This  cold, first Monday morning of the year as I was drinking my first cup of coffee and perusing my news feed, I observed a few advertisements for the newest, most modern weight loss systems to be had on the market. They are all variables of the same theme though – take our expensive supplements and you will be rocking your swimwear at the beach this coming summer. They all promise that their revolutionary and proprietary blend of herbs, green coffee bean and green tea are going to get you slim with no effort on your part. One of these brands have you adding an appetite suppressant combined with vitamins to your drink of choice in the morning, and then another blend of magical voodoo to another drink at lunch and dinner. And lastly another concoction to make you have a bowel movement the next morning.  Here is what was reported by the Federal Trade Commission on one specific supplement business I am referring to:

FTC alleges Neora, formerly known as Nerium, operates an illegal pyramid scheme

The FTC has announced a lawsuit against Neora, LLC, formerly known as Nerium International, LLC. The FTC alleges that Neora, an international multi-level marketing (MLM) company that sells dietary supplements, skin creams, and other products, is an illegal pyramid scheme. The FTC also alleges that it deceptively promotes its Nerium EHT dietary supplement by making unproven claims that it’s a breakthrough antidote for serious brain diseases.

Are you going to trust your health to a shady pyramid scheme?

Besides the obvious health risks that come from fad diet schemes and supplements, they will also doom you to weight loss failure because they require nothing from you except to hand over your hard earned cash. They really do not require you to actually plan ahead and think for yourself about how to successfully manage your weight in neither the short nor long term. Successful weight loss and weight management is not rocket science, but it requires planning, and action on your part in order for it to be lasting and meaningful. Your plans do not have to be long and drawn out, but you must always plan ahead as you would with anything else in your life.

Would it not be reasonable to assume that our health is the most important component of our lives?

We should be able to agree that without good health, most everything else becomes secondary when we can no longer live to our fullest extent possible, when we cannot take proper care of our families, when we struggle just to enjoy being alive because we are too sick and hurt all the time. While there are certainly conditions that can just happen to any of us, there are also a great deal of ailments that are a direct result of how we live our lives. Metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes, most heart disease, and several others are a result of us living in the moment and not planning ahead for the future by living healthy lives in the first place.

When it comes to weight loss, we’d all like a quick fix. And plenty of diets promise that, advertising results that sound too good to be true. But the truth is, successful weight loss and management comes down to a formula we have always known:  we have to eat a variety of healthy foods in reasonable proportions and combine that with exercise. The changes you make to your lifestyle should be ones you can live with forever. There’s no finish line when it comes to healthy eating and being active, I don’t even like using the word ‘diet’ because so many people think of it in terms of something you do for a while and then stop.

You shouldn’t need special supplements or equipment to eat a healthy diet. You are an individual who is capable of your own thoughts, instead of going on a fad diet, make small changes in your habits that you can sustain. Take the time to get to know yourself and what your body needs to be healthy!  When it comes to fad diets, it doesn’t matter which one we’re talking about. It’s the idea that you need to go on a diet in the first place that needs challenging. You deserve more that  a temporary solution to what for many people is a lifelong problem.

If you really need a plan set up for you to follow, then follow this one. It is simple, easy and requires no hard earned money out of your pocket other than what you spend on your groceries anyhow:

• Keep a record of what you eat. If you feel you need structure to help you lose weight, log what you eat for a few weeks. This will help you identify bad habits, and give you a general idea of how many calories are in various foods.
• Move your body. Do something you like, do it on a regular basis, and do it for more than 20 minutes. If you enjoy it, you’ll be more likely to do it regularly. You don’t have to be a hard-core triathlete to be active. Start with 10-minute walks and move up from there.
• Each week, set two small goals. For example, if you love doughnuts, pledge not to eat them for one week. Instead eat an extra serving a day of something healthy, such as a fruit or vegetable. If you succeed with that small goal, you’ll feel good about yourself and gain momentum for adopting healthy behaviors.
• Try new things. Eat the healthy things you know you like, and also experiment with new tastes to stave off boredom and cravings for junk food. You probably haven’t tried every fruit and vegetable available at your local supermarket. Learn to get creative in your kitchen with herbs and spices.

Always remember to consult with your doctor before beginning any new diet or exercise regimen.