How to Make a Diet Work with Strategies for Effective Weight Management

Risks of Express Diets for Quick Weight Loss

Express diets are motivated by urgency, such as the well-known and repeatedly mentioned seasonal "bikini operation," for example. These aim to achieve rapid weight loss without addressing the underlying causes of overweight or obesity.

Long-Term Success of Weight Loss Diets

It must be said that fast weight-loss diets only work in the short term, not in the medium and long term.

Success lies in maintaining weight reduction by losing body fat, improving or remitting obesity-related diseases, and providing patients with tools and strategies to improve their relationship with food, themselves, and others because eating is much more than just nourishment.

In any case, a distinction must be made between a hypocaloric diet with medical prescription and those without control and follow-up. The former prioritizes health, while the latter prioritizes appearances or profit motives.

Medical Context for Specialized Diets

These types of diets are only and exclusively recommended in a medical context.

They are justified by a serious health problem. When rapid weight loss contributes to reducing cardiovascular risk, for example, or decreasing the risk of complications before medical and/or pharmacological treatment.

Characteristics of Restrictive Diets

This type of weight-loss diet is characterized above all by being restrictive, with a calorie intake of 800-1000 kcal.

They are prohibitive, as they exclude some food groups and often demonize basics such as bread, pasta, or rice.

They often promise quick results accompanied by excellent advertising campaigns and/or a famous face.

They are full of promises without effort, as they do not delve into the health problem or the particular circumstances of each person.

Risks and Drawbacks of Restrictive Diets

If maintained over time, it is easy for the patient to incur nutritional deficiencies.

These diets do not educate on health and confuse people.

On the other hand, they have a high probability of a rebound effect, pose a risk of developing eating disorders, and are an open door to profit, intrusion, and fraud.

Maintaining Healthy Habits for Long-Term Success

Some of these keys are:

Consistency, like almost everything in life, requires commitment.

The acquisition of healthy habits must be maintained over time; without prohibitions, precisely because it will be easier to not abandon the new and healthy habits, only limiting superfluous foods to occasional consumption.

Respecting the Seriousness of Obesity

It is essential not to trivialize obesity. Losing weight is not a fad; it is a health issue.

Seek professional guidance. Understanding the mechanisms that trigger this disease and the significant benefits of addressing it can help the patient understand why losing weight is so important and how to do it properly. It is not only about losing weight but also about how it is lost and what other results it has on the patient's quality of life.