Friday 10 July 2015

Crash diets - yet more reasons to gradually lose weight

No, this isn't me and further more, I don't really need to lose weight.  Plus I should reassure you I have only ever been to prison in my professional capacity.  This is a story about a man who did need to lose some of his weight, although not for the best reasons.  I spotted this slightly amusing but tragic story through a work related site called No Offence!

The story goes that this man, Matt, was held at the Clinton Correctional Facility in New York.  He and an accomplice hatched a plan to escape which involved getting through a pipe.  In a dry practice run he found he was too fat to get through the pipe and this led to him going on a crash diet.

After a while he was slim enough for the escape and the pair were actually successful in escaping.  They remained at large for a few weeks before both being shot by the Police.  One died and the other, injured, was returned to prison.  Everyone knows no good can ever come of this kind of thing - escaping from prison or even a crash diet.

The trouble with crash diets
While a crash diet can help someone lose weight quickly, it isn't exactly an enjoyable or a wise approach.  Sure, a heavy person is wise to cut down on junk food and empty calories; i.e. processed rubbish which is fattening and has no real nutritional value.  Such a person will gradually use their fat to provide the energy they need in their daily fuel and become thinner and lighter.  This perhaps might be handy if you're wanting to escape from a prison but it is not the healthiest thing to do as we all know our health can deteriorate if we miss out on daily Vitamins and other nutrients.  It can lead to short term problems with lowered immunity and store up some longer term health risks.

Another reason why crash diets are a bad idea is simply because they are unlikely to be sustained.  It is all too easy for someone who has lost weight rapidly to find that they have regained that weight soon after.  They simply don't work for most people.

The better solution
A more healthy approach is to lose weight gradually, slowly and consistently.  You will stay healthy, establish a life changing habit that is more likely to be sustained and that is the key for healthy living.

For Matt and his accomplice (sadly RIP) escaping from prison and being shot by Police is not good for their health either.


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