6 Steps to Ending Bad Eating Habits

6 Steps to Ending Bad Eating Habits

A client wrote, "Help me! I thought I was finally getting a handle on my weight issue but the sugar is killing me. I had an awful day. I won't even tell you what I ate today because it is just so unbelievable. All I will say is that 90% of my food today consisted of sugar! I really, really need some help getting past these cravings. I am no doubt a sugar addict. If I could get past this there is no doubt that I will reach my goal."

If you see a little of yourself in this message, you're not alone. Many describe themselves as sugar addicts. They believe if it were only for that one thing, then they could reach their weight loss goals. If you believe only one thing stands in your way of losing weight, consider this: What if that one thing (an  addiction to sugar for instance) were gone? Do you really believe, "If I could get past this, there is no doubt that I will reach my goal," or is it an easy excuse to stay stuck?

If I told you I could show you a way to stop craving sugar, would you want me to show you how
Think about that for a moment. Close your eyes and really think it through. You've said if only you didn't crave sugar, then you could lose weight, but is that really true for you? Ask yourself these questions:

• Would you eat differently, and if so how?
• Would you act differently, and if so how?
• What else would change, and what would stay the same?
• What would you lose?
• What would you gain?

Until you know what you want, know you can achieve it, and know what else will change (i.e. how your life may be different), you can't discover any obstacles that first must be considered. For instance, you may want to stop eating anything after 7 PM yet your husband doesn't come home from work until 8 and he wants you to join him for dinner. That's an obstacle.
If you've got a habit of watching your favorite TV show with a bowl of ice cream, then breaking that habit is another obstacle.

If you don't work out ways to overcome your obstacles perhaps through discussion and compromise with your husband, or habit breaking exercises for your ice cream habit, there's bound to be a problem. Just saying you're not going to do something any mroe rarely works. Instead determine what might stand in the way of achieving your goals, find a way around them, and you're much more likely to actually achieve those goals once and for all. 

The statement, "if this one thing were handled, then everything else would fall into place" is an "If Then" statement and gets people into trouble. They want a fairy godmother to make it all better. A strong belief that one single thing such as, "eating sugar is my problem," sets you up to fail, especially if you really like eating sugary foods.

Getting a handle on your cravings is not an all-or-nothing proposition. You must leave room for occasional deviations. It's not the occasional side trip that causes weight trouble, it's the road we usually travel.
In NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) a good starting point is the exercise called Establishing a Well Formed Outcome. "Well formed" means it meets all criteria of a well thought-out end result.
<b>NLP: How to Create a Well Formed Outcome & Get What You Want</b>
Here are the steps to creating a well formed outcome:

1) State what you want (not what you do not want). "I want to weigh 135 pounds."
2) Determine whether you can achieve it (do you believe it is possible?).
3) What resources do you have and what do you need (time, money, gear, clothes, equipment, coaching, whatever).
4) Check whether anyone else is involved and any potential obstacles that may come up regarding others. Think of everyone involved in your day-to-day life.
5) Picture yourself "as if" you've obtained what you say you want and see if that picture fits. Do you like what you see?
6) Put together a plan of action for the achievement of your outcome.
While it may seem like a lot of effort simply to decide what you really want, going through these steps at the beginning helps you find potential obstacles which previously stopped you from moving forward. For example, if you decide you want to join a gym and start exercising every day but you've forgotten you don't even own a car and just lost your job, that exercise plan might not work out right now. If you did join a gym, you'd end up not going and then you'd think you'd failed, yet it was the plan that failed, not you. You didn't think it through.
A better plan in this instance may be doing exercises at home, or within walking distance (or simply walking for exercise). Later, when you do have transportation, you can rethink the plan and perhaps join a gym then. There are always options.
It's better to look at what you want from every angle, then put together a plan you know can and will work. Then when you know what you want, you'll also know you can make it happen and begin by taking that first step toward making it a reality.
"Achieving a Well Formed Outcome" is one of the sessions in the Ending Emotional Eating 8-Week Workshop. You can also find more information on this popular and well known NLP process by searching for "NLP Well Formed Outcome" in your favorite search engine.

How to Lose Weight in 2017

Check out the interesting weight loss info at http://howtoloseweight2017.org

What Is A Healthy Low Carb Diet

What Is A Healthy Low Carb Diet

With all the adverse publicity on high protein low carb diet, how do you know what is a healthy diet to follow?

The new diet research says that rather than just limiting the amount of carbohydrates in your diet, you should be looking to eat only those that have a low GI index - glycemic index

The GI Index measures the speed at which glucose is released into your blood stream following consumption of a specific food. If you do not use all the glucose you consume, your body converts it to fat and stores it. Not ideal when you are trying to lose weight.

So how do you know if a food is low GI or not?

Most supermarkets have now started coding their foods so you should be able to see from the packet. The foods that you would normally avoid on a diet also tend to be high GI i.e. cakes, biscuits, white bread, white pasta etc.

The good news is that chocolate is a low GI food but this doesn’t mean that you can eat loads of it! Avoid any added sugar based ingredients and opt for a plain bar of dark chocolate if you want to treat yourself.

Barley, quinoa, new potatoes and yams are all low GI foods so would be good staples for your healthy low carbohydrate diet.  Apples, dried apricots, citrus fruits, plums and tomatoes are all good low GI fruits but avoid Watermelons, peaches and bananas.

You should increase the quantity of water you drink especially as most slimmers increase the amount of fiber in their diet by eating more vegetables. You should aim to drink at least 8 glasses of water a day. Drinking water helps to lose weight as we often misunderstand our body’s signals and eat when in fact we are thirsty.

When you are trying to follow a healthy low carb diet, it is useful to watch your portion size. As a nation, we are used to consuming large portions of everything. Reducing the size of our meals will help you to lose weight as will eating a little and often rather than one large meal a day.

Never skip breakfast as countless studies have shown that you re likely to consume more calories later in the day than you save by not eating this important meal. Eating soup – the old fashioned kind not the instant microwaveable variety, will help to keep your energy levels stable and lead to less cravings.

Drink skimmed instead of full fat milk. Eat low fat yogurts but watch for hidden sugars and sweeteners. Keep alcohol intake to a minimum as not only does it contain empty calories but also lowers our inhibitions leading us to eat the wrong foods.

Keep yourself busy. We often eat due to boredom rather than hunger. Get moving every day to increase the amount of energy you consume. Reducing your food consumption while increasing your activity will help you lose weight as will following a healthy low carbohydrate diet.

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6 Tips for Staying Positive During Weight Loss

6 Tips for Staying Positive During Weight Loss

Staying positive throughout the weight loss process can be difficult. A few setbacks and you may be ready to give up. Staying motivated throughout your weight loss journey requires focus on the goal and positive thinking – but what do you do when you’re feeling less than positive about your efforts?

Use these 6 Tips for Staying Positive During Weight Loss:

1. List Your Reasons: 
List your reasons for choosing to lose weight. Whether it's for health reasons, or simply to be able to fit into your favorite dress again – list it.
Then make several copies of the list, and place them where you'll be able to see them regularly. Keeping your goals in front of you will help you remember why you're doing all this in the first place.

2. Never Say Diet: 
Don't use the word diet if you can possibly avoid it. This conjures up images of deprivation, and you end up feeling sorry for yourself. Instead, tell yourself (and others) that you’re not on a diet, but that you are trying to make healthier choices.

3. Don’t Use the 3 letter "F" Word: 
Avoid using the word fat when describing yourself. This includes your thoughts. Thinking about how fat you are and how bad you think you look will only bring you down and stress you out. Stress often equals eating another bag of cookies.

4. Use Positive Adjectives: 
Instead, use another adjective that you prefer. Heavy, voluptuous, overweight - these all have nicer connotations than “fat” and will help you to see yourself in a more positive light.

5. Focus on the Positive: 
Think about all the things you like about your body, as well. If you have great hair, for example, focus on that as you attempt to lose weight. This takes the focus off of the body parts you dislike, and helps to get rid of the stress.

6. Find a Role Model:
Instead of focusing on celebrities that are thin, find a celebrity that is larger and attractive, or one that is struggling with weight loss. This allows you to choose a realistic role model.
Positive body image can be difficult to find when you're struggling to lose weight. Focusing on your positive mental and physical traits will help you to be comfortable in the body you have.
This allows you to work towards better health, instead of simply working to be skinnier. Overall, this is a much healthier approach to weight loss, and will help you stay positive throughout the process.

This article is for informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, nor should it be interpreted or substituted as medical advice. Prior to making changes to your physical exercise routine and your diet, you should always consult your personal physician. Better safe than sorry.

5 Healthy Tips for Weight Loss

Eating healthy is a vital component of slimming down. Dietary fads that focus on eating one type of food (for example carbohydrates) or totally eliminating others (such as fats and sugars) never last because for your body to stay healthy it takes many of these foods, however in moderation.

5 Healthy Tips for Weight Loss are:

a) Understanding what to eat

b) Knowing when to eat

c) Understanding how much to consume
d) How to simplify your purchasing

e) How to correctly prepare your food intake

There is so much information available on what to eat that we occasionally get so confused we quit before we get started. Understanding what to eat isn't as difficult as it seems. The key is within the food pyramid. The majority of your diet plan (Six to seven servings) ought to be made up of grains (the bottom of the pyramid). These include wholegrain breads, cereals, rice and pasta. Next are fruits and vegetables which will provide the fibre, vitamins and essential minerals that the body needs. The closer the vegetables and fruit are to their natural state, the more nutritious they will be (processing removes nutrients). Dairy and protein (milk, cheese, meat) are what is necessary for strong bones and muscles. Maximize nutritional impact by selecting lean cuts of meat for your 2 -3 daily servings. The top the pyramid is oils and fats, meaning they should be consumed sparingly. Full of flavor, but low in nutritional value, select unsaturated fats, nuts and vegetable oils.

Knowing when you should eat is one thing we all know, becasue it is something our parents told us, eat when you're hungry and stop when you are full. Unfortunately, this really is one of the most difficult items to control. Because of busy schedules and existing bad eating habits a lot of us often eat by the clock, breakfast at 7, lunch at noon, dinner at 6pm, whether we're hungry or not. A whole lot worse, is that we often snack constantly (or regularly) between meals, so rather than three balanced meals, we are more likely to eat Five to six unbalanced ones.Just how much to eat is equally as big an issue as knowing when to eat. Today things are super-sized, value-sized and pretty much over-sized. Two daily servings of meat are not much since an amount is just 2 oz. A typical restaurant steak is at least 8oz, that is twice your everyday requirement. The same goes for virtually all the foods we eat. A serving of salad dressing (from the fat and oil group) is just 1 tbsp, not the more than 1/4 cup we unknowingly pour on in the salad bar. Understanding portion control is essential to maintain a healthy diet.

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Simplifying your shopping might seem at odds using the need to eat a wide variety of foods to maintain a well balanced diet but it's not. The more ingredients you include in a recipe, the more processed foods and empty calories you add to your diet. By continuing to keep recipes simple, not only will meals taste better, but they will also be filled with all of the nutrients your body needs, provided you do not cook it out of them.In addition to choosing healthy food, how you cook them will determine just how much nutritional value you end up, which is why it is also important to know how to properly prepare the foods you consume. Although raw carrots are the most nutritious, does it matter should you boil or steam them before serving as a side dish? Boiling removes all of the carrots essential vitamins, which end up discarded using the water, while steaming maintains their color, texture and nutritional value. So how you ready your meals are just like essential as what you're preparing.If you bear in mind these five simple tips, you'll be on your way to eating healthier and losing weight.

Diet and Energy Tips

Detox With Colon Cleansing Diet Tips

It seems as if every time we get to looking, there is another colon cleansing, "energizing" weight loss program which will detox your system, cut the fat and help you to drop the weight. People offer colon cleansing diet tips to help those people who are suffering from problems such as fatigue and sluggishness from excess weight. If you've ever tried one of these diets and failed it's no surprise because these diets can be difficult to stay on. That's why before you try your next cleansing diet, you need to have good solid information which will not only help you to get through the actual diet, but also help you to transition back into normal life without undoing all the good you've done.

The first thing you need to know about a colon cleansing diet is that you have many different options. There are herbal cleanses, fiber programs, diets and fasting and oxygen cleanses. So, you need to know what type of detox and colon cleansing diet you want to go on. For many first timers, the fiber programs are the gentlest and offer good results, but if you're looking for something more intense, you might want to consider a specialized diet. One of the most important colon cleansing dieting tips which should never be ignored is to determine your age and total health before you consider one type of colon cleansing diet over another. If you tend to become very weak when you don't have food after a couple of hours, for instance, you may want to rule out fasting, which could have very negative side effects for you.

You should also know that you can choose how quickly you want your detox diet to work, because some are very intense, but work quickly, while others are gentle and slow, so it's up to you. For instance, if you will have the time to dedicate to an intense approach, you may choose to just get your colon cleansing diet over and done with.

Another very important colon cleansing diet tip is to begin a pre-diet routine by changing what you eat for a few days. Each of these programs will include instructions as to what you should be eating before you begin so that you can attain optimal results with your colon cleanse diet without negative side effects such as cramping and discomfort. You should always do what's right for your body, though and don't pick a colon cleanse diet which is too harsh or you could become very sick from the very same toxins which you are trying to rid yourself of.

Most of these programs recommend that you cut out all processed foods between 3 and 5 days before you begin your colon cleanse diet and eat about half of your daily calorie allowance in fresh fruits and veggies. Another colon cleansing diet tip which is very often recommended is to cut out all the dairy products from your diet. You should also consider eliminating meats and breads from the diet as well, since they can cause your body to form mucus in the system.

Once you begin, make sure to pay attention to the colon cleansing diet tips and advice from professionals and don't get discouraged if you don't achieve your full desired results on the first try. Instead, stick with the first one and repeat again in the recommended amount of time for best results.

Jennifer Johnson provides information and resources on many natural treatments and therapies. To reclaim your health in 10 days or less and detox with colon cleansing diet tips, visit 'Alternative Medicines Guide' http://medicinesnaturally.com/category/reviews/master-cleanse-review/

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Atkins Diet Tips - 6 Powerful Atkins Diet Tips

In this article you will find six useful Atkins diet tips.

It is no surprise that the Atkins diet spreads around the world like wildfire to help you out with your weight loss battle.

I give you seven tips to get more results from the Atkins diet.

Atkins diet tip 1 # 1 Get protein from lower fat sources

If you want to apply the Atkinson diet effectively you must eat foods that contain low fat.

Examples of some lower fat sources are chicken, olives, pasta dried fruits and so on.

Atkins diet tip 2 # Drink water.

Whether you like it or not if you follow the Atkins diet you have to drink water.

Drinking water is necessary to keep your metabolism active.

Try to link at least eight glasses of water in a day.

Atkins diet tip 3 # Take a picture

It is important thay stay motivated.

Take a picture of yourself before you follow the diet and share it with your partner, friends, colleagues and family members.

Now every time you want to quit with the atkins diet look at the picture and see how far you have come?

Atkins diet tip 4 # 4 Try a low fat carb fruit dessert.

No good meal without a dessert. However if you want to lose weight pay attention.
Do not cakes, ice creams or giant pieces of apple pie.

Yes they are very tasteful but if you do this say goodbye to your fat burning efforts.

Instead try a low fat carb fruit dessert. Well here are some fruits you can eat and believe me they are almost as good as apple pie perhaps sometimes even better.

Try this out melon, pears, grapefruit, blueberries, strawberries.

Atkins diet tip 5 # Make your diet public

You want to follow a diet but you are a little bit unsure what people will think about you.

Don't be afraid dieting is not a crime. Instead tell people about your plan to follow an Atkins diet plan.

In fact telling your friends, partners and co workers will increase your accountability.

Atkins diet tip 6 # Choose the right Atkins diet book.

Well I keep it simple the best books related to the atkins diet are the books from Dr Atkins himself.

Of course there are other great diet books written by others too.

Don't forget to do research about it you it is better to spend fifty bucks on useful information that ten bucks on crap information.

I'm sure these atkins diet tips will help you to lose more weight

However if you're not sure about it ask a doctor or diet specialist for help

The medical industry is scamming you.
A weight loss expert is revealing it all in his free report. Visit my blog to get your instant copy of it, hurry up while it is still free.
If you want to learn much much more about weight loss visit my 
weight loss tip website

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12 Diet Facts and 12 Diet Tips for Losing Weight Quickly

Would you like to lose weight fast?

Following these diet tips are a good first step on the way to saying goodbye to 10 pounds of unwanted fat. Just pay attention to what you eat and be sure to have good tasting, fresh and healthy food including snacks, fill up on vegetables and keep your taste buds happy with fruit. Just follow these weight loss diet tips that you can use daily, with ease. Help to create your bodies' own fat burning furnace. Be sure to practice a healthy lifestyle and introduce consistency into your diet & fitness program to lose weight quickly and to make the fat loss permanent. No need to make sacrifices! Just follow these simple guidelines and diet tips.

1. For a tasty low fat mayonnaise spread, try mixing one teaspoon of Dijon mustard or Satay sauce with a low fat yoghurt to taste. Diet tip 1: Keep a note of everything that you eat and drink. You do not need to estimate calories. Just write down what it was that you had and the approximate quantity. You will find that being more aware of what you are eating helps you to plan healthy meals and snacks.

2. Don't miss out on meals. Trying to cut calories by excluding a meal actually works against you because your body's metabolism will decelerate to compensate and start to conserve energy. Eating smaller amounts more regularly can increase your metabolism.

Diet Tip 2: Halve your intake of all pure or added fats. This means using half as much butter or spread on your bread, toast, muffins and potatoes; half the usual amount of mayonnaise or sauce on your salad; and half the oil in the frying pan every time.

3. Include a lower fat source of protein at most meals: chicken, fish, beans, cottage cheese, or low fat yogurt. Have eggs, nuts and red meat occasionally but not every day.

Diet Tip 3: Using vegetables such as capsicum and zucchini and stuffing them with flavoured fillings or minced up white meat, chicken, fish etc is a healthy low fat alternative.

4. Plan at least one lunch and dinner every week without meat or cheese. Build those meals around whole grains, vegetables and beans to increase fiber and reduce fat.

Diet Tip 4: Pita bread wraps are great for salad fillings

5. The most beneficial time to exercise is about 8 hours after getting up. A at this time of day, the body's metabolism starts to decelerate. So, take a half-hour of exercise before you have dinner this will increase your metabolism enabling you to burn fat for up to 3 hours after your work out is over.

Diet Tip 5: It is better to exercise than not at all.

6. Include at least two servings of vegetables at lunch and dinner. If you are getting hungry, have more.

Diet Tip 6: You can put extra iron in your diet by adding some alfalfa or mug beans to your regular meals.

7. Grated carrot makes a great snack. You will find that a grated carrot is much more filling than a whole carrot. Take time out to learn about nutrition, what foods are good for you and what foods you should keep away from

Diet Tip 7: Get creative with some healthy recipes.

8. When cooking leave out as much salt and sugar as possible. Look for healthy alternatives, such as using low fat yoghurt instead of cream. Use whole grains wherever possible. The fiber will give you a fuller feeling and also help your digestion.

Diet Tips 8: Replace salt with other herbs and spices to taste.

9. If you are serious about start a weigh loss program consult your doctor before you start. You must assure yourself that there is no medical reason that might stop you actively trying to lose weight.

Diet Tip 9: Metabolic enhancers - such as chilli - they help turn your body into a fat burning furnace

10. Choose food that you can chew. Again this will increase your fiber intake, and the act of chewing will make you feel more satisfied too. This means eating fruit instead of drinking juice. If you have soup, make sure it is chunky.

Diet Tip 10: Eat slower and make sure you chew longer and never rush a meal.

11. Plan your meals and snacks ahead of time. Plan your shopping too - make a list of what you need and stick to it. If you just grab something when you are feeling hungry, you will probably choose high calorie food.

Diet Tip 11: Eat little and often - have healthy snacks - it is better to eat several times instead of only one or two meals a day.

12. Do not eat in front of the TV. Studies have proved that we eat larger portions in front of the TV, probably because we are much less aware of what we are eating.

Diet Tip 12: Don't eat anything if it is less than 3 hours before you go to bed. Get into the habit of eating healthily and lose weight quickly.

These are just some of the things you can do, with ease, to help you get into losing weight quickly. 12 Diet facts and 12 diet Tips to help you discover how to lose pounds. You will feel satisfied and more energetic than in the past without feeling deprived of food. Go Here and discover how to lose weight quickly.

Stephen J Skyvington-Diplock has been active on the web for a number of years. He currently he has a number of websites on the web marketing various products in various niche markets. You can reach him at skydco@tiscali.co.uk.

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Weightloss tips and tricks! (with old pictures)

Good video for you

3 tips for the ultimate weight loss breakfast

I love breakfast.

It is exceptionally rare for me to miss breakfast, and when I do, I am in a prickly mood most of the day, ravenous by mid-morning, and making poor food choices by lunch.

And it’s not just me.

Research has shown that breakfast skippers have an overall poor diet quality and make lousy food choices throughout the day compared with breakfast consumers. Not surprisingly, breakfast skipping is strongly associated with an increased likelihood of weight gain.

Thus, one could argue, breakfast may very well be the most important meal of the day.

While simply having breakfast is great, what you have for breakfast can make a big difference.

Here are the top 3 ways to ensure you get your day off to a good start.

1. Load up on fiber

I’ve previously discussed how having a breakfast high in fiber may be more satiating for a smaller number of calories, and thus may be one important way to help manage hunger and thus caloric intake. I’ve also discussed another study showing that a breakfast high in fiber and with a low glycemic index (the degree to which an ingested food causes a spike in blood glucose levels) may enhance fat oxidation during a subsequent bout of exercise.

2. Don’t forget the protein

Studies have shown that consuming breakfasts high in protein is associated with decreased appetite over the following hours and a reduced caloric intake during lunch by comparison to low-protein breakfasts. A recent study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition also found that a high protein breakfast curbs evening snacking by comparison to normal-protein breakfast in overweight or obese young women who normally skipped breakfast.

3. Don’t be shy with the calories

This point may seem counterintuitive, but let me explain. A study published late last year compared two 1400kcal weight loss diets in a group of overeweight or obese women with the metabolic syndrome: high-calorie breakfast (700kcal breakfast, 500kcal lunch, and 200kcal dinner) versus high-calorie dinner (200kcal breakfast, 500kcal lunch, and 700kcal dinner). Over a period of 12 weeks, the women eating the hearty breakfast showed over a 2-fold greater weight loss (8.7 vs. 3.6 kg) and reduction in waist circumference (8.5 vs. 3.9 cm) by comparison to the women eating a hearty dinner. What’s more, the women in the high-calorie breakfast group showed better improvements in most metabolic markers, including fasting glucose, insulin, insulin sensitivity, and triglyceride levels. In fact, while mean triglyceride levels decreased by 33.6% in the high-calorie breakfast group, they increased by 14.6% in the high-calorie dinner group. Finally, women eating a big breakfast reported greater satiety and less hunger throughout the day.

So what will you have for breakfast tomorrow?

My current go-to breakfast consists of ~175g of plain 4% Greek yogurt, with a couple tablespoons of granola, and a handful of fruit (most common: apple, bannana, blackberries, raspberries, mango). If I’m feeling particularly hungry that morning, I may add a poached egg or two. So on the low end of the spectrum, I’m getting approximately 20g of protein (yogurt + granola), up to 30g (~5g per egg) on the higher end if I decide to include a couple of eggs.

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5 Pieces Of Dieting Advice From The '90s That'll Make You Want All The Burgers

In many ways, today's consumers are more savvy than previous generations when it comes to dietary concerns. There is a trend toward eating more whole foods in general, as well as plenty of fresh, locally grown fruits and vegetables. But this is in stark contrast to the dietary trends that our foremothers followed. In fact, plenty of dieting advice from the '90s will make you want a burger right now. Or at least a veggie burger.

Basically, starvation — or at least extreme dietary restrictions — were heavily encouraged. And, counterintuitively, so was the consumption of highly processed foods. It was a lose-lose situation for most any one who wanted to gain control of their dietary habits.

This was a time when advertisers would have you believe the solutions to all of your dietary concerns lay at the bottom of a bag of Snackwell's Devil Food Cookies. Because if there was one true health food in the world, it was a "fat-free" cookie or other packaged snack food. It's no surprise that food culture has taken such a turn away from these ideas in recent years. That said, it's fun to take a look back and marvel at how some of these trends seemed like such a good idea at the time. Sometimes it's a better idea to ignore the fads and trust your gut.

 1. Try The Grapefruit Diet

Do you remember this ish? It's basically all grapefruit, all the time. Although the original diet dates back to the 1930s, as noted in WebMD, you probably know a friend-of-a-friend who tried it out during its '90s resurgence. According to Healthline, the grapefruit diet is restrictive and could lead people to abandon the plan altogether.

 2. Only Eat Fat-Free Foods

If one diet trend dominated the 1990s, it was low-fat or fat-free. You could not walk down a single aisle in the supermarket without seeing those terms a thousand times over. Even fast food got into the mix with McDonald's McLean Deluxe burger (and a vintage commercial on YouTube you need to see).

Unfortunately, this idea had some rather disastrous consequences. According to NPR, the fat-free trend might have caused weight gain for a lot of people, because food manufacturers would "take out the fat; [and] add lots of sugar." Yikes. Oh, and this trend also lead to the whole olestra debacle, a fat substitute that turned chips and french fries into abdominal disasters, as recounted in Time. Thankfully, kale chips don't seem to produce any deleterious effects, so it looks like consumers have much better options now.

3. Use Pills

Sure, the premise sounded good: there's a pill for almost every ailment, so why not dieting? But the reality of diet pills in the '90s was much different. For instance, the weight-loss drug Fen-Phen was withdrawn from the market by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 1997 due to its potential risks to the heart.

4. Go Low-Carb

Ah, yes: the era of bun-less hamburgers. In the late '90s (and into the early '00s), the Atkins Diet was all the rage, with people everywhere eschewing carbs and starches for protein. But even this long-lived fad diet had a drop-off point, and by 2003 the Independent reported the Atkins diet was no easier to follow than other dietary programs.

5. Zone Out

It you walked into a bookstore in the mid-to-late '90s, chances are you were confronted by giant stacks of Enter the Zone books by Barry Sears. The Zone diet followed a combination of carbs, fat, and proteins that apparently help your body work more efficiently. According to WebMD, the diet's weight loss goals of about one pound per week are reasonable, although it is unlikely that all of the weight loss will be purely fat and not water or muscle.

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