Why Chocolate Does Not A Good Diet Program Make

Not only do companies send your Chocolate Priestess products to reveal, I also buy some from time to time, and I get products, mostly books, through the AmazonVine program as well as directly from authors and publishers.  Some of what I receive is not about chocolate so you never see my opinions here.  When I do get something related to the Sacred Substance, I will always do a long review of it for you, Sisters and Brothers.


While my Amazon.com review of "The New Slim-Fast! 3 2 1 Plan: Nutty Chocolate Chew" bars will focus on taste, I want to look beyond that for you and talk about this diet plan the bars are supported to be part of.  Now, I am not a doctor nor a nutritionist though I have consulted with them in my own life, including regularly seeing a nutritionist for a few years when I lived in NYC.  Some basic common sense added to their guidance will inform my opinions today.


First lets talk the product itself.  The box contains 6 bars, each with 100 calories, 1g saturated fat, 80mg sodium, less than 1g fiber, 7g sugars, 1g protein and 10% of ten vitamins an adult needs daily.   They look like an open Snickers candy bar and that is pretty much what they taste like too though the hardness of the caramel layer varied greatly even in one box. Yes, there is cocoa listed here but the very first ingredients are two types of corn syrup and artificial chocolate flavor before the cocoa itself.  In terms of taste, for the Chocolate Cult this falls short of the mark.

These bars are just part of this "3 2 1 Plan" so let's look at what the box says you should do. 

First you have 3 "nourishing snacks a day" on one example is a 100 calories snack bar from Slim-Fast so I think it is fair to assume other choices should also be in that 100 calorie range.  That totals 300 calories.

Next  you replace two meals, breakfast and lunch, with a Slim-Fast 180-200 calorie bar.  Let's be generous and say you go for the 200 calorie choice so that brings you up to 700 calories.

Finally you have a "sensible 500 calorie meal" which takes us to 1200 calories, a full 800 calories below what the Federal guidelines say an adult woman should eat. 

This is the crux of my problem with this plan.  Most Americans at least eat far more than this recommended amount of calories and we often do not get our calories from the correct types of food and end up basically missing important vitamins, minerals, proteins, fiber, etc every day.  This year, before even embarking upon the Path I share with you all each day on The Chocolate Cult, I looked at my life and I tracked what I ate and what I fed my family.  We were consuming a lot more calories than we needed especially at dinner time.  Yes, I was making sure we filled in those pieces on the food chart but not in the best possible ways.  I did something simple: I followed the serving guidelines and the result is that I have continually but slowly lost weight this year.  Following the Chocolate Path has helped me fight cravings for sugar and chocolate both, improving the changes to my life along with giving me enough energy to exercise 5 days a week.

This Slim-Fast 3 2 1 Plan says nothing about getting the nutrition your body needs, the fiber, or even having enough energy to do your daily work let alone add some good exercise for your body, mind, and soul.  The plan completely ignores what people drink so they might choose simply water, my preferred drink personally, or high calorie drinks.  If you stick with just water, you are sticking to 1200 max a day, if you are a woman this is only 60% of the calories you may need; if you are a man it is much worst, giving you only  48% of the daily calories you may need.  The result will be that you feel tired and your body, not nearly as evolved as our technology, will react as though you are starving it, cutting your metabolism.

Sure, this plan will lose weight quickly at first but then I bet it only makes it harder for you to eat every day of your life like this, should you fall from the program, you'll pack on the pounds and find it more difficult next time.

As my old nutritionist used to teach me: Dieting isn't the answer, changing your life forever is.  I just don't think this plan is something you can healthily do for the rest of your life.

As I said, I'm not a doctor but these are my thoughts and fears this "Slim-Fast 3 2 1 Plan".  The bars are fine tasting the plan they are attached to I cannot get behind. 

The bars come in  five flavors all boosting of chocolate. I think that is an attempt to attract buyers.  But as we've seen time and again here in The Chocolate Cult, not all chocolate is equal and not everything claiming to be chocolate really is the Sacred Substance.  Never assume just because it says "Chocolate" or "Cocoa" that you are getting what you think and never assume that a diet or plan or program with "chocolate" as part of it will be the best choice for you.

See your doctor, get a nutritionist or simply start paying attention to what you eat and  how much you eat.  Don't follow an off-the-shelf plan.  You are more important than that to me, Sisters and Brothers.  Get professional help and plan how to live your life, don't rely on a diet program.

Sisters and Brothers, may you too take the time to slowly appreciate what the Divine and human ingenuity have offered you in chocolate.

Comments

Marta said…
Dear, there is a translator in my blog, on the right side. You have only to choose the language!

kisesss