All right collegiettes, it’s crunch time. With spring break less than a week away, everyone seems to be freaking out about losing that extra five pounds in time for their beach getaway. The gym is getting more and more crowded and meal portions seem to be getting smaller.
In reality, if you haven’t been preparing your beach body for some time now, there really isn’t much you can do the week before you need to be in a bikini. Crash diets do not work and they are not healthy. You may “feel skinnier,” but the more you crash diet, the more likely you are to quickly gain that weight back as soon as you get back on a normal schedule.
According to CNN, crash diets can harm your heart and cause nutritional deficiencies. There are ways you can feel better about your body in time for spring break without subjecting your body to the harms of crash dieting. Here is the truth behind a few crash-dieting myths.
Myth: Crash dieting and fasting makes you lose weight.
Fact: Short term, yes, you will probably drop a pound or two and feel skinnier. However, once you start eating normally again (or hit up the all you can eat buffet on your cruise), the weight will quickly come back. Also, most of the weight you are losing is water weight, which really isn’t “real” weight loss.
Myth: The weight you lose during a crash diet will stay off once you stop dieting.
Fact: Rapid weight loss will cause your body to go into starvation mode. Your metabolism will slow down and your body will burn fewer calories per day in order to preserve calories. Once you get off your crash diet and increase your caloric intake, your body will still be burning fewer calories per day, so you will most likely gain weight as soon as you start eating normally again.
Myth: Crash dieting just burns fat.
Fact: Crash dieting will burn fat, but it also burns lean muscle and tissue. So in reality you are losing the one thing that will make you look toned and in shape while in a bikini. Muscle also weighs more than fat, so getting on a scale while crash dieting can be very deceiving.
Myth: Forcing yourself to purge after eating is a quick and easy way to lose weight before spring break.
Fact: First off, throwing up after eating is never a healthy weight loss regime. This might seem like a quick and easy way to lose weight, but it is rarely effective and the harmful effects on your body are endless. In reality, a significant amount of the calories consumed will still remain in the body even after purging. Your body will store any food it can manage to keep as fat.
Myth: Doing extra crunches the week before spring break will cause you lose weight in your stomach area.
Fact: You can’t spot train and lose weight in just one area of your body. And you definitely cannot tone one particular area in less than a week. Weight loss is a whole body deal. There is no such thing as losing weight in one particular area.
So, if you want to look and feel great during spring break, it might be best to stick to your normal routine and avoid any crash dieting techniques. There is no effective and healthy way to lose a significant amount of weight in a short amount of time.