"With beach season stretching to nearly all year round in Dubai, the pressure is high to have the perfect bikini bod," says 23-year-old model Christine. "Literally every single woman I know has ventured into some diet at some point in their life."Eun Sung, a 19-year-old college student, is happy to alternate between binge eating and dieting. "I love my food, but I also love my body. At 19, it's a catch-22 situation. Eat my heart out and be happy, or starve and be beautiful. I want the best of both worlds. Why not create the third option of eating my heart out while still maintaining a beautiful body?" she asks. Sung's diet of choice is the Lemonade Diet. "Ten days is all it takes to rid myself of any unwanted bulges."
It is easy to see why a number of fad diets have cropped up all over the city, with each trend securing its own devotee list. But Belinda Rennie, a Dubai-based nutritionist, warns that overnight diets are extremely dangerous. "Weight lost so quickly is always prone to return, unless there is an awareness of the origin of the problem."
And yet women all over, desperate to lose kilos overnight, are putting themselves at risk by making uninformed diet choices, often based on nothing more than word-of-mouth details.
Based on interviews with various readers is the list of the top five diet trends in the UAE.
Lemonade Diet:
What: Courtesy Beyonce, the Lemonade Diet, or Master Cleanse, is considered the ultimate quick-fix for instant weight loss. One is expected to substitute meals for a glass of the homemade lemonade. Dieters can drink up to three litres of the lemon, maple syrup and cayenne pepper mix, plus as many glasses of water as they desire, for a minimum of 10 days. A morning coffee fix can be replaced with a cup of decaf peppermint tea. Additionally, dieters are expected to drink a cup of caffeine-free laxative tea every night before bed and a glass of sea-salt water every second day.
How long: A minimum of 10 days
Pros: Lemons are extremely cheap and going on this diet will cost close to nothing. The diet doubles as a cleanser, helping rid your body of unnecessary toxins.
Cons: Hunger is a major issue as the lemonade isn't filling. The lemonade mix doesn't contain many of the nutrients that your body needs on a daily basis.
Expected weight loss: 5kg in 10 days
Cabbage Soup Diet
What: This low-fat, high-fibre diet provides a great kick-start for a more sustainable method of losing weight. On this diet, one can have unlimited quantities of a specially prepared cabbage soup, interspersed with fluctuating amounts of vegetables, fruits and steak.
How long: 7 days
Pros: Instant weight loss. One can eat unlimited quantities of the foods allowed.
Cons: Dieters have complained of a lack of concentration, gas, nausea and dizziness. Rapid weight gain at the end of the diet.
Expected weight loss: Up to 5kg in 7 days
The Atkins Diet
What: One of the most successful diets of the last few years, the Atkins methods includes cutting out carbohydrates such as bread, rice and potatoes from one's daily consumption. The diet implements eating more protein and fat causing the body to go into a state of ketosis, which means it burns its own fat for fuel. The diet revolves around four phases, all of which include eating exceedingly large amounts of protein daily.
How long: Two weeks onwards
Pros: One gets to eat unlimited amounts of food that most diets ban, such as meat, cream, cheese and eggs.
Cons: As the body goes into ketosis, it could result in increased amounts of uric acid which, in turn, may cause kidney problems and headaches. The high amounts of animal meat and fat consumed can have a negative effect on cholesterol levels.
Expected weight loss: 7kg in the first two weeks.
Dukan's Diet
What: Touted as France's number one diet, the Dukan diet is divided into a four-phase plan. One may consume only proteins for the first 3, 5 or 7 days, followed by at least a month of alternating between proteins and vegetables, and then gradually introducing carbohydrates into the meal plan in stage 3. Stage 4 involves creating a diet that you then have to follow for the rest of your life, provided at least one day each week is devoted to proteins only. Similar to the Atkins diet, the Dukan's diet focuses on proteins and eliminates carbs until the last stages.
How long: One month and above
Pros: Rapid weight loss during the first phase. Since there is no portion control, one can eat as much as wanted of the permitted foods.
Cons: Since this is a protein-rich diet, it is nearly impossible for vegetarians or vegans to go the Dukan way. On the protein-only days, the likelihood of constipation is high — one needs to drink a lot of water and eat oat bran to combat constipation.
Expected weight loss: A minimum of 5kg, going up to as much as the person desires to lose.
Hypnotherapy
What: The theory underlying the hypnotherapy route to weight loss is that weight is a wall one surrounds themselves with as protection against the rest of the world. A qualified hypnotherapist will assist in understanding what needs to be done to break it down and achieve long-term weight loss. Monisha Parwani, a hypnotherapist at Third Eye, explains how eating habits are "a subconscious programme. With hypnosis, one can reprogramme a person into healthy eating, thereby releasing the need for unnecessary cravings".
How long: One needs to go through an average of five sessions
Pros: No extreme starvation diet. No side effects, and it builds a healthy relationship with food.
Cons: One needs to stick to the programme for at least a month for results to start showing. Works in conjunction with other modalities such as exercise.
Expected weight loss: As much as desired.
Get on your feet
We know no workout is fun without a good pair of shoes. How about the SRR (Skechers Resistance Runner)? Called an "intelligent" shoe, the SRR aligns with the laws of human bio-mechanics - returning your stride to a natural state and helping you achieve higher levels of fitness in shorter workouts.
This helps you burn more calories while also improving muscle activation. The kinetic wedge technology helps reduce injuries and enhances your performance.
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