The Dreaded Consequences of Yo-Yo Dieting  

(Jayne Freeland - July 2009)

Have you been going up and down on the scales? Chance are, you are like many, many women who find themselves in the yo-yo dieting world. We want to lose weight for a special event, so we hop on the fast track train to weight loss only to find the pounds creeping back with a vengeance. The same effect takes place when we become exercise fanatics and give it our all for a month or so and then slowly go back to the usual sedentary lifestyle. 

What does yo-yo dieting do to your body? 

Metabolism 

Very low calorie diets (VLCD’s) are the mainstay of yo-yo dieting. You might be consuming as little as 1000 calories or less when you try to drop weight rapidly. The effect is a lowered metabolism. Let me explain why. 

Your body was designed to survive. If you aren’t eating enough, your body goes on conservation mode, much like when animals hibernate. It feels as though there must be a reason why you’re not eating. Your body believes you cannot eat, not that you are choosing not to eat. It begins to hoard whatever you give it and store it as fat. It slows digestion. It takes energy from lean body mass (muscles).  

The result is weight loss, but not the right type. Because your metabolism is low, it will be more difficult to burn fat. You won’t have energy to exercise, and when you do muster up the strength to go a few miles on the treadmill, your body robs the energy from your muscles. You may lose weight, but your appearance may be less than flattering.  

When you start eating normally again (and eventually you will, nobody can survive on 1000 calories a day forever), you will gain back the weight and then some because you’ve messed with your metabolism. 

Alternatively, grazing throughout the day on small portions of healthful foods will raise your metabolism and make it easier to lose fat while providing your body with the tools it needs to build lean body mass. More lean body mass means a higher metabolism.  

Nutrient deficiencies 

It’s also impossible to receive all the nutrients your body needs on very low calorie diets. Your health will suffer and your body will not run as efficiently. This could mean build up of toxins and the creation of an environment prone to weight gain not weight loss.  

As well, if you are exercising at the same time, you are bound to be producing too many free radicals because you haven’t allowed your body the proper energy it needs for exercise. Free radicals can cause premature aging and all sorts of health problems such as cardiovascular disease and cancer. Then, you proceed to not give it the antioxidants through a proper diet to combat the effects of free radicals.  

It’s just not a good thing. However, you probably knew that. Trickier are the diets that sound healthful, such as Atkin’s or South Beach. They are, but you still aren’t providing your body with enough energy and you are losing weight too quickly. In addition, you may find it difficult (and expensive) to stay on this type of strict diet for a long time. Eventually, you may go back to eating the foods you enjoyed previously. You’ll then gain the weight back. 

In the end, you have to find a means to control your appetite and cravings by empowering yourself to want to make healthier choices.

 
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