BlubberBusters Tips from Lucy

Is My Diet Making Me Fat?

Have you been trying to lose weight all summer...and gained weight instead? Have you been trying to lose weight for months or even years and only seen you weight go up instead of down? Sometimes kids and teens try to lose weight by dieting. Some diets set people up for failure. Ask yourself the following questions. If you answer yes to any or all of them, your diet is keeping you from your goals!

• Do you try every fad diet that comes your way? Maybe you have tried the Low Carb Diet, the Low Fat Diet, the Cabbage Soup Diet, and the Fruit & Veggie Diet. None of them worked, so now you are trying the Tuna Diet.

  Fad diets set up people to fail. Instead of tricking your body to lose fat, the diet is tricking you into a gimmick. Fad diets come and go for a reason. They don't work! They don't make our bodies healthier! Here at Blubberbusters, we encourage healthy eating and balance of all foods. To find out more about fad diets, click here.
  

• Do you starve yourself all morning and afternoon to save your calories for later?

  Many kids and teens skip breakfast and lunch thinking it will help them lose weight. Skipping meals makes it harder physically to lose weight. It puts our bodies in something called a "starvation mode." Also, not eating all day long, or even "saving" your calories for later makes many kids and teens binge later on. No matter what is going on, try to eat within the first hour of being awake and then a meal in the middle of the day. Then, eat dinner and healthy snacks between meals if you need them.
  

• Do you see foods as only "good" and "bad" in your diet? When you eat "good" foods for a certain amount of time, do you deserve a treat? Sometimes that treat ends up being a big binge of the "bad" food. Then, the binge makes you feel guilty. To make up for the binge, you allow yourself only "good" food. The cycle begins again.

  Food is not a treat. Many kids and teens (and even adults) group food as either "good" or "bad." In reality all food is good. Trying to change how you think about food may help you eat healthier. When kids and teens learn that all foods are good, they stop binging. They stop feeling guilty about certain "bad" foods. This makes them not want as much of it. Remember, food is not a "treat." Instead, treat yourself with a new CD, new clothes, or exercise equipment when you are happy with yourself!