Despite the letters in the above acronym, the FAST Diet is not entirely about how fast you shed those extra pounds.  It is just what it says it is. You can substitute ‘Families’ from above for any other support group that might work for you, and you have got a diet that is based on a few people sharing a common goal. The idea is simple: you begin to diet with your support group so that you all are able to push each other toward some common goals.  The benefits of doing so are fantastic:

1. You are able to still eat many of the foods you like, but everything in moderation of course.

2. You will all weigh in weekly. Doing so might keep you from cheating, knowing that your support team will find out if you were to gain a pound or two at your weigh-in.

3. Motivation – On those days you don’t want to go to the gym, you have a work out buddy who is counting on your being there. On that day where you want the donut, you have that friend there to stop you, reminding you of the goals you have made together.

Dieting is Not for the Faint of Heart, But it’s Worth it

In the end, if you are looking for a fast diet, looking to lose weight quickly, it will have in large part to do with your actions. Don’t let excuses such as, ‘oh, this is just my body type’, or ‘I will wait until summer is closer’, get in the way of what you truly want. Being in shape is a worthy goal, and there is nothing selfish about it. In fact, getting too out of shape is not only hurtful to yourself, but can be hurtful to friends and family as they begin to worry about you.  If you want a fast diet you have no reason not to begin working towards that goal. Ask yourself how much weight you want to lose.  If the answer is 30 pounds, divide that by 8 (roughly a good number of pounds to lose in a month) and you will come up with how long this should take you. In this case, just shy of four months. Worth it? I’d say so. So go on that diet, and do it fast, and lose that weight you have been wanting to lose for so long.

One such fast diet is called the liquid fast diet. As can be derived from the name, this diet consists of liquids only. Although not as stringent as a water-only diet, the liquid fast diet is touted to have health benefits because it cleanses the body and gives our digestive system a much needed rest. When the digestive system is not working, the energy it saves can be diverted to healing the body. The immune system, which attacks the bacteria and toxins we ingest with food, can then be freed up to fight diseases affecting other parts of our body. Furthermore, the immune system gets a boost from the vitamins and minerals contained in the fruit juices which make up the liquid fast diet.

Other people resort to fasting to lose weight. Although not the most practical and safest way to diet, some people claim that fasting helps our bodies rid themselves of toxins. There are different regimens of fasting for weight loss. Some people, as mentioned above, limit intake to water and juices. Some restrict food intake on specified dates. Still others drastically reduce calorie intake but do not eliminate food altogether. Although weight loss is achieved, there is no guarantee that dieters can keep them off. And the claim that fasting cleanses the body has not been substantiated.

Other fast diet plans being hyped is the 3-day fruit diet plan which promises losing up to 10 lbs in three days. This fad diet has been around since the mid 1980s. It offers a very strict diet which must be adhered to precisely for 3 days, followed by 4 to 5 days of unrestricted diet. The dieter has the option to resume the diet for another 3 days indefinitely. The reason for the 4-5 day interval of normal eating is for the body not to revert to its fat-storing mode. No exercise has been prescribed with this diet. This diet is claimed to lower cholesterol levels and boost energy, aside from its weight loss benefits. These benefits are believed to arise from a unique metabolic reaction which the diet induced. However, these claims have not been substantiated.

The fast food diet plan provides dieters with food options from the offerings of all major fast food restaurants. This plan is simple. It consists of choosing from a food and beverage combination (totaling 1,500 calories daily) and walking a mile a day.

Whether any of these fad diets actually work is a matter of opinion. But fast diet remains to be popular, especially among those who want to see results fast.

In this day and age wherein things go at lightning speed – supersonic jets, bullet trains, super computers – diets are likewise fast-tracked. The paradox of fast-paced living leaves little time for ourselves. Lose-weight-fast schemes are thus sprouting to address the problem of fitting in that little black dress for Friday night dinner.

Getting slim quick is far from easy, especially if you’ve just given birth. Moms of newborns can’t simply go on a fast diet as caloric intake affects milk production. So how did Angelina do it? Aside from being inherently slim (read: she was favored by the gods), she breastfed her babies. Breastfeeding burns up to 600 calories a day, the equivalent of what you use up in a two-hour aerobic exercise. Although there is currently disagreement on this issue, many moms either of celebrity or plain Jane status still swear that breastfeeding helps shed the ungainly post-partum weight. Plus, there’s the definitive fact that a mother’s milk is best for her baby.

Sometimes, going on a fast diet is necessary. Adrien Brody in The Pianist had to look the emaciated Jew, Wladyslaw Sypilman, who barely survived the purging of his race. Shedding the pounds was essential to convincingly show his real-life character’s fate during the Holocaust. Brody’s crash diet involved eating small portions of protein-rich food and steamed vegetables; fats and carbohydrates were avoided. Losing 30 pounds in six weeks paid off when Brody won the Best Actor Oscar for this portrayal.

Indeed, Hollywood and fast diet go together like Oreos and milk. Going back to Angelina, she shed her extra maternity baggage for her role as a CIA agent on the run in Salt. Eating only organic food, she purportedly lost 21 pounds in 21 days. Also referred to as the detox diet, this regimen trims and slims while ridding the body of toxic elements. The secret is in going au naturelle: whole, unrefined foodstuffs contain significantly less chemicals than processed products. Additionally, plant-based fares are rich in nutrients but are low in calories. Obviously the healthier choice, a number of health buffs are crossing to the greener side of eating. But as long as Big Macs remain available at every street corner, going vegan would forever be a battle of wills.

However way you go on your fast diet: protein-rich, carbo-loading, going organic – the bottom line is this is may only be short-lived. Each of the nutrients plays an important role in developing the body; depriving the system of any of these elements may hazard one’s health. And although a fast diet may achieve our immediate purpose, we must be cautious of its long-term effects.

Then again, with the plummeting economy and unemployment on the rise, a fast diet regimen may no longer be necessary.

Having said that, let us now look at several fast diet programs that one could easily find on the Internet and just as easily subscribe to. But the key is to know what your body is capable of doing and how disciplined enough are you to actually stick to it.

Most of the fast diet methods can be lumped together in several categories:

The “negative” or “minus calorie” diets

This category seems to be the easiest of the fast diet categories that abound. Its popularity is hinged on the diets’ uncomplicated structure. Their main premise is that you will eat only a limited amount of calories so that would your body burns more calories than your actual intake and therefore, you will lose weight in the process. One concern though with these kinds of diets is that they might do your metabolism harm, as the fast diet program requires your body adjust fast to the decreased caloric intake by quickly slowing your metabolism down.

The “low-carb diets”

According to many health experts, lower carbohydrate diets are some of the most highly effective and generally accepted diets. These diets call for the lowering of carbohydrate consumption, and replacing it with more consumption of more protein.  Many of those who have tried these kinds of diets though are the first to warn others that lower carb diets require a permanent physiological adjustment.  The most famous diet in this category is the Atkins diet.

The “current” or “fad” diets

Variations of the diets in this category come out almost on a daily basis making them, arguably the most popular kinds of diets today. These diets rely on their innovative strategies and encourage dieters to “think outside of the box”.  One common feature of these diets is called “calorie shifting”, a counterpoint to the concept behind minus calorie diets.

Ultimately, it is you who still decides what best suits your body and its needs. But whatever kind of fast diet system you choose, additional routines like exercising should be in place to make sure that the weight you lose stays lost forever.

You don’t need to be a movie star to do fast diet. And you don’t need to star in a movie either. All you need is to have discipline and loads of determination to lose weight. Follow these steps in doing fast diet.

1.    Choose a diet plan that you think might be suitable for you. As an example, Catherine Zeta Jones followed the Atkins diet. She thought that this is the best method for her to lose weight after giving birth. She had even hired a nutrition coach for her meals. Renee Zellwegger simply did a low-carb diet like the Zone and Atkins. She avoided fatty food and just ate lean meats, fish and vegetables. All of these were taken in the proper proportion as determined by her nutritionist. Drew Barrymore has been eating vegetables only. She avoided meat most of her life. I suggest you do your own research on the different types of diet plans, and choose one which will work for you and your lifestyle

2.    Work out.  You can jog every morning just like Drew. Jennifer Lopez keeps her sexy curves by dancing. Ashley Judd likes extreme sports like rock and mountain climbing. Madonna does yoga. The main point here is fast diet will work even better if you pair it with exercise. These celebrities know that they have to engage in physical activities, if they want to be in tip-top shape.

3.    Avoid smoking and drinking. This may be difficult for some, but you really have to kick the habit as soon as possible. Engaging in a fast diet program makes incredible demands on your body. Inhaling or binging on toxins from tobacco and alcohol will not help you and your already taxed body.

4.    Once you have started to workout, do not stop. If you are consistently doing your exercise routines and they have already become a part of your lifestyle, do keep it that way and never stop. Some people like Drew Barrymore have different ways of pushing themselves to workout. She once said, “The minute you start to get lazy about it, you get that drive again.”  Well, good for her but not all people have that kind of attitude. Most of us are procrastinators and we have to stop being like that.

To summarize, all these fast diet tips are nothing without determination and discipline. If you really want to lose weight quickly, just picture these celebrities and their success stories. And then ask yourself, “Wouldn’t it be nice if I looked like them?”