[awj]

I agree. Most fad diets seem to be an elaborate trick to get you counting calories. They typically start out by dismissing calorie counting as difficult/boring/depressing (it is), then forbidding/strictly limiting/making less exciting extremely calorie-dense foods, then using some other metric (typically, portion size + preparation) to effectively limit calories.

It works up until a large enough mass of people subscribe to the fad, then someone finds a way to pack more enjoyment (also, calories) into the fad's rules. From there the fad stops "working" and another one rises to the top.