No doubt many of you have been bombarded with TV and magazine commercials for the latest and greatest “clinically proven”, “100% guaranteed”, “if I did it you can too” diet to hit the stores. Yet even more are just coming off the previous miracle diet only to be disappointed…and a little hungry. After a sandwich, you may find yourself intrigued by the marketing buzzwords of these new diets and are thinking about going for another ride on the head spinning, Yo-Yo Dieting Roller Coaster of DOOM! muhahaha.
Ok seriously, Yo-Yo dieting is traditionally thought of as something of a national pastime of the overweight in our society. Yet you would be surprised to know that even those who don’t fit the Yo-Yo stereotype do it too. Yes, bodybuilders and even models play the same game, so don’t feel too bad. There are a few key differences we can learn from them. You might be shocked to find a few of your old moves in their Yo-Yo playbook.
DIETS HAVE A 95%-98% FAILURE RATE FOR THOSE WHO AREN’T BODYBUILDERS OR MODELS
First know that diets themselves have been around since the early 1800’s. Not one is new or revolutionary, it’s the same information repackaged and shipped to the bookstores. Also all diets have a 95%-98% failure rate, what else would you do that had those kind of numbers? Would you ever get in a plane again if it had the same failure rate as diets? (Heatherton & Polivy, 1992; Cooke, 1996). Finally the diet industry pulls in anywhere from 35-40 Billion dollars a year off your “I’ll try just one more time”.
So do bodybuilders and models follow the same diets that are being promoted to the average person? The answer is no. Stunned? How do they Yo-Yo then?
They Yo-Yo on purpose…with a few key differences.
DIFFERENCES:
1. They begin at a healthier baseline
Your starting point is usually much unhealthier then theirs making your climb to wellness more difficult from the beginning and your decent back down the mountain all that more certain.
Your Plan: To counteract this it’s important you persevere instead of continually giving up. You don’t have to be perfect but you need to hold on and continue your fight. No one always feels like eating healthier or exercising but as you press on you’ll find yourself gradually making better decisions more often and before you know it you will have established your own healthier baseline.
2. They don’t follow fads
They study and learn how their body works and operate within that rule set. From there they make adjustments to their food intake and time spent exercising.
Your Plan: Don’t fall for the quick fixes and instant gratification. You will only have to start all over again even more frustrated. Instead take the time to learn how your own body operates, a great source online is www.webmd.com where you can learn even more about diet fads and the proper way to exercise.
3. They exercise
They engage in physical activity almost daily, which is something the majority of dieters do not include. You simply cannot starve yourself into a healthier state. Fat loss is all about creating an energy deficit and you can only do so much dieting before your health and goals are negatively impacted.
Your Plan: To create that deficit yourself pick up a step counter and begin tracking just how many steps you take in a day. One of the most accurate pedometers is the digiwalker sw-200 you can get it at www.new-lifestyles.com . Wear it for a few days while you log your totals then try to increase 10% a week until you get in the 10,000-12,000 range. The key is to find activities you enjoy, mix it up so you don’t get bored and be sure to take a day off every once in a while to avoid burnout. Be grateful for all your body allows you to do. A change in perspective from seeing your body as a blessing regardless of its size or appearance will go a long way in helping you win this battle long term.
So what do their Yo-Yo diets have in common with yours?
This is one of six articles featured in One Diet Week To Diet Weak. Read all of them and share them with your friends and family.
SIMILARITIES:
1. They’re drastic
Bodybuilders diet to get ready for a show and their diets are quite drastic from what they eat in the off-season or even while training. Models get a phone call for a photo shoot and their diet goes into overdrive. They don’t make minor modifications they get serious – sometimes too much but keep in mind they have a short-term goal to achieve then they back off to their normal state.
The average dieter however presumes he or she can keep with the drastic diet for a long period of time. Is it any wonder that 95-98% can’t stick with it? Then you beat yourself up for not being able to do something that wasn’t reasonable in the first place!
2. Almost obsessive focus on food
Most everyone is guilty of being preoccupied with food. It’s not at all uncommon to find a food scale in a bodybuilders kitchen where everything is meticulously counted, measured and weighed before ingesting. Likewise average dieters are known to count points, carry conversion charts to restaurants and become almost fearful of food.
3. It’s short term – intentionally
It’s something that cannot be maintained long term with any ease. Bodybuilders and models usually don’t seek to maintain their heightened states for long while the average dieter becomes frustrated and berates him or herself for not being able to do it. This is typically where they give up and gain their weight back – plus a bit more weight only to try again on the latest “revolutionary” diet that finally cracked the weight loss code…again.
The key for the average dieter is to take things slower, learn about your body instead of falling for all the gimmicks. Realize the diet industry sees you as nothing more than a dollar sign. In fact weight loss products are the number one type of consumer fraud in America! (UC Berkeley Wellness Letter Vol 24, Issue 4 January 2008 & Federal Trade Commission report Fraud in the US October 2007 http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2007/10/fraud.pdf )
Follow the example of those who have gone before you, they eat with purpose, use the body they were given and see it as a gift. The battle must be fought first in your mind. (Romans 12:2) Stop comparing yourself to the airbrushed images. The photos of those models are touched-up after all of their dieting and hard work. The muscles of bodybuilders aren’t always as chiseled, tight and well defined as you see in advertisements, product endorsements and competitions.
See yourself as more than your outward appearance (1 Samuel 16:7) and fight the battle one day at a time. We all have our setbacks the key is to press on and continue the fight. Endure.
Questions to challenge us:
Am I being deceitful to others or an encouragement?
Are you knowingly contributing to the deception the culture puts out with all the airbrushing and altered photo images that keep people in bondage. You may not be able to change career paths right away but can you at least speak out and encourage others and reveal the truth to them? Put yourself in their shoes how would that kind of truth impact your life if you were struggling?
Am I finding my identity in the image? What happens once the image fades?
Fit or unfit your outward appearance has no bearing on your worth or identity. Are you letting your appearance hold you back with issues of either pride or degrading God’s creation because of what society deems “beautiful”? Worldly beauty and youth fade, it’s inevitable so what really defines you?
A FINAL THOUGHT
I feel very strongly about the topic of diets. For more than thirteen years I’ve seen the bondage and obsession they create within people, overweight or not. To me dieting as popularized in America is the very definition of futility. In order to eat healthy we must eat with purpose and more importantly…Freedom. Anything we begin to believe is “bad” or “off limits” only increases our preoccupation with it. I’ve had far more success with clients by removing the bondage and emotional land mines food has played in their lives than I have by giving them a trite list of good foods and bad.
For more on the topic of dealing with bondage read the Faith & Fitness Magazine article RESTORE MINISTIRES OFFERS HOPE AND HEALING AT THE Y.
Food is neutral but we need to make the connection with how our body uses it and responds. Nothing; not one food “makes” us fat it’s the sedentary lifestyles of the modern world overwhelmed by the sheer massive intake of food whether it be “healthy” or “not so healthy”. We need to guide people out of the self-imposed prisons in which they stay by turning from diet book to diet book to then diet program. We have been set free and yet also are warned not to go back to the yoke of bondage. Sometimes freedom is scary and bondage comfortable, but in that bondage we never experience true peace, we never fully live.
It’s time to stop perpetuating the lie that all it takes is the “right” diet plan. People must stop judging by appearances and how much someone weighs even if we’re the ones judging ourselves it must stop. Live in freedom, encourage one another, tear down the strongholds diets and food have held in your life. Live and experience life to its fullest, move and use the body that was so meticulously designed by the Master Creator of the universe and called good. Then watch and see how your health, spirit and life change and even touch and transform others.
