Stay away from both!

For a time back in the last century (the 1990′s, remember them?) Beanie Babies were all the rage. People would follow delivery trucks from Hallmark store to Hallmark store hoping to score some of these rare creatures. Stores would put a limit on the amount you could buy and people were paying upwards of $100 trying to get their hands on some of the the elusive “special edition” plush gold mines.

Joshua was born in March of 1999 and I can remember us trying to get our hands on the special edition St. Patrick’s Day green bear. After battling the elements and crowded stores we finally landed one…and we got a steal: $25 along with a plastic case to store our beloved trophy in. All this hype for animals that were made from factory leftovers and retailed for $5.

Today, over 10 years later that $25 Beanie Baby is now worth about $.25. A lousy quarter! Months of effort for basically nothing. Fads are like that.

Besides Beanie Babies, remember:

• Bell bottoms?
• Disco?
• 8-Tracks?
• Parachute pants?
• The “Don Johnson look”?
• VCRs?
• CDs?
• And the list goes on, and on, and on…

Fads are like that. One day that’s all anyone talks about. Shortly thereafter they are forgotten, covered with dust (either literally or metaphorically) stuck away in someone’s closet waiting for the next garage sale.

Fad diets are the same way!

When I was my FFS (Former Fat Self) I tried the Mayo Clinic Diet (which was never even actually endorsed by the Mayo Clinic). Basically it was similar to a low-carb diet except for every meal you were required to drink unsweetened grapefruit juice. Needless to say this gold real old real fast. I felt miserable when I was on the diet (even if I was losing weight) and I felt even worse if I slacked off and “cheated” on a meal. I didn’t last very long on it.

When I finally made the lifestyle changes and set out to lose weight once and for all, one of my vows was to never, ever do a fad diet. No Atkins. No South Beach. No cabbage soup!

Why?

Because I knew that when I lost the weight I would go off the diet and then chances are the weight would come back on. Because that’s what happens with fad diets. You can only cut out carbs for so long and if you eat the same thing over and over again you will get tired of it. Then you will go back to your old habits and the weight (probably even more) will go right back on.

The way to lose weight and maintain a healthy lifestyle is to make permanent lifestyle changes. Fad diets cannot be maintained forever. Making better food choices for each meal, however, can be maintained. This gives you a much better chance of being healthy for the rest of your life.

So please, stay away from these diets!

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