In the United States, we're currently fighting off obesity.
What's at fault?
Some may say fast food. Others say low level of activity. Maybe both.
Thing is, America is getting really really fat and it has become a problem.
Of course, companies are using this as an excuse to come up with crazy diet and work out programs.
I watch plenty of television throughout my day, and I can truly say that the market is running out of ideas.
And this may not seem a shock to most coming from a 17 year old,
But recently I've not been quite happy with the person I see on the mirror.
I will randomly find love handles on my sides and when I watch TV and see those ADs,
it really does get me thinking about those products.
There are so many, but do they actually work?
The before & after results just seem so ridiculous, I don't know whether to believe it or not.
I just saw a smoothie ad and the guy said there would be a 14 day free trial, and when I went to the website, MyFreeSmoothies.com , Turns out it doesn't exist.
So I went to the "As Seen On TV" website and found tons of items, but the smoothies one wasn't there. I'm pretty sure it was a scam.
Yet on the ASOTV site, there were some crazy things.
Slim patches?! Hollywood 48-Hr. Miracle Diet?! Nutrasystem?
I'm afraid to spend money on these to have them turn out crappy.

Have you ever tried any crazy As Seen On TV diet or fitness programs?
Do you want to? Do you think it's a scam?
Tell me what you think about the media taking advantage of our obesity problems to create imaginative crazy expensive diet programs and fitness machines.


http://www.asseenontv.com/fitness.html

All these fad diets are garbage. Starving your body of food or a certain nutrient (like in those low-carb diets) makes you miserable for a reason: your body needs those nutrients. Even if you do lose weight, you will regain it all when you start eating normally again. And those "miracle" smoothies and drinks are just glorified fruit juice at three times the cost.

Having love handles is not necessarily a bad thing because some people are naturally larger than others. What is important is staying healthy, not staying thin, and so long as you don't eat too much junk food and stay reasonably active, you'll be fine. Teenagers feeling insecure about their looks is nothing new, and just judging from your avatar, you don't have a weight problem.

I think 90% of them don't work. I have seen some programs like P90x that I know works... the real problem is sticking to it.

I think what people need to do is to set up a regular exercise routine involving walking/running (whichever they can do) and some weight training.... and then combine that with healthier eating and those combined will make losing weight/getting in shape easier.

The one thing that I've never understood is the removal of certain foods completely. I don't have the willpower to never eat cake again and I don't think you should have to do that. I think as long as you have things like that in moderation (only take 1 slice) then it shouldn't be a problem.

Traduweise : Hah I'm not much of an active person and I only eat like one big meal a day with small snacks throughout the day. The computer, sleeping, eating, and TV is my life right now. Lol.

geeogree : Well I think that's the problem these days, with me being an example, Americans aren't even trying to get active. They don't WANT to run or do any form of exercise whatsoever. With all the new inventions coming out, it's making the world a lazy place. The cars will soon drive themselves someday. Did you know that the new Honda Odyssey 2011 is going to come with a mini-fridge storage type thing in the front? That's not helping out the obesity problem. People are gonna try to store ice cream & other frozen treats in there.

And yeah, you cut down on that. Take just one piece, not the whole cake. Save some for the rest of us. Haha. Jk.

Being active doesn't mean jogging or going to the gym, it just means you're moving. In fact, stuff like lifting weights won't help you lose weight, it just builds muscle. So long as you eat somewhat healthy food and spend an hour or two a day moving, you shouldn't be too badly off. Also, it's probably healthier to eat several meals a day instead of lots of snacks.

Incidentally, when it comes to cake, my philosophy is to eat as much as possible.

Traduweise : Haha. Nice one on the cake. ;D

There are two things that decrease weight: Increasing exercise (which does build muscle, but that also builds your metabolism - also, muscle is denser than fat, so you lose inches even when you don't lose pounds), and decreasing calories in a sensible manner. Any fad diet is going to be impossible to maintain, for the simple fact that it's unnatural to 'drink two smoothies in place of your normal meals' for the rest of your life. Anything that promises to 'melt fat away' without changing your diet or exercise amount is, to put it bluntly, quackery.

The easiest way to change your diet is to simply eat less of the things you already eat. Instead of super-sizing that value meal, eat the regular one - yes, the food is still pretty bad for you, but I'm willing to bet that you're actually full after you finish that much. Instead of eating on a 9-inch dinner plate, eat on a 6-inch sandwich plate. Go back for seconds if you want - but chances are that you won't feel like it.

Drink water. Drink an 8-ounce glass before meals, at the very least. Often times, when we think we are hungry, we're actually thirsty. When you want a snack, have a glass of water first. Have the snack later if you're still hungry.

Exercise can be found in simple things. Walk whenever you can. Take stairs whenever you can. Fill an old milk-jug with water (sand if you need even more weight), and you have a handy weight to lift. Replace your computer chair with a balance ball to tone your muscles. If that's not feasible, there's a 15-minute 'office workout' (use that phrase on your favorite search engine) that requires nothing more than a sturdy chair, and maybe a wall or doorway. It's designed for people with the 'I don't have time and I can't afford to get sweaty on my lunch-break' excuse. This is something you can do while waiting for the next WoW patch to download, or while watching videos in the Retro Cartoon Room.

I can't say that NONE of them work because I've never been obese or overweight to know. However, I have a friend who was overweight 2 years ago...she started the "atkins diet" which is a very strict diet...you can't eat bread or carbohydrates (not 100% certain) but I do know it's a very strict diet that limits you to pretty much just water and eggs! Any who...she was on the atkins diet and doing the fat burning work out known as "tae bo".....she lost over 100 pounds and kept it off for 2 years now. Whether it was the diet...tae bo...or a combination of both that made her lose all that weight...she did. So I'm going to have to say yes..SOME of them do work... It's a matter of dedication and will power I think....

Atkins is designed to force your body to break down fats instead of using glucose for energy. It's important to be careful with it, because it can make your blood lean towards the acidic side - if you have any issues with your kidneys, or either form of diabetes, that can be very dangerous. It's not a diet that you can stay on forever, because it unbalances your nutrition by eliminating entire food groups (especially fruits and veggies!)

Also, Tae Bo is an incredible form of exercise. Most martial arts are, because they involve lots of different muscles. Tae Bo + eating sensibly = weight loss.

Oniya : Thanks for the pointers, and for sticking to the topic of the thread (: That was real helpful.

YourMajestyKen : Lol that sounds really nice, but what are your opinions on the TV diets where apparently they "send" food over to your house that makes you lose weight apparently or the other fitness/diet products that are sold through the TV monitor.

sophielove23 : Well the ones that send food to your house as a diet plan..those usually are never successful because the food tastes stale, tasteless and like crap which eliminates the purpose of the person wanting to lose weight. The person wants to be able to lose weight and still eat tasteful foods...not the ones that have no flavor and taste like diet card board.
As far as the fitness...I think it could potentially work. It's a matter of time, effort and dedication to WANT to lose weight. I think the fitness has more possibly of weight loss than a diet..cause some people are just too stubborn to say no to food.

And Oniya...yes everything you stated about the Atkins diet is true. thankfully she never got to that point of sickness. She no longer diets..however, she is a martial artist thanks to Tae Bo. I would definitely recommend tae bo to anyone who wants to lose weight.

I have never tried one and I never will. I have a six pack for crying out loud! I do not need this stuff, I am just naturally a strong and lean guy. I have not had problems with weight since fourth grade. Not just that but I doubt they work.

My favorite tv diet/work out ad is the Shake Weight commercials, they are way too funny. But i am sure most are non effective.