There are a million crash diets out there there to try to help you lose weight. Crash diets just don’t work. You gain all the weight back fast. They also make you sick and can harm your body.
What’s the harm?
- Nutritional deficiencies can occur when you don’t get the essential protein, minerals and vitamins in your body. Although you may lose weight from a decrease in calories, these negatively affect your body can lead to organ dysfunction as well as feeling fatigued, weakened hair and nails as well as body pain just to name a few.
- Muscle Loss can also occur as it breaks down fast. The end result, you lose weight, but you burn less calories and feel weaker. Also more likely to be injured.
- Slowed metabolism as your body tries to conserve energy. This makes it harder to lose weight and becomes more frustrating when you think you are doing the right thing.
- Rebound weight—when you try to avoid eating abruptly without slowly getting your body ready for it. Without the proper control, you may want to eat everything when it’s time to eat. Say goodbye to the hard work you put in.
- Psychological Harm—Crash diets take a toll on your mental health. The restrictive nature of these kinds of diets lead to deprivation, frustration, and guilt. It feels worse when you regain the weight after you get off the diet. This creates an unhealthy relationship with food that makes it more challenging in future to lose weight.
What can you do? Take a balanced approach to your diet. Changes you make to your diet need to be sustainable and not cause you any harm. Adding in consistent exercise can help take you where you want to go. If you are still having hard time, there are other options for treatment.
