Dieting usually leads to extreme calorie restriction, which often includes swearing off certain foods. Registered dietitian Leslie Langevin says "cutting out too much" isn't sustainable. Avoiding foods like sugar, alcohol, and carbs can make you feel so deprived that you won't be able to control those natural cravings, forcing you to overindulge. You'll end up consuming way more calories than you would normally, which can make the scale numbers go up.
Diets don't work, and research shows that 95 percent of people who lose weight on diets will gain it back within one to five years. That's because they are impossible to maintain long-term. What you need to do is find a nourishing, sustainable way of eating that offers you enough calories, nutrients, and energy to live a healthy, happy life, whether that's by eating a plant-based diet, going Mediterranean, or following another nutritious eating plan.