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Searching the Net for diet reviews is a good first move towards reaching your diet goals. However, too often people don’t approach this angle as thoroughly as they should.

Product reviews are always written from a particular perspective. Some reviewers may focus on low-carbohydrate diets, while others may focus on reduced calorie type diets. Still other reviewers may focus on the effectiveness of various dieting pills. The possibilities seem almost endless.

In light of this, gathering some information about what kinds of diets are out there seems like a good move. And in fact, many people do arrive at this conclusion on their own. This is particularly true of the experienced dieter. Unfortunately, it is also a fact that most people don’t go far enough at this stage.

When people think about types of diets, they tend to think about things like:

Well Known Approaches

* Fast Weight Loss Diets

* Calorie Reduction Approaches

* Diets Focusing on Fat Reduction

* Portion Size Control Approaches

* Food Exchange Approaches

* Diets Focusing on Fixed Menus

* Diets Focusing on Pre-packaged Meals

* Diets Focusing on Formula Drinks and Bars

* Increased Exercise

Some More Unusual Approaches

* Pharmaceuticals

* Nutrition and Supplements

* Diets Utilizing Herbs

* Attitude Change Through Affirmations

* Attitude Change Through Hypnosis

* Diets Utilizing Subliminal Messages

Other Non-dietary Measures

* Surgery

* Weight Control Via Therapy

While there are certainly more options out there, this is nonetheless a fairly expansive list. The items on the list lead us away from the real issue. The list is the real issue.

When we think about diets in this way, we tend to behave as if they were simple preferences–”would you like the red one or the blue one?”

If you’ve ever purchased or watched someone purchase perfume, you know that you must put some on your skin to know what the scent will be like. It is the combination of the perfume and the wearer that determines what the final scent will be like.

The same is true of diets. It is you and the diet that determine whether it will work. It is important to realize that product reviewers typically don’t consider the dieter, only the diet.

A better approach to deciding on a diet is to take a bird’s eye view first. From here you can group diets by their common features. Then you can focus on what is most important to you. There is certainly more than one way to define groupings, so let’s just try one of these ways to see how this might work.

Here’s one way I use to group diets:

1. Counting and Record Keeping (Calories, Carbohydrates, etc.)

2. Physical Activity (Various exercise programs.)

3. Food Strategies (Using food characteristics to advantage.)

4. Chemical Strategies (The Use of Pharmaceuticals, Herbs and Supplements.)

5. Modification of Behavior (Hypnosis and Affirmations.)

6. Professional Assistance (Surgery, Therapy, etc.)

So, let’s say that you hate numbers and paperwork to the point of needing stress leave if you’re over exposed to the stuff. You don’t like writing and the idea of keeping a diary or a journal makes you go brain lame.

If this was your view of the world, then it doesn’t really matter what any reviewer has to say-if the diet falls into category 1, it’s not a good choice for you. You would probably be better off with something in category 3 and maybe mixed with something from category 2.

We don’t have space here to cover this topic in depth, but I think you can see how important it is to find diet types that match your temperament and inclinations. This will put you in a much stronger position to succeed in your dieting endeavors.