The “Yo-Yo Effect” of Dieting

The “Yo-Yo Effect” of Dieting

Most of the pounds lost during fad diets not only come back, but are compounded. The reasons for this are two-fold: “starvation mode;” and ongoing bad habits. Once a person gets to a certain weight, he begins a new diet. This lose weight/gain weight cycle is called the “yo-yo effect.”

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“Starvation mode” works like this: when a person doesn’t give her body enough calories in a day, her body is unhappy. It says, “I’m not getting enough food. I’ll store ALL the calories I get as fat so when I get starved again, I’ll have enough fuel.” This is one reason why many people will balloon up in weight shortly after going off their diets and experience the yo-yo effect.

The second reason why dieting causes the “yo-yo effect” is that diets don’t teach people how to change their eating habits. A poor lifestyle of junk food, outrageous portion sizes, and lack of exercise all contribute to obesity. A “green tea and pineapple” diet does not teach a person how to lose weight and keep it off.

Dieting doesn’t work. Most fad diets might provide initial weight loss, but in the end, those lost pounds will come back, with a vengeance. The only way to keep the weight off for good and to stop going through the yo-yo effect, is to go on a high carbohydrate, low fat, plant-based diet and to stick to it; long term.

There are plenty of great weight loss recipes on this site that we recommend. They are not only healthy — but they’re super delicious, too! You won’t even know that you’re eating healthfully!

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