Fad Diet = a quick, promising, life changing plan to weight loss, or a "healthier life". What they don’t tell you is that  these diets don’t work. Why? Because change isn't always a quick fix or an simple checkmark. Diet culture has definitely caught on to this definition, the buzzwords, and most importantly, how people are reacting to them. So… what do they do? They call it something else:

HEALTHY Lifestyle
Short term nutrition reset
HEALTH Journey

Anything that will curve your belief of thinking its a “diet”. But it is one. One in disguise. Very sneaky.

It’s not the New Year - but summer is (slowly) approaching and these fellas are in season. Let’s dive in and debunk:

• Whole30: Okay - yes, you push whole fresh fruits & veggies. Sweet. But you also bash nutrient filled items such as legumes (gimme the fiber), dairy (uh, calcium!!), grains (more fiber and uh energy??? Gluten??? anyone???). I will repeat, ANY DIET/PLAN/JOURNEY THAT TELLS YOU TO STOP EATING A FOOD GROUP IS A NO-GO. They also tell you that you can’t snack, okay so what if I’m hungry 10 minutes after breakfast? Are you giving me permission to have my second breakfast? And oh, yes… what happens to me on day 31? Binge binge binge and more binging because I just deprived myself of the foods that my body not only wanted, but needed, for the past month.
   
• Alkaline Diet: This one gets me. Basically these fellas are saying that you must feed your stomach alkaline base foods (so, foods that aren’t acidic to make sure you don’t mess up the pH of your system and imbalance all the metabolic action happening there). News flash: our bodies are smarter than us. Our tummies normally have an acidic pH. This is why a lot of nice juices are secreted to properly engage in digestion. Sooooo, no matter what you eat, a thick orange or the most bland cracker, your tummy will be able to do its job and digest it, metabolize it, absorb it, and send it on its way. Truly very easy - all you have to do is eat in order for it to do its job. Miraculous.
   
• Macros Diet: Also known as IIFYM -- “If It Fits Your Macros.” Your what? Your macronutrients - carbohydrates, fats, proteins. This diet is usually for those who are super into Crossfit, bodybuilding, etc. It’s an obsession and it probably isn't fun. It’s counting calories which makes eating food turn into your math homework. It promises to cut all cravings and decrease hunger. You start with appropriate percentages based on how much you exercise and what your body type is. Toss the calculator and the belief that feeling hungry or having cravings is a bad thing. Please.
  
  Trust me, I know that people are constantly looking for a quick cheat sheet on how to eat the perfect amount of foods to lose the perfect amount of weight to lead to the perfect life. But it’s not really a thing… Eat the foods you want to eat. Maybe you are diggin’ that kale salad for lunch, but if the cookie by the register is flirting with you then grab it too. The more you view your diet as a rule book, the more “guilt” you’ll feel when you don’t abide it. Not only is that not right, it’s just not fun.