Bunny chows, creamy pastas, chocolate desserts and grandma’s lemon meringue pie: these are just some of the items on the list of naughty foods you ate over the weekend.
Monday morning arrives and, along with a newfound motivation to drop the extra cushioning, you also realise the long road of consistent dieting and relentless training ahead of you.
A light bulb goes off in your head: “Didn’t Debbie from wine club lose 9kg from only consuming liquids? Yes, she did,” you tell yourself.
Since the advent of the I-want-the-results-without-doing-the-work mentality, people have been turning to obscure and sometimes dangerous diets to shed excess weight without having to do too much work.
One such risky diet is the all-liquid diet.
Although Musgrave-based registered dietician Julie Thomas is not one to recommend a liquid diet to anyone, she understands why people are drawn to it.
“Some of the advantages of an all-liquid diet are fast weight loss, a good hydration status and easily digested nutrients,” said Thomas.
The problem is that many people want a quick solution to their weight loss problem.
“I can see how it would be a popular choice but I am never an advocate of a quick weight-loss solution,” said Thomas.
“People must understand that the weight they are trying to lose has often been a result of less desirable food choices and cannot be lost overnight.”
Despite massive weight loss being an advantage of the liquid diet, the cons outweigh the pros, making this diet more extreme and unsustainable, rather than a clever way to beat the system. Some of the health disadvantages of the liquid diet are:
* Insufficient fibre.
* Poor compliance.
* Questionable sustainability and therefore more weight gain once someone stops and returns to their original diet.
* Slowed metabolism because of reduced energy intake.
* Possible reduced muscle mass.
* Side effects of insufficient nutrients and energy can lead to dizziness, nausea and cause gallstones.
* Complications if on medication (such as diabetes medication). Unless their doctor is aware of this, they may be taking the incorrect dose in combination with their diet.
Holiday
Thomas added that she would also recommend having a full weight analysis done with a dietitian to ensure whatever weight one does lose, is not muscle or water.
After an indulgent weekend or holiday, some people may begin a week-long liquid diet as a way to “detox”their bodies. Thomas, however, gives no credibility to this.
“There is very little evidence that this is effective or even necessary,” says Thomas. “The body has been created to eliminate waste products effectively and does not require detoxing diets or foods.
“The liver and bowel are capable of detoxing themselves and do so on a daily basis.”
Independent on Saturday