The word diet has negative connotations
The word diet often leaves us feeling restricted and forces us to think about the foods we can't eat, so it comes as no surprise that research says it takes just 59 hours for our weight loss plan to fail.
The new survey carried out by BodyProject.com, showed that as Brits prepare themselves for their new diets 69% of people will eat more than usual with 37% packing away a staggering 2000 extra calories before the restrictive diet begins. 49% of women said they ate between 500 and 1000 extra calories while men admitted to eating more than women.
Just 11% of women said they ate more than 2000 calories in the 48 hours prior to a diet while more than a quarter of men said they had eaten almost an extra days worth of calories.
It seems that it may all be over by day three for most diets, as more than half of Brits surveyed said they had given up by the evening of the third day, with late afternoon and evening snacks proving too tempting. Those surveyed said they had lost their willpower and eaten restricted foods almost 60 hours in, most of those saying 8pm was breaking point with many turning to chocolate and biscuits. 86% of all dieters said they had failed by the end of day seven. Even with a mind-boggling £1.8 billion being spent on diet products per year it seems we are still in pursuit of the ever elusive holy grail of dieting.
When asked about the number of diets they started each year, 38% of women said they thought they started 12 diets a year, and 5% said they started a staggering 24 a year, equating to a new diet every other week. A quarter of women said they had restarted a diet for as many as four weeks in a row. The most popular diets included the Paleo Diet, Atkins and the 5:2 fasting diet.
Daniel Bartlett, health coach and founder of BodyProject.com said: “As a nation we are more body concious than ever, yet this obsession with weight is not having the desired effect on our waistlines according to the rising levels of obesity.
“Fad dieting, restricting whole food groups and an all-or-nothing mentality is leading to bad relationships with food and as the survey results showed, the bingeing behaviour seems to start before the diet has even begun, proving the psychological effect even planning to cut down on certain foods has on us.
“The average dieter wants quick results, which can be achieved with a crash diet, but cannot be maintained. It’s important to have a well-rounded approach to lifestyle and weight loss that involves exercise, a balanced diet and most importantly, a better mindset so that unhealthy behaviours are changed for good.”
Tagged in Diet Weight loss