How to lose weight fast is one of the most popular searches put into google when it comes to weight loss. Exclusive juicing diets promise just that, as well as giving the body a full detox.  So, should we be doing it?

You may have a short-term goal in mind to lose some weight, a wedding to go to or a holiday coming up and want to feel confident at the side of the pool.

You may feel like you just want to kick things off by losing some weight fast, then will start to “diet” or eat healthily.

You’re hoping that seeing the numbers on the scales will provide you with the motivation to embark on a healthy eating plan after you’ve finished juicing.

Or the thought of gradual weight loss just feels like hard work and time consuming after years of yo-yo dieting.

Maybe you’ve had a week away and feel you have over indulged and that your body needs a detox.

All these reasons are totally understandable. However, when it comes to weight loss and juicing the main reason you may initially lose weight is due to a severe calorie deficit by omitting protein, fibre and fat from your diet.

These are essential to our diet and subsequently our health. To achieve sustainable weight loss, we can’t go without them.

Protein helps us build muscle, if we don’t consume adequate amounts of protein our muscle mass will quickly decline. We then start to burn less calories at rest.

As for healthy fats, we need them in our lives, they help us feel full when consumed as part of a meal, help stabilise our blood sugar levels and help fight inflammation within our body.

All of this is important when looking at long term weight loss.

What juicing does is remove the fibre from fruit and vegetables so you are literally left with just the juice. However, fibre is crucial to a healthy, balanced diet. Consuming fibre means that we stay full for longer, that we are not hungry an hour after eating and have the energy we need throughout the day.

It is also important for our gut bacteria (our gut microbiome) which can influence our weight. Not only that, fibre supports our detoxification system, removing it can leave us constipated and not eliminating the toxins we need to from our body.

What juices can do is provide you with are a hit of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants if they contain a mix of fruit and lots of veg. Therefore, in addition to a healthy, balanced diet a juice can be beneficial. But juicing alone will not lead to long term weight loss.

Exclusive juicing will most likely leave you feeling fatigued, miserable and moody. After a period of juicing we’re also likely to binge on foods we view as treats.

It is neither sustainable or a healthy approach to long term weight loss.

As a Nutritional therapist I take a personalised approach to weight loss that considers you as an individual, taking into consideration your health history, existing medical conditions, current symptoms, food preferences and your lifestyle. This enables bespoke plans to be created.

To find out more please book in for a free discovery call.