I was recently reviewing a diet program (I won’t mention the program name), when it struck me just how much misinformation gets circulated. The diet program itself was fine. I think that it could help some people to lose weight. But as I read the e-book explaining the diet, I was honestly shocked at some of the statements made.
Many diet programs seek to have an ‘angle’ or a new take on the issue of dieting. That’s all very well, and I do see the need to differentiate your diet program from the competition. But, when you are selling a diet program, there is a responsibility to re-check your facts and clarify any statements that could be misunderstood or taken out of context.
“Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler” – so said Albert Einstein, and he was right. Attempts to over simplify weight loss and dieting can put you at risk of creating half-truths or misleading statements. Rarely in this field is anything black and white. When writing an e-book you should take the time to ‘qualify’ your statements and reasoning.
If the reader remembers only a little of your e-book or seminar, you can bet that it will be those half-truths or out-of-context quotes that will stick in their mind. The human mind attaches to such things much more readily than to long winded facts.
So, I’ll go over a few of those misleading points here, and I’ll do my best to not give away the program’s identity.
1. High intensity exercise is useless for fat loss. I was quite surprised to read that. It is well known that high intensity exercise is the most effective exercise for fat loss. Yes, you need to make sure that the intensity is sufficiently high, else the effect is lost, but that doesn’t make it useless. It is important to make sure that your workout is truly high intensity and not just mid level. Due to the intensity required I always recommend that you seek medical advice before starting such exercise. Also I suggest wearing a heart monitor to keep the workout in-check.
2. The best form of exercise for fat loss is walking. Brisk walking is outside of the traditional ‘fat burning zone’, as it is not sufficiently vigorous. So, on this count I agree that walking can be an effective method for fat loss that stays off. However I think that high intensity workouts, above the ‘fat burning zone’, are far superior for fast and effective results. Not all dieters will be able to start with such demanding workouts, and so walking is a viable alternative. But don’t expect walking to bring on results as quickly.
3. Honey has no health benefits over white sugar. This is a prime example of where inaccuracies can create misinformation. It is possible that both sugar and honey are similar for calorific values. I haven’t verified that. If it is so, then there would be no significant weight loss benefits from switching to honey. But, as far as your health is concerned, I can’t see how a highly refined product such as white sugar, could be considered equal to something as natural as honey. And the programs suggestion to use artificial sweeteners is just utter nonsense.
I could continue and list many more inaccuracies, but I think the main point here is that even good diets programs can be filled with misinformation. As I already said, the actual diet was sound; it was only the explanation and background information that was suspect.
Because such incorrect content is so prevalent, it makes sense to immunize yourself against the misinformation. The only sure way to do this is by learning the core principles of weight loss and nutrition. Once you are clear on the principles it becomes easy to spot the errors, and keep your own dieting efforts on the right track.
Want to find out more about the principles behindfast fat loss, then visit Phil Sanders’s site on how to choose the best safe and fast weight loss diet for your needs.