodybuilders "cutting" in the month prior to competition? You're wrong about the weight cutting phase.

Your terminology is incorrect. Like I stated in a previous post, no bodybuilder wants to lose weight. So "weight cutting" is the wrong terminology. They want to lose FAT. "Cutting" is losing fat while retaining as much lean muscle as possible. I'm am very familiar with bodybuilding (since I've competed and have been bodybuilding since '82) and have even attended the Olympia and other contests like Musclemania. I'm also a MOD on one of the biggest bodybuilding forums (GetBig.com) which are frequented by competitive pro and amateur bodybuilders. So no I'm not wrong about "weight cutting".

A sports competitor would "cut weight" to make a weight class. And they do that by dropping large amounts of water through sweat. Not the same thing as dieting 12-16 weeks for a show.


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calibri

No way; it's not even that I know they are dangerous, it's just that it's too much effort to eat in a structured way like that. You must eat x y and z on day 1 2 and 3, then do this other thing. Mehhh, I'd rather eat a lot of fresh produce, grains, and lean proteins (and occasionally the bad thing), It's easier (and funner, as silly as that sounds) than eating some regimen.

SMarie10

I hate generalized statements that imply that "all women" or "all men" do something. With that disclaimer, I think that at one time or another in the course of their lives, most people will try some new gimmick or fad to try and lose weight. I chock it up to human nature and trying to find the easy way to losing weight.

HeikkiLaukkanen

You've never heard of bodybuilders "cutting" in the month prior to competition? You're wrong about the weight cutting phase.

Your terminology is incorrect. Like I stated in a previous post, no bodybuilder wants to lose weight. So "weight cutting" is the wrong terminology. They want to lose FAT. "Cutting" is losing fat while retaining as much lean muscle as possible. I'm am very familiar with bodybuilding (since I've competed and have been bodybuilding since '82) and have even attended the Olympia and other contests like Musclemania. I'm also a MOD on one of the biggest bodybuilding forums (GetBig.com) which are frequented by competitive pro and amateur bodybuilders. So no I'm not wrong about "weight cutting".

A sports competitor would "cut weight" to make a weight class. And they do that by dropping large amounts of water through sweat. Not the same thing as dieting 12-16 weeks for a show.


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I'll agree that my terminology was incorrect. "Cutting weight" is a throwback term from my wrestling days. That said I really meant to be saying the same kind of things that you were, bodybuilding is about getting as big as you can and lean as you can for a contest. All I know is what I read. I tend more towards the power lifting side of the spectrum but I'm not really that strong or lean.

Are you still doing bodybuilding? Contests?

ninerbuff

double post

Becoming_A_Butterfly

I listen to talk radio a lot when I drive and while scanning a station I happened on a conversation of nutritionist as a guest host on the show. Here's the statement that caught my attention.

"Women will do almost everything right when it comes to keeping their family safe, ensuring their family's health, and listening to doctor's advice on their own health, BUT completely IGNORE the dangers of any FAD DIET as long as they lose 5, 10, 20lbs in a short period of time."

So was she right or wrong?

The nutritionist generalized in two areas here: first, that all women will do anything to keep their family safe. I unfortunately know many women who have no business being mothers and are quite content putting themselves above everyone and everything.

Second, that all women are so obsessed with being thin that they abandon their own health and common sense in the quest for thin-ness. Well, fad diets wouldn't keep popping up if someone wasn't buying into them, so there is probably some truth to that. But like a lot of people who have already posted, I don't like being lumped into the same category with everyone who has a vagina like we are interchangeable. No, I don't pay any attention to fad diets. If other women do, that is their business.

ninerbuff

bump

ashnm88

I've seen a lot of girls, never guys, doing fasts on here. I personally, stay away from them. I like to do it the healthy way

I agree.

karinaes

haha.. i eat most my calories back and do strength training with rather "clean" foods but i notice more girls starve themselves than guys .. makes me sad

BobbyClerici

I know of a guy who used to do this very thing.

I won't mention names.
He's 5' 10", short hair, stocky....looks like me....:glasses:

Iamfit4life

I've only once done a "fad diet" and that was the south beach diet before a big event.
Actually it wasn't bad at all, I kept a lot of the eating habits.

honeysprinkles

Generally, I think she's right. But it's obviously not always the case...and most of us on here know better than to give into unhealthy "quick fixes."

michelledyan

When I was a teenager, I tried Slimfast. What a joke! After one drink and an hour later, I was light headed. I didn't see how that could work. I have also tried the Atkins diet. I have been on and off diets because I haven't really changed my eating habits until now. I have recently joined this site and I am going to a nutritionist. (Oh yeah, I joined Weight Watchers at one time but it worked as long as I went but it is way out of my price range!) Thank goodness for this site!

Jennloella

I dunno about fad diets....but....my kids go to every teeth cleaning, check up, etc right on schedule....me? I'm always last on my list. I always put their safety, health, wants 1st as opposed to my own, I make them eat their veggies, and I make them drink water, do I always follow the same advice? no. But I'm not as important as THEM!

aquapussy

I've seen a lot of girls, never guys, doing fasts on here. I personally, stay away from them. I like to do it the healthy way

Intermittent fasts are anything but unhealthy. Our bodies are designed to be able to fast.

If fasting works for them, then more power to them. It can be a powerful tool for weight loss when done correctly.

DIETING: THE KEY IS TO DO SOMETHING THAT YOU CAN MAINTAIN FOR THE LONG HAUL.

I know this is almost cliche now, but it is a lifestyle change. If you get bored of your "diet" you will drop it and it will quit working.

ninerbuff

I am taking on a client at the beginning of the year (her husband made her promise) that exercises 3 hours a day (all cardio) and eats like a bird. She has already been hospitalized once for being malnourished. She told me she really wants to change but needs help and to see how to do it correctly with results or she never get over her OCD with cardio exercise. This will be one of my toughest challenges yet.


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Scorpioangel

For me it's wrong because I never did any fad diets because I already saw so many people I know go to the extreme and fail but in general that person probably is right?

Aesop101

Most of the people I see going for an operation to lose weight are women.

Thena81

i think it depends on the person and the decisions they make!

petkova

Unfortunately it's true. Most women on this website are part of the exception, they have chosen to do it the healthy way, but the majority will starve instead.
It's sooo not fun, I have done before it and I have lost 20 pounds in 10 days ... and the you gain double when you start eating ... it's awful ... no more of that for me