Lose weight in just 7 days!!

You must have come across million of such statements.. right??

 I am not going to promise you anything like this here. Infact I want to give you something more than just weight loss.. its "GOOD HEALTH". The title was deceptive. But my intention was to introduce the ill effects of diets that give such results in super short duration. 

Read further to know more about crazy diets and their crazier results!

All That Jazz about Fad Diets!

Are they really good?

Ever noticed these ads on trains, newspapers, magazines etc promising instant fat loss in an unbelievable time period? Any sane person would accept the fact that either is all a bluff or an unhealthy way which they opt for such a quick loss.

But such diets and programs easily attract those people who are desperately looking for a slimmer figure.

These diets are very unhealthy and can cause hazardous changes in our body. Not only that, you may even gain double the weight you lost as soon as you stop dieting.

They may not come with a tag of “fad diet”. One has to properly check and consult a nutritionist before taking up any diet programme.

Hereunder I have mentioned a few ways one can recognize whether a diet is a healthy one or a fad one:

According to American Heart Association, these are criteria to recognize a fad diet:

• Magic or Miracle Foods:

These diets incorporate foods that burn fat. Actually no food burns fat; in fact any food if eaten in excess may build up fat. There is no magic food as such. Every food is good and unique. It’s needed by us but in moderation. So don’t just stick to one food and at the same time, don’t criticize any food.

• Inflexible menus and time schedules:

These diets give you hardly any options on what all you can have. Following strictly to those particular foods at specified timings becomes practically impossible on a long run.

• Aberrant quantities:

Eating too much or too little of one food not only becomes boring but also leads to nutritional deficiencies.

It may also leas to bloating, flatulence, acidity and bad breath.

• Rapid weight loss:

Losing tremendous weight in short span may also be an indication of health hazard, as weight loss is not fat loss.

• No increased physical activity:

To maintain good health, physical activity is a must and when it comes to losing fat, it’s more than just necessary. Such plans don’t encourage physical activity or work outs. This proves our Law at Bodyark “health decrease as motionless increases”.

• Specificity for patients:

 The first thing any good nutritionist will ask you before planning your diet plan is that whether you suffer from diabetes, CVD, Hypertension etc.

And your plan would be a specific one which will keep your illness in control and prevent degradation of your health.

Such plans do not specify or clarify the client’s condition. They are usually generalized.

LIST OF POPULAR FAD DIETS:

1)      Dr. Atkins Diet

2)      The South beach Diet

3)      General Motors Diet

4)      The Cabbage Soup Diet

5)      The Grapefruit Diet

6)      The 3 Day Diet

7)      Dr. Sears Enter Zone Diet

8)      The Complete Scarsdale Medical Diet

9)      Pritikin Diet Plan

10)   Save –your- Life Diet

11)  Cinder Vinegar Diet

12)   Lecithin Diet

13)  Kelp Diet

14)  Vitamin B6 Diet

15)  Zen Macrobiotic Diet

16)  Set point Diet

17)  Drinking mans diet etc. are to name a few

These diets can be further categorized as under:

1)      Low and no carbohydrate diets:

 These diets usually recommend low or no carbohydrate in their menus. They target on just proteins or fats.

This catches attention because the result is rapid weight loss. Though the fact remains something else. What is lost is not the fat; it’s actually water loss from the body.

Carbohydrate is the major energy source for the body. It is required for glucose supply to the brain, the heart and such important organs of the body.

Though, excess of carbohydrate gets converted into fat, but completely omitting it from the menu is not appropriate. One can opt for moderation.

When one is on a low or no carbohydrate diet, instead of using carbs for energy, body utilizes stored fat. Now for oxidation of fats, carbs are required again. The short supply of carbohydrate causes the fat to breakdown incompletely, thus resulting in formation of ketone bodies.

To get rid of these toxic ketone bodies, large amount of water is excreted, which shows a faulty indication and we consider it fat loss although we have just lost water, which is compensated once you are on normal diet again and thus you may gain double the weight.

2) The other kind of such diets are high fiber, high carbohydrate diet. They have been proved to lower the immunity and show poor wound healing.

2)      Some diets are based on liquids only. They provide less than 400 Kcals a day. This can be extremely risky for health. It can also lead to death.

3)      Starving or things like anorexia bulimia are self imposed restrictions and lead to depletion of muscle mass, tissues, minerals etc. Many side effects are also seen. Anemia and kidney stones are to name a few.

To lose Fat in a healthy way, always choose for a personalized diet plan made by a nutritionist. The basic idea is to eat in moderation, be more active and have a positive approach in life. There is no short cut in life (say healthy life) even a new born takes a year to just being able to stand on his/her feet, forget about walking and running. So don’t expect instant results however consistency will guarantee results.

Corporate Life and Health Issues

Corporate life and Health Issues

While we all sit back and look at the IT companies booming, we realize that corporate life is the one which gives its populace maximum opportunities and favorable circumstances to attain utmost success in life and people leading this life are more dynamic and high octane; but the one who endures knows that it’s not all that rosy. Many times they have to work more than regular hours, skip meals when the work load is high or even work at late nights to achieve targets.

To meet such demands of life, working people tend to overlook their health.

Here are a few ways one can find out whether he is suffering from any health issues:

If he feels fatigued even when he wakes up in the morning

Has his food palette changed in terms of quantity?

Is he often irritated, depressed or restless?

Has flatulence and bloating become a part of his life?

These all are a few symptoms of an unhealthy life.

We have always heard that “the groundwork of all happiness is health”. When you are fit, you are more enthusiastic, energetic and innovative, which has an obvious impact on your overall work performance. But in rush of life, health becomes less prior. A Spanish proverb says, “A man too busy to take care of his health is like a mechanic too busy to take care of his tools”

People spend their health gaining wealth, and then have to spend their wealth to regain their health.

The first most common problem faced by working mass is “stress”.

Stress brings along with it many other problems viz. depression, aches, pains, diarrhea, constipation, nausea, dizziness, chest pain etc. which often affects our behavior, like one may start eating too much or too little.

While eating too much (and thanks to corporate life, for it is innately blessed with a sedentary lifestyle) leads to obesity and other lifestyle diseases; eating less, on the other hand, makes one feel weak and low, thus again bringing down the ability to work, so more failures, more stress and the vicious cycle continues.

Along with big fat salaries comes sedentary lifestyle and extra pounds of fat free!! Plus such individuals are either too busy or lazy to opt for workouts or walks. They all end up with diabetes, high cholesterol and sometimes blockages that obstruct their arteries like what filth does to a pipeline. Its then they realize that they should keep a check on what they eat, but at times it’s too late!

So to lead a healthy life one must eat right. By right I mean, that much quantity and the kind of food one requires carrying out daily routines appropriately.

During adulthood nutrients are required for the purpose of energy and for maintenance of body functions. Though there is no growth during adulthood, but proteins are required for the replacement of worn out tissues.

One has to remember that if he is leading a sedentary lifestyle, he may be prone to various diseases like obesity, diabetes mellitus, metabolic syndrome or cardiovascular disease, so he has to keep a regular check on your weight and his lipid profile.

A healthy life is like an investment, one is sure to get its returns in old age.

 “Eat your food as your medicine or else you’ll have to eat medicine as your food -Hippocrates.”