The New Year has come and we've all (hopefully) taken down those flashy string lights. Not long after we've vacuumed up the pine needles and tinsel, our TV's become inundated with ridiculous diet commercials. I'm not sure which is worse: the cheesiness of the commercials themselves or the "Yeah Right!" diet plans.
The Cookie Diet
I'm an equal-opportunity cookie eater. When I saw the commercial for the Hollywood Cookie Diet®, I knew that my love for these baked goods, no matter how great, could never make me think eating cookies to get healthy is a good idea. This diet plan comes from Hollywood Diet®, the same people who bring you the 48-Hour Miracle Diet® (lose up to 10 pounds in two days!). The Hollywood Cookie Diet® goes like this: eat one of their cookies for breakfast, a mid-morning snack, lunch and an afternoon snack. Just remember to eat a sensible dinner and you could be like Jim from Port St. Lucie, Florida who lost 42 pounds.
While this plan may actually work for some people, I'm pretty sure I'll want to chew off my arm come dinnertime. Not to mention you're dependent on them sending you a supply of cookies to keep the weight off. At $19.99 for a 3-4 day supply, I can think of better things to spend my money on.
The Taco Bell Drive Thru Diet®
Taco Bell emerged this year with a plan to take on Subway. Christine Dougherty (a.k.a. the new Jared) claims to have lost 54 pounds in two years by eating Taco Bell food. I have nothing against Taco Bell. Their pseudo-Mexican food has salsa-danced their way into America's heart. And I have no doubts that Dougherty is the real deal. I bet she really did lose those pounds by eating the Fresco menu's "7 delicious items, all under 9 grams of fat"...with about 10 bagillion hours in the gym. Taco Bell will always be the place to go for 10-cent tacos, enough said.
Nutrisystem
Nutrisystem returns year after year, like Old Faithful, with a new barrage of celebrity endorsers. This time around it's crazy lady Marie Osmond. If you're not familiar, Nutrisystem sends their food directly to your door. The food actually looks good, but anyone who's ever tried to make it through the day on a frozen diet meal knows it's not so easy. This is probably the most do-able of the three, but what happens when you don't want to spend money mail ordering your meals anymore? I'm a skeptic and will remain one.
So many people want that quick fix weight loss without putting in the work. I'm certainly not a diet expert. In my amateur opinion, some of these crash diet plans are on par with ordering a burger and fries, with a diet soda. It doesn't make much sense.
I wish everyone a happy and healthy 2010. You're perfect the way you are, but if you want to get healthier, please do so responsibly.
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