{"id":1473,"date":"2019-09-27T16:02:23","date_gmt":"2019-09-27T16:02:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/peykmagazine.com\/en\/?p=1473"},"modified":"2019-10-14T15:42:57","modified_gmt":"2019-10-14T15:42:57","slug":"1473","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/peykmagazine.com\/en\/2019\/09\/27\/1473\/","title":{"rendered":"5 Most Popular Weight Loss Diets"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/p>\n

By Sanaz Majd, MD<\/b><\/p>\n

Atkins, Keto, Weight Watchers, Flexitarian, Paleo<\/strong> \u2014 if you\u2019re trying to lose weight, it is all enough to make your head spin. This year\u2019s U.S. News & World Report ranked 41 of today\u2019s most popular diets for weight loss and best overall diets:
\nhttps:\/\/health.usnews.com\/best-diet\/best-weight-loss-diets<\/a><\/p>\n

The results for the weight loss rankings are quite interesting and may actually surprise you.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s review the pros and cons and weigh in on (no pun intended) 5 of the most popular diets of today.<\/p>\n

Atkins<\/b><\/span>: Ranked #17 out of 41 in best weight loss diets, #37 in best diets overall. <\/span><\/p>\n

The Atkins diet initially gained headlines in the 1970s, accusing carbohydrates of being the culprit of obesity, rather than fat. Now, almost five decades after Atkins, the medical community has finally started to shift its goals away from recommending a \u201clow fat\u201d diet to now slashing the carb intake. We have now concluded that the causes of the ever-increasing obesity epidemic are carbohydrates like bread, rice, tortillas, potatoes, pasta, sweets, and sugary drinks.<\/p>\n

NOT Fat.<\/b><\/p>\n

Here\u2019s how the Atkins diet works: high fat and higher protein consumption are the key, along with minimal carbohydrate (aka \u201cglucose\u201d) intake. If there is insufficient glucose circulating in the blood stream for fuel, your body doesn\u2019t have a choice but to enter a metabolic state called \u201cketosis.\u201d While in ketosis you will start burning your fat stores for energy next, hence weight loss. There are 4 phases:<\/p>\n

Phase 1:<\/b><\/span> requires you to restrict carbs to less than 20 grams a day from vegetable sources, for 2 weeks minimum. It requires protein at every meal, and no restrictions on fat intake.<\/p>\n

Phase 2:<\/b><\/span> allows you to gradually increase vegetable carbs and lasts until a 10-pound weight loss is achieved.<\/p>\n

Phase 3:<\/b><\/span> here you will continue to gradually add back about 10 grams of carbs a week, now including whole grains and fruits. But you must cut back on the carbs if your weight loss plateaus.<\/p>\n

Phase 4:<\/b><\/span> once goal weight is achieved, you maintain that balance of carbs, protein, and fats for life.<\/p>\n

Pros:
\n<\/b>\u2022 Foods are tasty, most especially for carnivores.
\n\u2022 Weight loss is one of the most rapid of all diets.<\/p>\n

Cons:<\/b><\/p>\n

\u2022 You can gain the weight back just as quickly.
\n\u2022 It\u2019s extreme and therefore quite a challenge to keep up long term for many people.<\/p>\n

\u2022 If you do choose to give it a shot, opt for healthier non-processed, fat-rich foods, such as avocados and nuts\/seeds,and healthier protein choices, such as chicken, fish (not fried), turkey, etc.<\/p>\n

\u2022 With such little fiber from limited fruits\/veggies, there may likely be changes in your bowel \u2014 if you\u2019re prone to constipation, beware.<\/p>\n

Keto<\/b><\/span>:<\/span> Ranked #12 in best weight loss diets, #38 in best diets overall.<\/span><\/p>\n

Now, fast forward almost 5 decades, the \u201cketogenic\u201d diet is another rather extreme, but more straightforward, version of Atkins. Yet it is perhaps even more restrictive in its carbohydrate allowance, limiting it to anywhere from 20 to 60 grams of carbs a day depending on the version \u2014 this is often less than an apple a day. For being perhaps the diet with the most hype around it today, it did not rank too well.<\/p>\n

Its pros and cons:\u00a0 <\/span>similar to Atkins.<\/p>\n

Weight Watchers<\/b><\/span>:<\/span> Ranked #1 in best weight loss diets, #4 in best diets overall.<\/p>\n

Interestingly, Weight Watchers ranked pretty well in today\u2019s diets. It incorporates a rather balanced diet, using the appropriate amount of each food group into the regimen. It does so by using a point system, where every edible item is assigned a point value depending on how healthy it is.<\/p>\n

Pros:
\n<\/b>\u2022 it\u2019s not as restrictive with any particular food group-you can eat what you want, just in limited quantities.
\n\u2022 If you like the idea of being held accountable for your weight loss, the support and handholding is a big plus-they use in-person weigh-ins, phone calls, or online chats to achieve this.<\/p>\n

Cons:<\/b><\/p>\n

\u2022 It\u2019s costly.
\n\u2022 It\u2019s non-sustainable for many long-term. What happens when you don\u2019t have weigh-in sessions and are on your own? Will you keep it up for life?<\/p>\n

Flexitarian<\/b><\/span>:<\/span> Ranked #3 in best weight loss diets, #3 in best diets overall.<\/span><\/p>\n

Why did it rank so high? The flexitarian diet is really a vegetarian diet that allows the flexibility of an occasional meat product.<\/p>\n

Pros:
\n<\/b>\u2022 It\u2019s heart healthy.
\n\u2022 It can improve cholesterol levels.<\/p>\n

Cons:<\/b><\/p>\n

\u2022 It\u2019s meat-lover misery:\u00a0 <\/span>If you love meat and are not fond of veggies\/fruits, it may not be sustainable long term.
\n\u2022 You will need to watch the carbs \u2014 often a challenge for some vegetarians, especially if you eat out.
\n\u2022 You\u2019ll need to make extra effort in meal planning and learning how to eat as a vegetarian in order to obtain the proper nutrients.<\/p>\n

Paleo<\/b><\/span>: <\/b>Ranked #31 in best weight loss diets, #33 in best diets overall.<\/p>\n

The overall Paleo message is pretty simple \u2014 if the cavemen didn\u2019t eat it, you shouldn\u2019t either. And it does perhaps make sense; the advent of processed foods may have a lot to do with why we\u2019ve become so obese in today\u2019s day and age.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Pros<\/b>:
\n– It\u2019s carnivore heaven if you enjoy eating meat.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Cons<\/b>:
\n\u2022 It\u2019s expensive.
\n\u2022 It restricts entire food groups-grains and dairy are completely eliminated from this diet.<\/p>\n

\n

Sanaz Majd, MD is a board-certified Family Medicine physician who hosts a health YouTube channel, reviewing the latest medical topics, news, and headlines: www.youtube.com\/MajdMD. You can also follow her on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram: @SMajdMD.<\/i><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Sanaz Majd, MD Atkins, Keto, Weight Watchers, Flexitarian, Paleo \u2014 if you\u2019re trying to lose weight, it is all enough to make your head spin. This year\u2019s U.S. News & World Report ranked 41 of today\u2019s most popular diets for weight loss and best overall diets: https:\/\/health.usnews.com\/best-diet\/best-weight-loss-diets The results for the weight loss rankings<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1481,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"two_page_speed":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,67],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1473","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lifestyle","category-sanaz-majd-md"],"yoast_head":"\n5 Most Popular Weight Loss Diets - Peyk Magazine<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/peykmagazine.com\/en\/2019\/09\/27\/1473\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"5 Most Popular Weight Loss Diets - Peyk Magazine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By Sanaz Majd, MD Atkins, Keto, Weight Watchers, Flexitarian, Paleo \u2014 if you\u2019re trying to lose weight, it is all enough to make your head spin. 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