LOS ANGELES -- Will you be slim in the future? A simple quiz created by
Self magazine can preview your diet destiny.
Some of the answers and the results of the quiz may surprise you. If you want to win the battle of the bulge, you have to work on it now -- and plan for the future.
"Quizzes make you sort of force yourself to look at your diet, interact with the material on the page, ask yourself some hard questions," said Dana Points of
Self magazine.
Here are the hard questions:
1. Are you a high-fat eater?
Do you ignore labels and eat a lot of treats? If you do, your chances of being overweight 10 years from now are 50 percent.
2. Are you a heart-healthy eater?
If so, you still have a 24 percent chance of gaining weight in the next decade
3: Do you eat moderately?
Meaning, you try to eat lean foods but are more flexible about fat intake.
Here's a surprise -- studies on people who ate that way showed their chances of being overweight 10 years from now were less than heart-healthy dieters. Those who ate moderately only had a 22 percent chance of gaining weight in the next decade, because they were consistent; they didn't diet then splurge.
4: Are you a constant dieter?
Another surprise -- being a constant dieter increases your risk, giving you a 30 percent chance of fat in your future. Why?
"Their weight fluctuates over time, so that they lose weight, including lean mass, but gain back fat," explained dietician Heidi Skolnik.
The good news is, you're not doomed to get chubby -- no matter your style. You can change your style and stay thin. Moderate choices are best. Keep the fat down, but be flexible in your choices -- in other words, don't diet and then splurge.
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