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Drinking Down the Pounds
Weight Loss Methods Series
By Carma Haley Shoemaker
The effectiveness of diet shakes correlates with the recommendations of the CDC guidelines for weight loss: approximately 1 to 2 pounds per week. Those wishing to lose weight at a more rapid rate may wish to reconsider or inquire with their physicians, as statistics show that losing more than the recommended 1 to 2 pounds per week could result in a rapid weight gain once the diet is terminated. Any plan to lose weight should include a modification of eating and activity habits to ensure success. "A sensible weight control plan that focuses on maintaining healthy eating habits, engaging in regular physical activity and developing a health lifestyle is the best way to lose weight and keep it off," says Dr. Greene.
"I have been using the weight loss shakes for about two years," says Kristina Powers, student and mother of two from Dinwiddie, Va. "They are easy to use, taste good and have helped me to not only lose weight but to learn how to eat better. I know I sound like a television commercial but they really do work – and work well."
While these diet shakes do work for some, they do not work for everyone. One common complaint with the diet shake program is that they leave dieters feeling hungry. Some diet shake users say that they would feel hunger pangs and would need to eat a small meal in addition to the shake to ease the pangs. "The Slim-Fast shakes didn't work for me at all," says Meredith Leven, a publishing production coordinator from New York, N.Y. "When I would drink the shakes I would become more hungry and would end up eating something anyway. I want something to take away the hunger, not make it worse." Leven no longer uses the diet shakes because the shake couldn't suffice for a meal.