May 10, 2006 10:15 pm US/Central
Dieters Can Cheat And Still Lose Weight
by Mary Ann Childers
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
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Two years ago, Kim Digion Domenico weighed 283 pounds.
CBS
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Now, Kim Digion Domenico says her life was changed by the diet plan for people who cheat on their diets.
CBS
Most people who cheat on their diets feel guilty, but now, there is a new weight plan that says it is acceptable to fall off the diet wagon from time to time.
As CBS 2 Medical Editor Mary Ann Childers reports, the "Cheater's Diet" is helping thousands of people lose weight.
Two years ago, Kim Digion Domenico weighed 283 pounds.
"I was a compulsive eater, so I would go off the diet and I would gorge," Domenico said. "I would see it and I would eat it."
But she says her life was changed by the diet plan for people who cheat on their diets.
Dr. Paul Rivas is the creator of the diet and author of the book "The Cheater's Diet."
As he explains it, "We're trying to make this diet livable, because people who are overweight – they have to watch their weight the rest of their lives."
Rivas says most diets fail at six weeks, at the point when weight loss slows down significantly.
"Your metabolism drops to the floor because you've been eating so little you go into that starvation mode," Rivas said.
But with the Cheater's Diet, you only have to stay on the straight and narrow five days a week. From Monday through Friday you eat healthy – fish, chicken, fresh fruits and vegetables, and plenty of water. But on the weekend, you get to cheat and enjoy, in moderation, the foods you love.
"It's not a binge, but it is a treat," Rivas said, "and it's saying have that glass of wine, have that beer, have that slice of pizza, have some of that dark chocolate – but don't go hog wild."
The book even suggests guilt-free foods to cheat with. Dr. Rivas says periodic cheating shocks the metabolism so it works more effectively.
But others, including University of Pennsylvania weight loss expert Dr. Tom Wadden, fear appetite can be tough to control.
"The problem is that a lot of people can't do that," Wadden said of cheating. "Once they turn the on switch on, it's hard to get it off again."
Domenico disagrees. She says the promise of a weekend treat makes healthy eating an easier habit. She also says she does not feel deprived, and the diet has been successful. She lost 135 pounds – over half of her body weight – and she has regained her self-esteem.
"This program has allowed me to feel like a normal person, and eat like a normal person," she said.
The Cheater's Diet offers a healthy eating plan, and tips for cheating on exercise as well – by stepping up the intensity of everyday activities. The authors if there is another diet that works for you, the "cheating" can be done on weekends in conjunction it.
But dieters must be aware that there are limits. Having chocolate for breakfast, five beers for lunch, and a pizza and pound cake for dinner, for example, will just result in gaining back everything you lost.
50 Guilt-Free Cheat Foods
(© MMVI, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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