Why Crash Diets Don't Work

Some diets will tell you that you can lose up to ten pounds a week—but you’re probably just losing glycogen (carbohydrate) and water, not fat. Why does that make a difference? You’ll gain it all back just as quickly.

Even worse, your body is programmed by Mother Nature to store fat after periods of malnutrition or starvation. It’s a survival instinct. Thousands of years ago, when food was scarce and winters were long, there were months when the only thing that spelled the difference between life and death was the “emergency reserves” your body had tucked away. Today, when the possibility of running out of food can be quickly solved by a walk to the corner grocery, those emergency reserves sit on your hips and thighs. Your body doesn’t know that, and will think your crash diet is a signal to store, store, store.

      If you want long-term changes, you need to make long-term commitments.   Set a realistic, achievable weight loss goal and then chose a diet and exercise program that you’re comfortable with. Sorry, but there aren’t any real shortcuts that will get you real results.