Do VLCDs Work?

An increasing number of people are deciding to use very-low-calorie diets (VLCDs) to help them lose weight. This is hardly surprising when VLCDs can help you lose large amounts of weight quickly. Since many people struggle to bring their eating under control, VLCDs can help since you don't have to create a meal plan or think about what you're going to eat. There are plenty of different VLCDs to choose from, but whichever one you opt for, you will have soups and shakes and other foodstuffs that you consume at set points throughout the day, and you generally consume only 800 calories or less.

When you're consuming so few calories it is inevitable weight loss will be rapid in the beginning, especially if you have been consuming far too many calories in the run up to actually starting your diet. Your body is shocked into shedding weight because you're not providing it with enough calories to sustain itself and so it has to rely on your fat stores. Thus, it could be argued that very-low-calorie diets do work, since you are able to lose lots of weight quickly. That is only if you can stick to such a diet, though. Your body enters ketosis, which helps you get through the diet, since you're not hungry all the time.

However, many people still find it a struggle to continue following such a restrictive diet. You could find that your social life has to take a back seat, because you can't go out for meals or drink alcohol, and so you feel less inclined to spend time around friends who are eating and drinking. Plus, if you have come to rely on a food as an emotional crutch, it is bound to be difficult to change your relationship with food. You might be able to stick to a VLCD whilst you're losing large amounts of weight, but what about when your weight loss slows down or you reach your final goal? Eventually, you are going to have to learn to eat properly.

Indeed, that is why so many people who use VLCDs to lose weight find that they cannot keep the weight off once they return to normal. The idea of going on a VLCD is obviously to achieve results quickly, so that you can then adjust to being slimmer and find a way to keep the weight off. The reality, however, is that if you've never really learned to change your eating and exercise habits, you will find yourself piling on the pounds once again, especially if your body has been in starvation mode for significant periods of time. Your body obviously gets confused when you alternate between starvation and overindulgence and will desperately cling to the calories you feed it.

VLCDs do work in that you can shift lots of weight quickly, but even then there are downsides. You could be left with excess skin, for instance, and you may develop gallstones. Losing weight is always hard and you want to see that your efforts are paying off straightaway. In the long run, though, a better approach to weight loss may be one that gets you to overhaul your habits. VLCDs may stimulate rapid weight loss, but they do not prepare you for what it actually takes to manage your weight in the long run. Everyone is different, though, and if you are so heavy that your weight is affecting your health, you may see no other option.