If you’ve ever struggled to keep your weight down, you’ll know that not all diets are created equal.

To make things worse, there’s a lot of smoke and mirrors out there designed to trick you into clicking that ‘Follow’ button on social media.

Often the ‘diets’ or ‘health trends’ doing the rounds end up causing more harm than good.

This leaves you with two options. Go it alone and try everything in the hope that one day, something will work, or you could bring in an expert.

At the Renewal Institute, they’ve developed the Renewal Institute Diet (RID), which is the culmination of their experts’ years of knowledge in addressing the medical factors that cause weight gain, as well as fat that’s stubborn to shift.

RID is their most successful eating plan to date because it isn’t just another low calorie, low GI diet. It’s also enhanced by supplements, human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) injections, and the support of medical professionals who will guide you every step of the way.

In summary, the RID diet is a five-pronged approach to weight loss.

1. A calorie-controlled diet with a specially designed meal replacement shake.
2. A specially designed eating program with low glycaemic, low inflammatory foods. Only certain foods allowed and you can say goodbye to gluten.
3. Injections with hCG
4. Supplements to aid detoxification, improve gut health, and aid digestion.
5. Consistent medical supervision, guidance and support, with follow-ups every two weeks to help you succeed.

The last part is perhaps the most important. It’s one thing to have a friend who keeps you accountable, but when you bring in a highly trained doctor to monitor your progress, you know you’re going to get results.

Finally, RID is a holistic approach to weight loss that focuses on the four pillars of health – gut health, nutrition, stress management and exercise – which rest on a foundation of sleep optimisation.

Here’s a breakdown:

• Sleep optimisation – Insufficient restorative deep sleep causes weight gain and may interfere with fat loss efforts. This is the foundation of your health journey.
• Gut restoration – Healthy digestive function will assist with fat loss and help prevent future weight gain.
• Stress Management – Cortisol can cause weight gain and can become an obstacle to fat loss.
• Healthy nutrition – Healthy, nutrient-dense foods will provide optimal nutrition and lower calorie intake.
• Healthy moderate exercise – Regular exercise will assist with weight loss and weight management.
• Reducing inflammation – High levels of inflammation raise insulin levels, worsen insulin resistance, and lead to weight gain. All the above factors need to be addressed for fat loss to be healthy, successful, and lasting.

If this all sounds a bit overwhelming, remember that you won’t be doing it alone.

As an added bonus, Body Renewal is currently running a January RID Weight Loss promotion. If you purchase an initial package for R4 000, you’ll receive their Health Renewal Omega-3 and Multivitamin and Mineral supplements, worth R480, for free.

Visit the Body Renewal website to make an appointment with a doctor who will guide you through the process of becoming a happier, healthier you.