Crash diets are a complete no-no

It sounds easy to practise--eating less and even skipping meals to get rid of those few extra kilos around the waist or thighs. Crash dieting or starving may be the sure shot route to shedding weight, but is it sustainable? No. 

Does it have any long-term implications?  Yes, say dieticians and fitness experts. It could result in a whole host of health complications, including fatigue and malnutrition. A crash diet should never be one’s fitness mantra.

According to a recent survey by AC Nielsen, which covered respondents across 60 countries, 49 per cent believed that they were overweight, and 50 per cent were trying to lose weight. Shruthi Ashok, a working professional who diets often, is able to identify with the respondents. 

She says that she follows a simple routine: she stays off food throughout the week, eating only fruit and buttermilk, and binges during the weekend. “It does work, butI gain as much as I lose once I get back to my routine food habits,” she says.

Alkhas Joesph, fitness trainer, says that he often comes across people, especially women, who feel that starving can be a fitness regimen in itself. “It doesn’t help at all. In fact, it makes you crave food more and you actually end up eating more than you need to. 

Say you starve through the day and you go home and binge on ice cream and chocolates. These are high in calories and they defeat the entire purpose; you will gain more weight,” he says. He tells his clients to eat according to the day’s requirements. “If you have a hectic day and it involves a lot of physical activity, a heavy breakfast helps,” he adds.

Today, it is not the Body Mass Index alone that determines the correct weight, points out Dr Krithika Ravindran, Cosmetic Surgeon and Age Management Consultant. It is a combination of good food, exercise and stress management, she says. 

“People take to crash dieting thinking that it will help them reduce fat, but they also lose muscle in the process. When you lose muscle, your energy levels dip,”she points out. She adds that many stay away from fat in their diet, but fat is not always bad. 

“Good fat is equally important in your diet. It is important for your cells and for storing Vitamin D. It is a problem only when fats become carbs. Carbohydrates are important for those who are engaged in manual labour. Fats help in brain function and proteins act as building blocks,” she says. ‘Stop those experiments’ Dr Dharini Krishnan, Consultant Dietician, says that she is often approached by people after their experiments with their own set of diet regimens fail. 

“I see a number of youngsters who have completed school and now want get into shape for college after a couple of years of working hard. On the other hand, I have clients, adults, who, after trying out a number of options on their own, realise they are not sustainable in the long run,” she says. 

The obsession over weight loss is driving people towards adopting tactics—be it fitness or diet—without any knowledge of their body type, says Fharzana Siraj, Consultant, Therapeutic Yoga. “They must understand that no two bodies are the same and one’s body has a temperament that can change every day. Looking up the Internet and blindly following diet patterns is going to yield few, far-reaching results,” she says. 

“We are where the West was a few decades ago. They have become smarter and moved towards natural products. On the other hand, we use technology to connect with everyone else, except ourselves,” she adds.