Weight Loss Success Journey NOT Paved with Diet Soda

Diet soda is not the fantastic beverage for weight loss success that many (especially the makers) would like you to believe. I've said it before. I'll say it again. For most* people it does no good, and for many it causes harm. Because it has zero, or close to zero, calories many people drink it without thinking about all the chemicals they are putting in their bodies. And again because it has few calories people seem to think it is actually good for them--or at least won't make them fat!

Study after study is showing that these thoughts are wrong. This is marketing at its worst. It is on a par with marketing cigarettes as cool while knowing they cause lung cancer.

Think diet soda will make you thin? Then why are so many people who drink it obese? And they didn't just start drinking it...many of them have been drinking it for YEARS...all the while packing on more pounds.

Diet soda is not the answer.

According to a new article posted on Yahoo, more and more people are coming forward to admit they are addicted to diet soda.

Whether diet soda is technically an "addiction" or really a habit is still under debate.

Addiction definition from Wikipedia:

Historically, addiction has been defined as physical and/or psychological dependence on psychoactive substances (for example alcohol, tobacco, heroin, caffeine and other drugs) which cross the blood-brain barrier once ingested, temporarily altering the chemical milieu of the brain. Broadly, addiction is defined as the continued use of a mood altering addictive substance or behaviours despite adverse consequences.

Drinking as little as one diet soda a day is linked to a variety of "adverse consequences" including Heart Attack and Stroke, Kidney Trouble, Preterm Deliver, and yes, Weight Gain

The article continues:

Wouldn’t it be ironic if instead of helping you lose weight, diet sodas had the opposite effect? A study at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio found that compared to those who drank no diet sodas, study participants who did had a 70 percent greater increase in waist circumference; worse, drinking two or more diet sodas daily led to ballooning waist circumference that was 500 percent greater than those who drank none.

For years I've been advising against diet sodas for people on a health journey and for those who want to have weight loss success, I am not the only one. The 'Eat This, Not That' guy David Zinczenko wrote an article "The Truth About Diet Soda" back in December 2008.

Don't think you have to be "perfect" to have weight loss success. Focus on being HEALTHY first and you will achieve the right weight without damaging your body and healthy in the long-run by following some low calorie diet plan that includes unhealthy choices.
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*I say "most" because I there are few rules that can be applied to literally every person on the planet, but in all honesty I have not seen a single report that diet soda is helpful to anyone. However, there may be a person who is diabetic for example who for whatever reason cannot give up soda 100% and therefore chooses a diet soda. I still do not buy into the soda being "good" for them, or not causing them harm, but the choice is certainly theirs to make.

Weight Loss Secret: Treat Yourself Like Your Car

I recently heard from a young man who said he knew he would lose weight even if he ate snacks and treats all the time as long as he burned more calories than he ate. He went on with some extensive math calculations on how many calories the average sedentary person burns and how he will be able to lose weight by adding some additional exercises and dropping his calorie intake to under 2000 per day.

My first reaction is, Heaven help this guy...I wonder if he has ever tried to diet before?

Begin healthy and losing weight is not just a math equation...and certainly not a simple one! First of all, there is no "average" person...we are all unique and we react differently to different foods, exercise and moods.

Second, even if you caloric intake is low, you can not heal your body and create healthy, lean tissues if you eat junk food all day long.

Rather than counting calories and trying to figure out the math of losing weight, treat your body at least as well as you would your vehicle. You wouldn't put sugar in your car's gas tank and expect it to run, would you? No, you give your car the proper grade gasoline and oil that it requires. You keep the radiator filled. You check your battery. You inflate the tires to get the best mileage.

Your body is a fantastically complex machine and deserves similar treatment. Give your body good quality fuel, as in lean protein, complex carbs, healthy fats. Drink plenty of pure water (filter it yourself and save money and the environment) to help keep your system flushed and well regulated. By eating small amounts fairly often you keep your battery charged and like putting your car on cruise-control you can keep going and going without the roller-coaster ride of sugar rushes and crashes.

Quit counting calories and keep yourself on the highway of life, looking good and cruising by eating the right foods every day!

Starving is Not the Answer

One of my good friends, a guy who happens to be about 6 feet tall, has been trying to drop a few pounds...mostly around his middle. He has that lanky build that no one in my family has, so instead of chunking out all over like we do, he was developing a little pot belly. Or beer belly. Literally.

He finally gave up the beer because of some health issues and he is looking good. When I saw him last he mentioned that he had hit a wall though. Hmmm...I think we call that a "plateau", and practically every woman on earth, or at least in the US knows that.

He told me he was frustrated because he was taking in less than 1000 calories a day and not losing weight.

If you are like my buddy, thinking that by dropping your caloric intake to extreme lows you will lose weight, then you too are in for a rude shock. Frankly, I thought he knew better than this, but he didn't.

If you reduce your calories you will lose weight at first. But if you do it by too much for very long your body thinks you are going through a famine period and will actually retain weight! Your metabolism will slow down and, because it won't be possible for you to maintain a ridiculously low caloric intake (especially if you aren't getting rewarded with dropping fat)you will start to eat more. So now if you eat a healthy amount of calories, say 1200-1500 for a typical woman wanting to drop some fat, more for a guy my friend's size, you will actually GAIN fat back.

I know this from personal experience. I tried the Liquid Protein Diet back in the 70s. I lost a lot of fat, sure, but it didn't last. And when I put the weight back on, it came on super fast and even more than I had lost. AND I had years and years of a whacked out metabolism making maintaining any kind of healthy weight extraordinarily difficult.

I have found that by mixing it up, I feel better and my body responds much better, too. Some days I might eat less than 1000 calories, but other days I eat over 2000. As long as I keep the variety my body stays in a healthy balance and my fat level is dropping. Not that I'm actually counting calories--but after decades of dieting, you start to get an idea of how many calories you are taking in, even without counting. Kind of like cooking without a recipe.

So my tip for the day is mix it up. Don't pig out all the time, but don't let your body think it will be starved either. You'll be able to enjoy life and you will be a healthier weight while you do!