Weight Loss Systems

Weight Loss Systems are a huge industry in America.  Some studies indicate that Americans spend over $150 Billion on weight loss every year.  Because of that there are a number of people attempting to cash in on this market and sell their products and services.  We want to help you find good information to help you lose weight safely and effectively and avoid things that don’t work.  With that in mind, here’s an overview of many of the weight loss systems currently on the market.

Diets

Diets are a dime a dozen in America.  See if any of these ring a bell: Atkins, The Zone, Mediterranean, Raw Food, Cabbage, South Beach.  Heard of any of them? You probably have and you may have even tried some of them and had some success.

Diet Pros: Diets work.  If you consume less calories than your body needs to sustain life and all the other things you do throughout the day, you will definitely lose weight.  They are also generally inexpensive and easy to figure out.

Diet Cons: It’s not easy to stay on a diet.  Most of the time it’s easy to start a diet and stay on it for a week or two but after that it gets difficult. We’ve all heard of the Yo-Yo effect as well.  When you go on a diet and lose a bunch of weight, then go off of the diet, in many cases you gain all the weight back, plus a few pounds and then you need to go on another diet.  That’s the Yo Yo and it isn’t good.

Exercise:

Exercise is another simple weigh loss system.  Generally speaking if you increase your level of activity to the point that you are burning more calories than you are consuming, you will lose weight.

Exercise Pros: Exercise works.  If you stick with it you will definitely lose weight. In addition you will get the side benefit of an increased overall sense of well being with many exercise programs.

Exercise Cons: For most people it’s difficult to stick with an exercise program and it can also be quite expensive.  If you join a gym or buy lots of equipment you can spend thousands of dollars rather easily before losing a single pound.

Food Replacement System:

One weight loss system that is increasingly popular is the food replacement system.  These systems are like diets in which the provider sends you all the food you will need for a period of time and if you eat what they send you and stick only to that you will lose weight in most cases.  Some examples include: NutriSystem, LA Weightloss, Jenny Craig, and Weight Watchers.

Food Replacement Pros: These systems are typically effective and they make the dieting thing very easy to manage.  All the food arrives prepared and ready to go, you just eat what they send and lose weight.

Food Replacement Cons: The food can be expensive and may not taste all that great.  And after a while, it gets pretty boring eating the same old things over and over again.  Because of that, it’s difficult to stay on board with these systems.

Medical or Surgical Weight Loss:

This category includes bariatric surgery, lap band procedures, laproscopy, and other surgeries as well as pharmaceutical approaches to weight loss.

Medical/Surgical Pros: These methods are some of the most effective available today and almost always work.

Medical/Surgical Cons: These procedures aren’t always covered by insurance and are expensive and somewhat risky.  Any time you’re putting someone under general anesthesia for a medical procedure there is risk involved.

Overall there’s a lot of different weight loss systems currently available to those who need to lose weight.  For most cases it’s best to discuss your situation with your doctor, friends, and family and decide which approach will work best for your unique situation.