I also want to discourage people from assuming there is only one way that works, or one way that is "right." I'd always been taught that low and controlled carb dieting was unhealthy and impossible to stick with. About a month ago, the doctor leading our local weight management clinic (although I was actually seeing her for a respiratory infection) suggested I try low or controlled carb dieting - basically anything from modified Atkins (lower fat) to South Beach. I was skeptical, but it has reduced my hunger to a point I had never thought possible. For me, it works better even than calorie counting (though at least 2 - 3 times a week I track my calories as well as my carbs, just to make sure I'm not binging on high fat protein).
Calorie (or it's cousin WW point) counting are excellent plans, and you would think that "cheating" is taken out of the equation, but you still see people freaking out because they ate over their point limit, or ate something they don't know how to count. I think the "cheating" mentality tends to come from within more than it does the plan itself, and that's what I'd like to see us all give up.
I completely agree that it is easier to do with some plans than others. The more restrictive a plan is the harder it to consider deviating from it as anything other than cheating, but that's why I think it's important to make sure you choose (or develop) your own plan, based on what works best for you, and what you're comfortable with.
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