Getting bikini-body ready, VIVA! style

With summer just around the corner, it’s time to get beach-body ready. That means trialling the latest trending diets and quick-fix healthy lifestyle routines.

Two of this year’s pop-cleanses/diets include the Isagenix cleanse and the 5:2 intermittent fasting diet.

With no time to wait, certain members of Team VIVA! have jumped on board the cleanse/diet challenge bandwagon.

The Isagenix cleanse aims to eliminate all harmful toxins and impurities from the body and by so doing, eliminate one’s addiction to all things-sticky, like sugar and alcohol, in addition to caffeine.

Isagenix claims to increase energy, improve digestion and aid weight loss, with thousands of avid fans worldwide citing its life-transforming benefits.

“I went on Isagenix at the recommendation of my physiotherapist because I have a terrible back and I can’t quit smoking. The only con I see is that it is very expensive. Everything else about it is great. I still love the shakes and never get tired of them,” said Product Review (http://www.productreview.com.au/p/isagenix-cleanse-for-life.html) user Janet.

The Isagenix diet, which usually lasts 30 days, involves participants replacing two meals with largely whey-laden shakes and one meal per day over the course of 26 days, with four days of complete fasting.

Nutritionist, Raina Childers, from Southeast Health, argues the weight loss experienced when using Isagenix is mostly water-related weight and is expected, given the extreme restrictions placed on the body. She also explains that when regular eating resumes, the pounds are likely to quickly return.

The 5:2 intermittent fasting diet allows participants to continue with their regular eating habits for five days a week, while cutting calorie intake to a quarter of the recommended daily intake (500 calories for women and 600 calories for men) for the remaining two days.

After conducting trials on intermittent fasting, Associate Professor Amanda Salis, neuroscientist, from The University of Sydney, cites the benefits of this lifestyle choice include; breaking bad food habits, gaining the ability to listen to your body’s hunger, and a surge in energy levels.

“Periodic fasting has been practised by various religions throughout history and there’s evidence that it can be good for weight loss and health. Intermittent partial fasting, such as the 5:2 diet, is just one way of practicing this and, anecdotally, it has been shown to aid effective weight loss,” said A/Prof Salis.

However dietician, Kate di Prima from Queensland doesn’t agree with this method, claiming 500 calorie days can be dangerous, and that it isn’t sustainable in the long-term, because it isn’t changing your relationship with food.

“A successful weight-loss program requires a complete lifestyle change, but all this to-ing and fro-ing on a fasting diet means that people are unlikely to change their relationship with food.”

We’ve seen some mixed results here at VIVA! on the Isagenix cleanse and 5:2 intermittent fasting diet. Suffice to say, we’re not fans of deprivation or starvation in order to achieve a beautiful bikini-body.

If you’ve tried any worthwhile (and safe) diets, or have a few lifestyle tips in preparation for this summer, we’d love to hear from you, via a post in the comments section of this blog, or by sharing this story via our Facebook or Twitter pages.