Lose Weight With Facebook "Friends"
MIAMI (CBS4) – Whether you're trying to get bathing suit skinny or just want to trim down those love handles, dieting can be a long, boring and lonely process.
That's why a new trend, dieting with strangers or "friends' on Facebook, actually makes sense.
"People were constantly coming up to me and saying 'Oh my God, how did you do this?" Peggy Bradford said.
Bradford lost 75 pounds in a year.
"Nobody could believe that I did it without diet pills or a special diet," Bradford said.
So how did she do it?
She did it with a little help from her friends, all one 1,121of them, on Facebook.
"It's everyday people, so you can relate to that," Bradford said.
They started out as strangers, but Bradford credits her new friendships on the popular social networking site with not only helping her lose weight, but keeping it off. She found the website so helpful she created her own weight-loss page, which now has more than 1,000 followers of the Facebook diet.
"I wanted it to be where people can relate to everyday people and feel comfortable and know it's possible," Bradford said.
While it's not a specific diet plan, Bradford said her Facebook diet works by providing support, encouragement and the motivation dieters need to stick with their new routines. In looking at some of her posts, she's written about organizing a neighborhood group walk and telling people to e-mail her for help and support in any way.
"There's a lot of people out there that feel alone or, you know, feel challenged, and don't know what to do about it," Bradford said.
Joanna Czerw is one of Bradford's loyal Facebook followers. She lost 80 pounds.
"There's everybody there to support you. I think Facebook is a great thing for a lot of people, especially if they don't have the motivation, if they don't have anybody to talk to," Czerw said.
The 26-year-old said the Facebook diet provided her with the tips and tools she needed to help her lose all that weight.
Now she's using her success to help motivate others on Facebook, so they fit into their favorite skinny jeans, too.
"I love wearing jeans, love it," Czerw said.
Diet experts said having a support system is a critical part of successful weight loss, and it's especially good to have fellow dieters who know how difficult and frustrating the process can be.
