Charmaine uses her favourite spot in her home to manage her work commitment and plan her hosting schedule. 

In the second instalment of Inside The Spotlight, Charmaine engaged Natalie on reliable sources for information on fad diets and fitness resources. It can be challenging to separate fact from fiction when it comes to health and wellness, with so much conflicting information out there.

One way to ensure that the information you’re getting is reliable is to look for sources that are backed by scientific research and are written or endorsed by reputable experts in the field. It’s also a good idea to approach any new diet or fitness program with a critical eye and to consult with a healthcare professional before making any significant changes to your routine.

Here are excerpts of the informative podcast Charmaine has with Natalie Dau on fad diet and fitness resources:

Charmaine:  When you were 20, did you ever get into what is a very common thing with kids in their twenties – crash diets? 

Natalie: I think the worst one I ever did was probably the cabbage soup diet, where basically all you eat is cabbage soup nonstop. 

Charmaine: That is tasteless. 

Natalie: Cabbage soup for at least two meals a day. That was a big one. We are talking back in the nineties. That was interesting. And I did the liver cleansing.

Charmaine: I don’t know what that is.

Natalie: That was to cleanse your liver, which is actually quite ridiculous because your liver is there to cleanse your body, so you don’t need to cleanse your liver. And I ended up in hospital after that one because it’s not great for your body.

Charmaine: What happens when you do a liver cleansing?

Natalie: I think your body’s almost too clean and it’s got nothing to clean.

Charmaine: So you were not eating?

Natalie: I was eating, but you’re eating almost too clean. Everyone talks about having real food, which is important, but you can be anything at the end of the spectrum is not good.

Charmaine: There are so many key opinion leaders influences, if you may, YouTubers all around the world, not just Singapore. I’m talking about Australia, London, the UK and the US. And they’ve huge numbers. I won’t name names, but there are lots of people that claim to be giving out fitness advice, how to target fat burning. And they’ve been criticised quite heavily.

Natalie: There are some amazing resources out there that you can tap that are on YouTube or Instagram. But my number one thing is check the qualifications first and foremost. Because a lot of people have no qualifications. They just look skinny and pretty, or they just look muscular. So people are attracted to that body type and think they must know what they’re talking about.  

Number two is actually, if you are a 40 year old woman and you are following a 20 year old girl and expect to look like a 20 year old, that’s not going to happen. So think about what your goal is when you are following these and things take time. 

Charmaine: What’s the most ridiculous headline you’ve ever read?

Natalie: There’s this guy called the Liver King. 

Charmaine: A lot about this liver situation.

Natalie: This is a different guy. And all he eats is basically raw liver and things. He has millions of followers. He actually makes millions of dollars a year from selling his own supplements and denied being on steroids and just got this body from taking his own stuff, but was busted because he was on performance enhancing steroids. So, but yet people still follow him even knowing that and still buy his products. So shocking. Yeah, it’s always buyer beware. 

Do some research if it’s not right or if it’s too good to be true. You have to be patient. Things take months if you want to lose weight. It’s a slow process if you want to get fit. So you’ve got to be in it for the long term, I think. And what people go in thinking basically for vanity reasons, I want to lose weight or I want to look good, or I want to fit into my jeans. And there’s nothing wrong with that, but what is great to see is the progression when people get to a certain point and go, actually, it’s about how I feel now. 

And maybe I want to challenge myself and maybe I want to run a half marathon and maybe I want to set myself some goals because it’s not about how I look now. It’s about being strong and it’s about feeling good. That’s when the real breakthrough comes.

Listen to the full Inside the Spotlight 💫 podcast here – https://www.awedio.sg/podcast-ep/9b0e2196-ddc2-4d03-8156-afe1016c474a/