D***

The worst four letter word out there.

DIET.

 When thinking of that dreaded word, I know you're cringing just as much as I did when I wrote it out.

Worse than that word though, is it's combination word.

FAD DIET

Before you get all sick on me I want to talk about these nasty buggers that claim to be the answer to our lack of Abs and to our self esteem woos.

Yesterday, I taught my BYU class a lesson regarding this topic as an introduction to the rest of the subjects we'd be discussing this semester. Then the thought came to me to just write it all out for you readers, especially my most loyal reader Hayley because she reminded me it's been over a month since I've written! Love you girl!

Okay.

If you listen to the radio as often as I do, you've heard the advertisements for all sorts of miracle pills, like Healthy Trim saying they'll take you smaller than "High School skinny", or "wanna lose that stubborn belly fat in less than a month?", or even people talking about the famous HCG diet and how these amazing horemones make you burn fat bla, bla.

I took it upon myself to do some research on a few diets, and figure out the method or the idea behind all these crazy diet ideas.

What I discovered is that every fad diet has some sort of truth to it. For example. HCG, I'm not sure about the horemone itself, but when you're only eating 500 calories a day, there's no way you wouldn't lose weight am I right? The hormone is in my mind, the thing to make this diet look "legit" but the results come from the fact that you're starving yourself. Haha!

Now dig with me. What is the TRUTH behind this diet?

*BING* If you cut calories, you'll lose weight. Is that true? You bet it is! Now, if any diet recommends you ONLY have 500 calories a day, I hope you'll see that as a GIANT red flag or flashing neon sign saying "DON'T DO IT!"

Why?

Your body NEEDS food. You can always drop 500 calories from your now caloric intake and see reults. But if you're starving your body will cling to whatever food you DO eat. Starvation mode is a REAL THING.

Next diet I wanna play with. 

The famous ATKINS Diet.

I, in all honesty don't even know if they're still around or if people even use this diet still. But it's' a great example for this next weight loss concept.

What is their slogan? "Lose 15 Lbs in 2 weeks!"

What's the main idea to this diet?

NO CARBS.  Carbs are BAD! CARBS CAAAARBS STAY AWAYYYY!

With that said. Are carbs bad?

Hellz no. Carbohytrates are our main source of energy. They provide the body with fiber, and the brain with nourishment. Livestrong.com says the following:

"Out of the three macronutrients, carbohydrates are the most important source of energy, providing your body with the fuel you need for both physical activity, and for your organs to function properly. Your body turns consumed carbohydrates into glucose, blood sugar, and your organs, tissues and cells use this glucose for energy as it is needed right away, storing the excess in your muscles and liver to use as it is needed between meals."

With that said, grab your shovel again. Time to dig..

What is the truth about this diet?

Knowing we need carbohydrates, the truth to this diet is... as a society, we tend to overdo on the carbs. What are examples of carbohydrates?

Did a picture of bread, rice, oatmeal, or pasta pop up on your brain?

Did you also picture potatoes? Oranges? Apples? Spinach?

The Atkins diet, as well as South Beach are based on protein and fruits and veggies. They cut out the white or the flour-y carbohydrates because like I just said- we overdo them. So what's the answer or the healthier alternative to this diet? It's simple. Don't eat as many of the pastas or breads. Introduce ore fruits into your daily food regamin. Or if you're just hooked and can't survive without that 8th slice of bread per day, go out and work it off. Let your food become energy.

Have you read or done research on the ever popular, GLUTEN allergy? Did you know that it's an onset allergy?

"woah woah Andrea, say WHA?"

Yes. It's true. If you have or know someone that has a gluten allergy, the biggest reason is your eating habit. OUCH. I went there!

How do we develop this allergy? We over do our refined carbohydrates. White breads. White pasta. White, white, white. So like I said before. Love your body and replace those white, refined flours with whole grains. Yes, the good stuff with nuts all in it. It does you so much good as well as leaving you happy and satisfied for hours.

The last dietary myth I wanna cover is one that my friend brought to my attention. The idea is that Fasting is a great way to diet.

Let me draw your a picture.

________________________________________________________________________

This straight line above is your blood sugar. Now, when you're consistently eating, it stays flat and happy.

What happens when you don't eat?

You get the grumps. Your tummy starts crying, the headaches set in. You look like this kid.

You get all crazy and why? Because your blood sugar is low!!

Now that you're starving and your blood sugar line is on the decline, you see a McDonalds, grab a Big Mac, Large fries and a coke, which you normally don't eat of course cause you read this blog and you're a health freak, but in a moment of hunger you DID indeed inhale all that food! Now what's going on with your blood sugar?

It shoots up! Then you get the sick over did it feeling and you wanna die cause you just feel so miserable.

While that's all happening, your body is doing something else.

Remember like 18 paragraphs ago when I said Starvation Mode is a real thing?

I'll say it again. It's a REAL THING.

Your body is amazing machine, and here's what it does without you even knowing it. While you're getting over? that super full feeling, your insides are taking all the food you just ate, and converting it to fat. Why? Your body doesn't know when or if it's going to eat again. So to protect itself and to help you survive, it's storing all that food as fat for your body to use for the rest of the day.

I can't say it enough. YOU NEED FOOD.

Yes studies have shown that a fast once or twice a month is really good and cleans your insides out. But daily fasting isn't smart or healthy in the least.

The fix? Eat consistently. The diet telling you not to eat is a famous one. Maybe you've heard of it- Anorexia Nervosa? Don't do it. Eat at least every 3 hours. Eat constantly and eat GOOD, NUTRIENT DENSE foods. I promise just making that change, you'll see results. Take all the truthes from these crazy diets and apply them to you in the areas needed. Your body will love you and reward you with a trimmer waistline as well as energy!

Love you all. Sorry there was so much to read today! Haha! Stay tuned for more! And if you have questions or anything feel free to leave a comment! Let me know what you want to learn and I'm happy to research and write all about it!