Dear ladies and gentlemen, winter is gone, spring is coming, time for a diet maybe? How to know if you need it? Which one should you follow? At Académie de Bernadac we like to let you discover luxury lifestyles. Thus, we also propose you to discover the very special diet of famous people. Often surprising, rarely to recommend…

Reading Guideline:

Are you fat?

Strange diets of famous people

How to choose your diet

Are you fat ?

Do probably have heard about the “Body Mass Index” (BMI). It’s a simple way to calculate if you are overweight/underweight according to your height.

Your weight (in kg) /( Your height (in meters) x Your height (in meters) )= Your BMI

Example of a lady of 1m70, 55kg

55 / (1,7×1,7) = 19,03 BMI !

How to analyse it ?

Less than 18.5

You are too skinny, you need to gain weight.

Between 18.5 and 24.9

Well-proportioned weight.

Between 25 and 29.9

Overweight. You don’t have health risk yet, but beware.

Between 30 and 39.9

Obese. You have serious risks to develop diabetes, or other diseases related to obesity.

Over 40

Morbid obesity. You encounter severe risks, you need to be under medical supervision.

This is for the official index. But it has been found out that for women an index between 17 and 20 is considered the most attractive over the world.

The (strange) diets of famous people

They want to be out of the ordinary, find out undiscovered efficient ways to lose weight, thus they choose sometimes very curious and dangerous diets…

“The 10 Diet Coke” of Karl Lagerfeld

What?

Chanel’s famous designer used to drink up to 10 cans of Diet Coke every day, with small meals low in calories: one egg, one yogurt with a toast for breakfast, salmon with sprouts or veal with plums for dinner. 

The special design for diet coke from Karl

Expectation

In 2000 Karl lost 40kg with this diet very low in calories. His goal would have been to fit in the new Dior suits…  

Advice

Even though it can lead to spectacular and fast results, it is not a sustainable lifestyle, you would lack nutrients and often be tired.

“The Master Cleanse” of Beyoncé

What?

A 10-day extreme cleanses that requires dieters to eat nothing and drink only a lemon, maple syrup, and cayenne pepper concoction.

Expectation

Losing a lot of weight very fast.

Advice

Absolutely dangerous to follow for someone who is not closely checked by nutritionists.

“The raw eggs & sundae diet” of Marilyn Monroe

What?

Raw eggs whipped into milk during the day, no lunch, steak and five carrots for dinner. Ice cream for dessert.

Expectation

High proteins, low fat, in order to burn calories and stay fit.

Advice

Quite unhealthy, lacking in fibers and fresh products. Here you have serious health risks in the long run!

“The Coconut Diet” of 小S

What?

Stir-fried vegetables and a lot of coconut oil, with some porridge sometimes.   

Expectation

Coconut oil should turn the fat into energy, promotes metabolism to burn more calories, leading to a quick loss of weight.

Advice

Stir-fried food is full of saturated fat, which is what the body will stock the most. Coconut oil cannot compensate. Plus, this diet will lead to nutrient deficiencies.

“The fruits and carrots diet” of Steve Jobs

What?

Steve Jobs liked apples so much that not only he gave this name to his company, but made them his main food, with other fruits and few vegetables. 

Expectation?

This extreme form of veganism was his norm during his whole life. When he got diagnosed with pancreas cancer, he refused to take any other cure than drinking more carrot juice.

Advice

Here again, several disordered eating. Don’t do it at home!

“The Sleeping Beauty diet” of Elvis Presley

What?

During his last years, Elvis was oversleeping, for 10 hours or more every day, in order to achieve weight loss.  

Expectation

Sleeping more would lead to eating less often, spend less energy. As a consequence, the body would have needed less energy and erase the overweight.

Advice

Researches say having enough sleep is important to keep fit, oversleeping produces the opposite effect. Staying asleep so long was only possible with drugs, causing problems, and muscle reduction. 

“The vegetables only” of Fan Bing Bing

What?

Only eat boiled vegetables, and that’s all! Not fried. No starch, no meat.

Expectation

She takes this diet plan when she needs to lose weight quickly for a certain role.

Advice

It may work for a short period of time, but don’t continue it for too long if you don’t lose weight, or you may have deficiencies.

A diet for each situation

It’s decided, you want to lose weight with a healthy diet. How to pick the right one? It depends on your problem

I’m always eating, without being hungry

The solution

Eat slowly. Very slowly. Focus on the taste, the smell, the look of the food. Banish smartphone, TV and other distractions. Concentrate on how your body receives each bite. At some point, it will send the signal you don’t need more. Stop here.

Tips

It’s normal to feel hunger 4h after a meal. Before that, it’s a problem. Try to avoid situations where you may eat automatically without thinking about it: food in movie theater, KTV, etc.

I tried many diets, none of them works.

Everytime you did a diet, not only you didn’t lose weight, but may have gained extra kilos right after.

The solution

Here we recommend intermittent fasting, like the “5/2”: A 16h fasting followed by a light meal, twice per week. This is the ideal rhythm to lose weight. Don’t do more, or you will lose muscles. Not more than 1 month.

 Tips

During the light days, drink at least 2L of water. If you feel too hungry, eat 1 fruit, or a few grains.

I cannot make it alone

 The solution

It’s very simple, you should get a coach. Ask him/her to make you a very strict plan for each day: what you should eat, when, how much, what are the exercises you should do, how long, when. 

Send a photo of your meal to your coach to control it. Report him/her when you do a sports session, what you achieved. 

I’m doing gym, it doesn’t work

 The solution

Have a High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT): gym sessions of maximum 30 minutes every time. You should push your limits, sweat a lot, feel you can’t make it any stronger. 

I simply have to wish you good luck, and a strong determination! Jia You, you can do it!

What’s the diest you find the strangest?