THE ROTATION DIET9
A 1986 entry into the world of fad diets, the Rotation Diet argues, correctly, that diets with severe calorie limitations fail
because of the innate starvation response. When we restrict our intake, according to this diet’s author, our bodies respond by slowing everything down (dropping the basal metabolic rate). A low-calorie diet will knock off pounds, but it will also slow the metabolism, and it will take less food than ever to make us fat again.
The diet’s author suggests that the only way to avoid this starvation response is to rotate through a dietary cycle, with each cycle supplying a different amount of calories. Thus, a woman on the Rotation Diet would consume 600 calories a day for the first 3 days, 900 per day for the next 4 days, then 1,200 per day for a week. A man would eat 1,200 per day for the first 3 days, 1,500 per day for 4 days, and 1,800 per day for a week. The entire cycle is repeated once, then the dieter stops dieting completely for a week, a month, or as long as he or she feels is proper. After this vacation from dieting, the dieter repeats the entire process (2 cycles and stop) until the desired weight is reached.
This 3-stage, twice-repeated, on-and-off is supposed to prevent the starvation response while motivating you to succeed. You will allegedly look forward to every new dietary cycle with eager anticipation. Like most fad diets, this one is based on science of suspicious origins. The on-and-off cycles sound like they will encourage bingeing or other poor eating habits as the dieter hurries to eat whatever she likes before going on the diet again. What does the dieter learn about lifelong healthful eating habits from a plan such as this? Nothing much. You’re much better off adopting a consistent eating plan that fits comfortably into your life and sticking with it.
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