• Skip to content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • Shop ModernMom
  • Become An Insider

ModernMom

The premiere destination for moms

  • Parenting
    • Pregnancy
    • Baby
    • Kids
    • Tweens and Teens
    • ModernMom Monday Videos
  • Cooking
  • Living Healthy
    • Breast Cancer
    • Health & Fitness
    • Body after Baby
    • Beauty
    • Relationships
    • Love
  • Lifestyle
    • Crafts
    • At Home
    • Education
    • Travel
    • Pets
    • Decorate
    • Money
    • Brooke Burke
  • Celebrate
    • Holidays
      • Easter
      • Valentine’s Day
      • New Year’s
      • Christmas
      • Hanukah
      • Halloween
      • Thanksgiving
    • Birthdays
    • Parties
  • Must Have
  • Contests
  • Entertainment

The South Beach Diet, the Grapefruit Diet…the Twinkie Diet?

December 1, 2010 by JJ Virgin Leave a Comment

Yep, it’s true and the even more bizarre truth behind this diet is that it was created by A NUTRITION PROFESSOR! Mark Haub set out to prove that how much you eat is more important than what you eat in terms of weight loss so he designed what he calls “the convenience store diet” based on Little Debbies, Doritos, Oreos, sugary cereals and yep, Twinkies. He feels that it is “unrealistic” to believe that most Americans will be willing and able to trade their convenience store items for fresh fruits and vegetables so he wanted to show that you could still lose weight basically, I have to say it, eating CRAP.

 

He Lost Weight!
And in 8 weeks he did just that. He went from a BMI of 28.8 which categorized him as obese to a BMI of 24.9, which is in the normal range. More importantly, his LDL, HDL and triglycerides counts all improved leaving him to believe that this diet could be healthy for everyone. But, here are the challenges that he somehow failed to consider…shocking though it is that a nutrition professor could miss these!

Short-Term Fix
This was a short term fix- what about the long term ramifications of a diet that is low in essential fatty acids, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, fiber and high quality protein? This could put someone at risk for a variety of diseases, including osteoporosis and cancer.

Body Fat
He failed to check the change in body fat. If he lost weight but didn’t change his overall body composition, then he didn’t get healthier and he is setting himself up for rebound weight gain.

Diversity
He failed to consider biochemical and genetic individuality. Sure, he temporarily improved but what about someone who had a genetic predisposition to elevated blood sugar and cholesterol and the genotype that called out for a low carbohydrate diet. It is unlikely that they would see the same benefits.

Unfair Comparison
He admitted that he overate on healthy food previously. Too much healthy food is unhealthy so to compare his blood lipids based on overeating to now, when he is undereating, isn’t a fair comparison. You would have to keep calories neutral to take the impact of weight loss out of the equation to really see the effect. Most likely if he had followed the same calorie diet but with healthier options, he would have seen an even bigger improvement in his blood lipids.

People CAN Eat Healthy!
Finally, I find it almost hopeless that a nutrition professor feels that it is unrealistic for people to stop eating convenience foods and eat fruits and vegetables. Honestly, if he feels that way he is in the wrong profession. I just pray the American public is smarter than this professor and shame on him for putting this information out there as it is inevitable that there will be people going on this kind of diet. This would not be the legacy I would want to leave from career.

About the Author
2010 JJ Virgin & Associates, Inc. JJ Virgin, PhD, CNS is a nutrition and fitness expert, author, public speaker and media personality. She is the author of Six Weeks to Sleeveless and Sexy and the co-star of TLC’s Freaky Eaters. You can download her Top Ten Tips to Get Slim and Sexy Fast at www.jjvirgin.com (see link below)

Visit JJ's Site
www.jjvirgin.com

Comments

comments

Filed Under: Living Healthy

About JJ Virgin

JJ Virgin is one of the nations foremost fitness and nutrition experts and an accomplished public speaker and media personality. Her 25 years in the health and fitness industry have earned JJ recognition as the go-to weight loss expert with a sensible, no-fail approach to nutrition and fitness. JJ is the author of Six Weeks to Sleeveless and Sexy and the co-star of the TLC reality series, Freaky Eaters.
JJ has worked with high performance athletes, CEOs and A-list celebrities from around the world. She has appeared for two years as the nutrition expert on the top-rated Dr. Phil Show, and made appearances on Bonnie Hunt, ABCs Extreme Makeover, NBCs iVillage Live, and the E! channels Modern Girls Guide to Life.
JJ is a member of Mensa and a UCLA graduate. She is a Certified Nutrition Specialist, a Certified Health and Fitness Instructor with advanced certifications in Nutrition, Personal Training and Aging and Board Certified in Holistic Nutrition.

Reader Interactions

Primary Sidebar

Tell a friend

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Search

ModernMom Boutique

ModernMom TV

Featured

10 Things Nobody Will Tell You About Having A Baby

After reading "20 Things I Wish I Knew Before I Had Kids," I … [Read More...] about 10 Things Nobody Will Tell You About Having A Baby

Must Have

winter

Pre-Holiday Must-Haves

"It's beginning to look  a lot like Christmas..." The … [Read More...] about Pre-Holiday Must-Haves

Did you know?

What Will Draw Smells Out of a Closet?

What Will Draw Smells Out of a Closet?

Refrigerate Fresh Lemon Juice

How Long Can You Refrigerate Fresh Lemon Juice?

Health Benefits of Drinking Kombucha

The Health Benefits of Drinking Kombucha

fade hair color quickly

How to Fade Hair Color Quickly

Signs of PMS or Pregnancy

Clean the Smell From the Inside of a Leather Jacket

How to Clean the Smell From the Inside of a Leather Jacket

Dizziness in Pregnancy

Causes of Dizziness in Pregnancy

Footer

  • About Us
  • Contact ModernMom
  • Advertise With Us
  • Press
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Contributors

Copyright © 2021 Modern Mom. All Rights Reserved.

Reproduction of any portion of this website only at the express permission of Mom, Inc.

The information provided on ModernMom is for educational use only. It should not be used as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.