Diet, feel it in your mouth as you pronounce the word.
It must be one of the most dreaded words ever invented by modern man.
Then why do we want them? What can they do for us? And are they safe to use? I will not be able to answer all questions on diets, but I have tried a few of them, and I can certainly give you my experiences and advice.
First of all you must find out if want to go on a diet at all.
Scientific data and tests all show that over 90% of dieters end up weighing either the same and in great many cases more than before starting the diet! This may sound negative and discouraging, but then you will surely belong to the last 10% or? Lets make a short list of reasons for going on a diet:

1. I want to lose weight.
   
2. I want to become healthier.
   
3. I want to improve my physical abilities.
   
4. I want to look and feel better.
   
5. I want to improve my athletic performance.
   

Lets examine this by no means exhaustive list.
1.
I want to lose weight: First of all the question is, do you really want to lose weight? Or do you want to lose fat? Or do you want to lose muscle? Already problems arise.
But they can often be solved by looking at your starting point.
If you are heavily obese, you will probably be looking for any weight loss at all.
It does not matter how, what it is you are losing, as long as the numbers on the scale go down.
If you are just generally overweight, looking to lose 10, 20 or 30lbs, you may be a little more picky when it comes to the source of your weight loss.
In this case most people would rephrase weight loss to fat loss.
If your weight is in the normal range, you might want just to "firm" and "tone" up a little, definitely not lose muscle.
2.
I want to become healthier: The first question that springs to mind is, what is healthy? Most people have vague ideas about health, but usually they will be aware of unhealthy lifestyles, based on unhealthy food and lack of exercise.
So a starting point here, would be to talk your doctor, take a test, both clinical an physical and use the results as basis for a decision.
3.
I want to improve my physical abilities: Now it becomes a little more concrete.
Some times your wish to improve your physical health is based on very practical things, like wanting to be able to play ball with your kids.
A desire to follow a passion, like mountain climbing, bike riding or horse back riding.
4.
I want to look and feel better: Most likely this is where you goals are clearest and best defined.
Maybe you want be able to fit your high school clothes, maybe you want to be able to see your feet again, without raising your legs or maybe you just want be able to look at your reflection in the mirror, without feeling disgusted.
5.
I want to improve my athletic performance: Again you should be able to set up specific goals.
You may simply want to improve your performance in a sport that you are already doing, or maybe you want to take up a new sport that requires more in this area.
Now once all above has been considered and you have decided that you need to go on a diet, then do your research and make sure you get the right one! One that caters for your special requirements, and one that you can see yourself going through with.
I will return to this topic in a later article.