Do Fad Diets Really Work?

Are fad diets like the Master Cleanse and Raw Foods diet really effective ways to lose weight?

In college, food is abundant. The munchie mart is open at all hours, Taco Bell is right off campus, the dining hall serves several meals a day, and, sometimes there’s even an additional dining hall for athletes. I promise you the Freshman 15 isn't just a rumor. Sure it would make sense to stock your dorm room with healthy snacks, but maybe not completely realistic. But, while it's pretty sweet you don’t have to plan your meals, it's kinda gross the food you're eating is unhealthy and the eating habits you're developing are terrible (hello Ramen noodles, and yeah, hello Thursday boozing!).

After college of course, food is scarce. Restaurants are pricey and at the grocery store the worst foods for you are always the cheapest! Plus, not cool that the checkout line is always chock full of magazines touting the latest, and greatest diet, and exercise fads to help you "lose weight FAST!"

Yep, hate to admit it but I have fallen victim to several of these "Lose Weight Quick!" crazes, and was especially susceptible immediately after college when my inconsistent and scatterbrained fitness routine left me searching for quick diet fixes.

The first diet I attempted was the Master Cleanse. Rumor says it removes all the toxins from the body, leaving you much more energetic and healthy. Plus, Beyonce supposedly is an avid supporter of the system, and who doesn’t want some fast fat loss to be bootylicious?!

Um, yeah. This diet consists of drinking a liter of warm salt water (barf) in the morning, and then only consuming a mixture of lemon juice, maple syrup, water and cayenne pepper for ten days. Intense!

So I started off on my foodless journey towards energy and a toxin-free body with excitement…until I gagged on the first round of the salt water and found that the lemon juice concoction was not very filling. Day two and three were equally awful as I was very tired and irritable, and found myself in the restroom every five minutes because my body did not like the liquids. In between bathroom breaks, I was getting zero work done because all I could think about was food. At the end of the third day, while I was laying on my apartment floor sans energy to get up, I realized the end results were not worth the torture. My Cleanse Mastering stopped immediately, and I commenced uncontrollable eating until near stomach explosion.

The second "Help Me Get Slim Quick!" diet I tried is newer to the scene and much less mainstream because the degree of difficulty is at least a 9.5. Called the Raw Food Diet, the idea is to not heat your food over 115 degrees Fahrenheit (don’t forget water boils at 212 degrees) because doing so kills many of the nutritional properties of the food. What it means is you can only eat raw vegetables, fruit, nuts, and raw meats like tuna and beef carpaccio. “They” say it cleanses and cures many diseases so I figured, why not?

Annnd, not so much. Eating the same foods as a squirrel sucked and by day two I found myself very irritable at the prospect of eating more nuts, having “spaghetti” made of squash and a “cookie” made of seeds. Not to mention that I was incredibly tired and felt as though I was not getting enough sustenance to actually survive.

Just like Master Cleanse, I lasted three days before I lost all control, went on an eating binge of everything in my apartment, and passed out in a food coma. FAIL!

As my stories suggest, it’s not fun to starve yourself under the guise of healthy eating. Toss in a few more failed dieting attempts like Mr. Atkins and Ms. Fiber One, and drink addictions such as energy drinks and detox tea, and I finally came to the conclusion that while being aware of the 90/10 rule is important, so to is finding a balance between exercise and nutrition. Starvation diets not being effective seems like common sense, but it just didn’t hit home for me until I tried them myself and found out the hard way.  Much more effective, sustainable, approaches involve adopting small, cumulative, non-dieting nutritional changes.

Anyways, please excuse me for I've got to go restock my fridge.