This is the time of year when everywhere you look you see images of sleek, toned bodies. It’s also a time when many feel the pressure to resort to crash diets, hoping to look good in a swimsuit.
It’s no surprise that weight-loss centers offer specials during the summer months that promise losses of 10, 15, and even 20 pounds in less than a month’s time. Unfortunately, quick-fix and fad diets come with a painful price tag. Only 12% of Americans who lose weight on a crash diet maintain the weight loss for one year. The rest - 88% - not only gain back the weight much sooner, but many gain back even more than they lost.
The biggest loss that crash diets actually produce is loss of morale. Demoralized dieters, feeling like failures, abandon all hopes of ever reaching a weight that they can feel healthy and happy about.
Nutrition and medical experts have come down hard on crash diets for these very reasons. Diets can’t produce long-term results because they focus solely on short-term success. Eating habits are deeply ingrained in our subconscious mind. Without changing these habits, dieters fall into the same traps of cravings. The anti-diet approach that’s already helped thousands of people lose weight successfully - permanently - is yoga.
http://holistichealthco-op.org
Ingrid Cheng is an experienced, certified yoga teacher and founder of Holistic Health Club.