Slim Fast Reviewed: Overpriced “Sugar-Milk?”
This is part II of our discussion of the Slim Fast Diet Plan.
If you missed Part I of the Slim Fast article, click here to read it!
As I was saying, the extreme caloric restriction of the Slim Fast Plan means dieters are likely to encounter several major problems…
First off, you’ll be starving — really starving. Sure, on the TV commercials it all looks pretty easy, but in real life one “nutritious” shake is not going to carry you through to midmorning and certainly not through to lunch. You’d better crank up the willpower on this diet, ’cause you’re going to want to eat.
Secondly… there is so much sugar in these shakes and so little fiber, your blood sugar levels are going to go through the roof—especially if you happen to be hyperinsulinemic, or hypoglycemic (in fairness, Slim Fast has addressed this with newer versions of the shake by ramping up the fiber content. Fiber slows the digestive process, which will lead to less dramatic upsurges in blood sugar levels).
So you can look forward to intense cravings, fatigue, a lack of productivity, mood swings, and more cravings.
OK, if problems one and two weren’t enough to change your mind, then get ready for number 3, ’cause it’s the kicker…
Because caloric levels are so low on the Slim Fast diet plan, you run the risk of losing muscle (lean tissue) along with the fat.
Well, so what, right?
Wrong – when you’re dieting, you want to hold onto every last ounce of muscle tissue.
Beyond the effect of muscle loss on your strength and metabolism, muscle is what gives your body its shape. It’s your muscle mass that will determine whether you look “lean and mean,” or whether you just end up as a smaller version of your former, heavier self.
Of course, since the Slim Fast diet focuses on weight loss (as measured on your scale), and not tracking your body fat percentage (which provides an accurate indication of how your weight loss program is really progressing), you’ll never know just how much fat you actually lose on this diet (to learn how to properly assess your success or failure on any diet plan, check out this blog post on measuring your body fat percentage!)
