The LA Weight Loss Diet Center began operations in 1994. It has since expanded internationally to include over 400 centers. Its motto of “Lose the weight, not the lifestyle” refers to its philosophy that fad and extreme diets do not work. The counselors that serve clients at the LA Weight Loss Diet centers assert that the only way to successfully lose weight and keep it off is through behavioral changes in a person’s approach to eating and nutrition. Through education, interviews and weekly private meetings, counselors provide guidance in how to plan menus that are healthful and less fattening. The program is enormously popular, with clients featured in “People” magazine’s “Half Their Size” issue.
Function
The key function of the LA Weight Loss Diet program is to teach and reinforce better habits pertaining to eating, exercise and portion control. The counseling element operates similar to that of the Overeaters Anonymous and Weight Watchers programs, offering short-term goals that add up to long-term changes. Like NutriSystem and Jenny Craig, the plan provides portioned foods. However, you are not required to restrict yourself to these foods in order to stay on the program.
Features
The central features of the LA Weight Loss Diet are its counseling and focus on individual lifestyle. The goal is not to eliminate fattening foods or avoid trigger foods, but to modify your entire approach to eating so that smaller, more healthful portions become satisfying. Counselors achieve this through weekly meetings with you, intensive interviews to determine your specific needs, detailed recommendations on how to eat at restaurants or while traveling, and a commitment to not count calories or restrict foods.
Considerations
The LA Weight Loss Diet cannot be successful without your adopting a fitness program. However, counselors help you determine activities and make goals that are realistic, and that you can integrate into your life and schedule, ensuring a higher rate of success. The counselors assert that even gentle exercises can have a positive effect on the plan.
Misconceptions
While the counselors are trained and know how to address individual needs, they work on commission for the foods and supplements they sell. Also, while the diet promises no calorie-counting, the individualized plans are strikingly similar in their advice. Basically, you begin with a plan that has you consuming up to 1,800 calories per day. After reaching goal weight, you incorporate some additional calories to stabilize your diet. Then you enter a maintenance stage, which you supposedly stay on for the rest of your life. This final diet is typically comprised of 45 percent carbohydrates, 40 percent protein and 15 percent fat.
Benefits
The LA Weight Loss Diet is a healthy diet that does not radically differ from other popular diet and nutrition plans. Its strictness in regard to portions can actually be helpful for compulsive eaters. The individualized attention can be helpful for dieters, but the program is costly.
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