eMedex Weight Loss Guide

It’s really simple to lose weight. If you want to lose, say, 5lbs by next week, you eat just a third of what you usually do and you’re bound to shed that weight, right?

Wrong.

Crash dieting is often listed as one of the most common mistakes that people make in their attempts to lose weight. Not only is it ineffective in the long run, but it’s also unhealthy for your body in the short run because of the drastic changes that occur.

What’s Up with Crash Dieting?

Crash diets rely on the drastically reduced intake of food – and calories in general – for the expected weight loss. However, crash diets also fail to take one major factor into account. The human body adapts to stimuli that are related to survival, which includes the hunger that accompanies a crash diet.

Some dieting books will not tell you that your body will react to the lower levels of nutrients that it gets. It will attempt to adjust itself to perform at a lower level in order to save as much nutrients as possible. This reaction diminishes the results you’d get from crash dieting. Even worse is that it does not readjust immediately; when you go back to eating normally, you gain fat faster because your body is still operating at the lower nutrient-saving level.

If you simply must lose weight fast, crash dieting isn’t the way to go. You’d be better off switching to a healthier menu of fish, vegetables and lean meats, while at the same time stepping up with your cardiovascular exercise. Sure, it’s a bit slower than a crash diet, but at least you’re likelier to keep off all that weight you’ll lose.