The myth of the little magic pill

I know you’ve heard of it…the little magic pill you can pop to help accelerate fat loss, speed up your metabolism, block carbohydrates from entering your blood stream and trick your mind into thinking that you already ate. It’s not sold on street corners like the illicit drugs of the urban ghetto though. No, this little pill is readily and legally available to all – even hawked in magazines that you find on popular retail shelves. It’s promoted on television by health experts, celebrities and even some doctors. And your best friend’s cousin’s hairdresser even heard about it on Oprah last week. It’s sold in bright-colored little boxes and marketed under various brand names. It comes in different forms – sometimes blended in a shake, crushed into a nutrition bar or soaked into a frozen meal, but at the end of the day one aspect of this little pill is consistent. It always represents a pipe dream.

The Pipe Dream Personified
The other day, I was e-chatting with one of my best girlfriends. It’s hard to gauge moods through email, but I could tell by her responses that she was feeling down and definitely not having a good day. When I asked her what was on her mind, she responded with this note: “I’m just really frustrated because I HATE my size. I’m tired of being big, and I want to lose weight. But I want to eat whatever I want and I don’t want to exercise. I’m so miserable.”

Her note came off as being utterly absurd when I first read it, but I quickly realized that her musings represent the feelings of myriad women. It is the desire and expectation to get something for nothing that feeds our $50 billion diet industry. Some people actually believe that the pills, shakes, bars and infomercial exercise products are going to give them a free ticket to “skinny-ness,” but most of us know that these products won’t really get the job done.

So why do we continue to buy them? Because the lure of the little magic pill is sometimes too much to resist. It promises that the pounds will be shed with little to no work on our part, and that is a concept that even the most level-headed of us wants to believe in. However, the fact of the matter remains that if there were a little magic pill, or anything else for that matter, that could safely ensure rapid and permanent weight loss, EVERYONE would be taking it and the average American woman would not wear a size 14 dress.

The Real World
Little magic pills aside, there is a surefire road to success when it comes to losing excess weight – weight training, aerobic activity and consistently good nutrition. Any one of these activities taken in isolation may have a moderate effect; the trifecta nearly guarantees the desired results. While this scientifically proven route isn’t as sexy as sitting at home eating pizza and doing nothing while the pounds drop off, it is certainly more effective.

At the risk of making it seem as if dedication and consistency are the only routes to successful weight loss, let’s acknowledge that there are exceptions to every rule. There is someone out there who lost weight without the commitment and without putting in the work. We all hate her, but she does exist. And while we’re being up front and honest with ourselves, let’s also agree that while it’s not impossible for the little magic pill to work wonders, it is highly improbable. Fair enough?

Amber O’Neal is the owner of Café Physique, an Atlanta-based fitness and nutrition company specializing in personalized nutrition services, personal training, and private yoga & pilates instruction. Visit her online at www.cafephysique.com. Have questions? Submit your fitness & nutrition questions to AskAmber@CafePhysique.com,