Juice Diets & Detoxes – 4 Reasons They Aren’t Your Weight Loss Ticket of the New Year

Christmas is the season for overindulging, leading to many people on the weight loss train at the beginning of the new year. I know some of you reading this are going to be thinking ‘Nope. You’re wrong. I lost a ton of weight during my detox’

And I’m not disputing that, but those results aren’t down to the detox and ..

1. Those results won’t last

The reason you lost that weight is because if you’re drinking your meals you are likely not consuming the amount of calories you normally would, putting your body into a calorie deficit.

Making such a huge change in your calorie intake is bound to result in weight loss. But the thing is you can achieve the same results by eating the correct solid and nutritious food. I recommend counting your macro’s as I explain in this post. It allows you to have moderate and sustainable eating habits whilst healthily working towards your weight loss goal.

Even if these diets lead you to lose weight, it won’t last because ..

2. They aren’t sustainable

Fad diets such as detoxing are just that. A fad. They don’t last. How many people do you know have completed these diets and lost weight actually maintained that?

These diets are not sustainable because they require you to make such a monumental change to your lifestyle. I wrote more about the sustainability of short-term diets here.

That’s why I’m such an advocate of moderate and sustainable eating habits.

3. Your body can already detox by itself

The people who promote these diets want you to believe that your body has a bunch of toxins it needs to remove in order for you to lose weight.

Your body already detoxes itself on a daily basis – that’s what your liver and your kidneys are there for. Any toxins that your organs can’t deal with will certainly not be healed with juice diets.

Besides, a diet filled with liquified fruit and vegetables wouldn’t be effective. These diets are low in fibre which the body needs to process and excrete waste.

4. They are unhealthy and unsatisfying

These diets put you at a calorie deficit, which can put you at risk of a number of health issues, such as nausea, fatigue and diarrhoea.

These juice diets contain almost no protein which is essential for growth and repair. As well as this, protein is the macronutrient responsible for making you feel full after a meal and minimise your hunger.

Not only is there a lack of protein, but also a lack of essential fats in these diets. Fats have important key functions within the body, including hormone production and the transportation of certain vitamins.

The bottom line

These diets aren’t completely useless. They can help you to get more fruits and vegetables into your diet. But you don’t need to liquify them to achieve that. And that shouldn’t be the only element to your diet.

The weight loss associated with these diets is down to the calorie deficit, not the diet itself.

If you want to lose weight and maintain that, avoid quick fix diets such as these. The best and most effective way to do it is with a healthy diet and regular exercise. Something you can adapt your lifestyle to permanently.

Here’s to 2018 folks!

A.x