Why We Fail When We Rely Simply On Diets

For years we have heard, "Eat less, exercise more, and you will lose weight". Sounds simple, right? If it worked... why are we still so overweight? According to an October report from the World Health Organization (WHO), excess weight has reached epidemic proportions globally, with more than 1 billion adults being either overweight or obese. More people worldwide now die from being overweight and obese than from being underweight.

Simply cutting back calories does not work for most of us. It works for some, but those are the ones who are more genetically inclined to be fit and trim anyway. We all know a few of them. They are the ones telling us to, "Eat less and exercise more". The majority of us try and fail, try and fail, try and fail.

The most common reason for failing is cravings. We can eat but still crave something we love (chocolate, ice cream, cereal, etc.). Have you ever just stood at your open refrigerator or pantry to see what you "might me in the mood for"? There are so very many foods that actually promote cravings such as sugar and other simple carbohydrates. Even many so-called "diet foods" contain ingredients that promote hunger and cravings. The experts try to tell us that a calorie is a calorie but most of us know it's not. Some foods stimulate hunger and we end up hungrier or craving more than before we ate it.

The second reason for failure is hunger. We cut back our calories and we are hungry. There is no getting around this. Our body likes to maintain equilibrium. If we eat more than it needs, it stores the excess as fat and tells us to move around a bit in order to burn more. If we eat just a little it tells us, "Stop moving, lay on the couch, watch a movie, burn less, eat more, feed me, i.e. "hunger". Hunger is our body telling us it needs energy (food).

In order to avoid hunger we cut back our calories only a "little bit" but it is not enough to actually lose significant weight. We may lose a pound or two and in frustration give up. Failed again.

We have to cut back calories enough to

make our body continually use our stored fat for fuel. In order to do this we have to eliminate the hunger and cravings. Some people go toward diet pills to take care of hunger but I don't recommend it. Too many times an "approved" diet drug faces a recall because of dangerous side-effects they discovered years after introducing it to the public.

There are food and food products available that eliminate hunger and cravings. You just have to do your homework to find them. Find them, eliminate hunger and cravings, and you will be able to stay on a low calorie diet and lose weight successfully. Finally an end to our yo-yo dieting.