8 reasons why you should not follow restrictive diets
You’re already thinking that you’re going to eat more at New Year’s Eve parties, or you’re worried about holidays coming up and you think you’re overweight to wear a bikini.
In those times when we would like to lose weight – preferably very quickly – it is very common to feel tempted to face a “miracle” diet. The problem is that all this “miracle” actually means a lot of restrictions. Diet juice, moon diet, dry-belly diet … In the end, all these diets are very restrictive, leaving your body devoid of nutrients and calories.
It may even be that you lose a few pounds in the first week, but you already know what will happen next: it is impossible to follow a diet like this for a long time, and you will end up gaining weight all over again. Check out 8 reasons why it is not worth embarking on these diets:
1. Restrictive diets do not work
Restrictive diets
Do you want a better reason than that? Science has already proven that restrictive diets do not help. You may even lose a few pounds quickly, but you are very likely to recover all of them in up to five years. The time and effort devoted to a restrictive diet do not compensate.
2. They put an end to their self-confidence
What do you think will happen if you spend a lot of time on a diet that bans everything? It is very likely that you will “fall into temptation” and “stick” to your diet. Then you will feel like you have failed and have not the slightest will, throwing your self-confidence down. Following a restrictive diet strictly is putting unrealistic expectationsont yourself. You are a person, not a machine!
3. These diets cause feelings of guilt
By classifying foods as “good”, “bad”, “junk” etc., you are promoting a food judgment. However, your eating habits do not reflect your worth as a person, and you should not feel guilty or diminished by what you eat – especially if it was an exception.
4. They negatively affect your weight loss
The accordion effect and calorie restriction can slow your metabolism, making it harder to lose weight in the long run. When we fail to provide enough fuel for our body, it will start storing energy to ensure its vital functions. That is, it will not contribute to your weight loss.
5. You feel hungry all the time
Restrictive diets make us hungry for two reasons. The first, obviously, is because we are not eating enough, making it difficult for the body to function.
The second reason is that by restricting calories, we have an increase in levels of ghrelin, the hormone that makes our stomach turn hunger. When we enter this state, it is very difficult to hold on to not eating everything we find ahead.
6. Restrictive diets are time-consuming and expensive
Imagine a diet where you can not eat gluten, lactose, sugar, salt, roots, cereals, meats and more. Moreover, everything must be precisely weighed on a scale.
It is not exactly easy to find foods that meet all the restrictions of a diet like that. As a result, you will end up with a long list of purchases whose items are found only in specific and expensive stores.
Not to mention that you will spend a lot of time preparing your meals because you need to weigh and fraction everything, leaving you somewhat obsessive with what you eat. After a few days, all this effort is no longer sustainable, as it will not fit into your routine and will end up weighing heavily in your pocket.
7. You are conditioned to ignore your body
When we follow a restrictive diet, we stop listening to what our body is trying to tell us. It’s a good idea that attending daily orders by a brigadier may not be a good idea, but care must be taken not to leave your organic needs aside.
Paying attention to your body’s signals and dealing with them in a more conscious way are ways to understand how your body works, making it easier to make healthy choices in food.
8. Food should be pleasurable
Food is part of the identity of the human being and of our organization in society. When we turn food into a simple amount of calories or points, we lose the notion that meals should be enjoyed.
The best way to look at weight loss is to leave weight in second place and focus more on eating to meet organic needs and make healthy choices. Crazy diets do not work, but food re-education does. So if you want (or need to) lose weight, it is always best to have a nutritionist.
