How to Properly Diet For Weight Loss
Today we find many diets that promise quick results (high protein, low carb or no carb, etc.), but do they really work? How can you tell if a diet is conducive to weight loss or is dangerous to your health?
- The diet should be based on science, long-term clinical trials that evaluate the risks and benefits of a diet plan in a group of people.
- The diet should provide adequate amounts of nutrients and enough calories to prevent excessive weight loss.
- The diet must be appropriate to different situations and preferences.
- The diet should help the individual to establish target behavior changes over time and eventually agreed weight maintenance when it has been reached.
Below you will see;
- what the dangers are of fad diets
- advice for good nutrition
- some tips to begin a healthy weight loss process
Some Diets Are Unhealthy And Can Lead To Illness
An example of these diets is “crash diets”. These diets are dangerous because they have very low calorie content. This leads to a rapid loss of lean muscle mass and especially water and electrolytes like sodium and potassium. The person loses weight, but not fat. Besides the rapid mobilization of fat generated by the lack of energy, this can lead to the development of a fatty liver, metabolic disorders such as hypoglycemia and increase the risk of cardiac arrhythmia.
Excluding Foods Is Not Healthy
To eliminate from your diet some foods like meat, chicken, fish, eggs, bread or wheat can lead you to exclude some important nutrients. A healthy diet should include foods from all groups (dairy products, eggs and meats, bread, cereals and legumes, fruits and vegetables and, in a minor amount, some fats and natural sugary foods).
Diets can exclude some foods, but they have to be replaced with other healthier foods from the same group. For example: you can exclude whole milk and replace it with low fat or skimmed milk or another dairy product that provides calcium, phosphorous and high quality proteins.
Low Carb Diets Can Be High In Fats
Diets that are low in carbohydrates, like Atkins, tend to have an elevated content of fat because carbohydrates are reduced at the expense of increasing foods high in protein and fat. These diets also tend to be high in sodium, cholesterol and saturated fats increasing the risk of dyslipidemia, hyperuricemia, gout and hypertension, which are cardiovascular risk factors.
Detox Diets Don´t Work
They are dangerous because they exclude certain protective foods, and they are restrictive; that´s why they are called “modified fasting diets.” While detox diets are based on favoring the elimination of accumulated toxins, that fact has not been demonstrated. On the other hand, the body has mechanisms to detoxify itself, such as the elimination of air through the lungs, urine output by kidneys, sweat through skin and feces through the intestines. If the diet provides enough water and fiber, the body’s natural detoxification will occur without any problem.
Blood Type And Other Fad Diets Are Often Far Fetched
Some diets such as those based on eating only one type of food are very dangerous. Although they may provide some immediate results, weight loss can’t be sustained because it leads to poor health.
Healthy Steps In The Weight Loss Process
To achieve a healthy weight loss, we must first be prepared mentally, understanding “weight loss” as a process of relearning eating habits that include the incorporation of new and healthier practices and the elimination of those that are not.
The weight loss process will work by incorporating new food guidelines little by little, according to the response and the motivation of everyone. This leads to slower weight loss, but is more stable over time.
A long-term objective of weight loss can be to lose 5-10% of your current weight to achieve within 6 months. A short-term goal would be to lose 1-2% per week. In the case of women, they can use a meal plan from 1200 to 1600 calories and, in the case of men, from 1600 to 2000 calories per day.
These are six tips for healthy eating that will help you to lose weight:
Reduce The Portion Sizes Of The Diet
This will help you to cut down calories. For example, if you’re used to eat 2 servings of steak and fries, you can assemble a plate with one serving of beef and half the potatoes. You can add a green salad with lemon juice. Thus, this will reduce the calorie food more than 50%.
Add Whole Grain Foods (Whole Meal Bread, Brown Rice And Pasta) To Your Diet
These foods are higher in fiber, which forms a gel in the stomach providing a feeling of fullness and can slow the passage of glucose into the blood by preventing insulin spikes.
Do Not Skip Breakfast
This meal must provide enough energy to start the day. If you wake up with a little hunger, it is important to drink an infusion alone or with milk and a slice of bread or a piece of fruit. It is proven that people who skip breakfast have a lower performance at work and are more likely to be overweight. In addition, having breakfast prevents you from getting too hungry at lunch.
Add At Least Five Portions Of Fruits And Vegetables To Your Diet
This ensures that you eat the right amount of vitamins and minerals as well as fiber.
Chose A Healthy Snack When You Want One
First think if you are really hungry or bored or something happens that causes emotional eating. Often people relate emotions with food; we are sad or happy and we don’t eat or we overeat. Think of what you get as well as whether or not you are hungry.
You can choose a fruit, a glass of fruit juice, yogurt, a slice of bread or a serving of low fat cheese. On the other hand, before taking anything, it is good to drink something cold or hot, as a tea, a soup or a glass of fruit juice. Extreme temperatures promote the secretion of stomach acid and this will help you feel full; so weight loss will be assured.
Swap High Calories And Sugar Drinks For Natural And Lower Calories Ones
Sugary drinks (soda, juice) and alcoholic beverages contain artificial gas, carbonates that acidifies the blood and promote the development of tooth decay. They also promote craving for sweets, so it is better to replace them with natural sweeteners (fruit juices with water, lemonade) or water.
Add or Increase Regular Physical Activity
Regular physical activity has multiple benefits not only will it help you in your weight loss process, but also improve your fitness and your overall health. It is also proven that exercise helps reduce stress levels, anxiety and improve body image.
Before starting with an exercise program, you should visit a health practitioner who will evaluate you and then prescribe the adequate exercise for you.
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