Give up the Diet
If you’re thinking of going on a diet to lose those extra pounds think again. Long-term weight control through dieting is near impossible, for the simple reason is that diets promote only short term solutions not long term.
After dieting you’ll certainly look lighter on the scales, but in most cases this is because you’ve dumped a few pounds of body fluid and muscle, and not because you’ve lost any significant amounts of body fat.
One of the main reasons diets don’t work is because they sendthe body into starvation mode – a survival mechanism for times when humans faced periods of famine. Cutting back on our energy intake causes the body to lower its metabolicrate, which reduces its ability to burn fat.
At the same time, hunger signals increase and we quickly start to crave high energy foods loaded with fats and sugars – the exactfoods we are trying to do without!!!
Alarmingly, research has shown that repeated dieting actuallymakes it harder to lose weight and easier to put it on!!
This is because when you dump the diet and return to normaleating habits, the drop in metabolic rate caused by the dietmeans that your old eating habits actually represent an excessin calories. Not only do you regain the fat stores just lost,but you may even gain a bit extra.
“Five more reasons to stop dieting”
? Diets sap energy – Too little food means not enough
energy for physical activity.
? Diets lower your metabolism – Dieting causes your body
to conserve energy, making results harder to achieve.
? Diets are unhealthy – A cycle of rapid weight loss
followed by weight gain can lead to a loss of lean tissue
from your body and calcium from your bones. It also
strips the body of essential vitamins and minerals.
? Diets make food the enemy – Food provides nourishment
and comfort. Diets can make you afraid to eat, depriving
you of one of life’s pleasures.
? Diets cheat your confidence – Going from one failed ? diet to the next can leave you feeling depressed and ? create a cycle in which guilt battles against food.
Regular physical activity and a healthy, balanced diet aren’t as glamorous as the quick fixes, but they do get better results.
Start with one extra exercise session and one less fatty takeaway meal per week, and gradually work towards a lifelong plan for achieving your best weight.
If you change the way you eat or exercise to lose weight, ask yourself this question. Can I see myself sticking to this routine for life!!
If the answer is “no” then its time to change what you’re doing. Any healthy weight loss plan should include the following:
? A wide variety of foods.
? Regular and enjoyable exercise.
? Enough filling foods to avoid constant hunger.
? At least 1200 calories a day.
? Flexibility for treat foods and social occasions.
? A realistic goal of your best weight (not necessarily
your lowest weight.)
Fact
A realistic weight loss is around one to two pounds per week. Fast weight losses are not fat loss but glycogen and water. If you lose weight quickly then you will probable return back to the weight at which you started as quickly as it was lost.
Fiction
? Weight loss is quick and simple.
? Exercise is not necessary.
? Certain exercises can spot reduce.
? Carbohydrates (for example, bread, potatoes, rice,
and pasta) are fattening.
So the way to lose body fat and maintain muscle or increase it is to have a food program for life and more energy output. Increase the amount of fruits, vegetables, non-fat dairy products, whole grains and beans that you eat.
Eliminate calorie-dense foods such as cookies, sugary desserts, chips, fries, pizza, candies, crackers etc. Research on people who have successfully lost a lot of weight and kept it off long term, shows that the vast majority succeeded by consuming a low fat diet high in fibre coupled with strength training and cardiovascular activity. These are the basics you’ll need to aim for.
A sound weight loss eating plan should:
? Be nutritionally sound, providing all the nutrients you need.
? Never promise fast weight losses.
? Offer an eating plan based on real food.
? Allow you to eat out.
? Avoid expensive meal plans, products and supplements.
? Not avoid carbohydrate foods, e.g. bread, rice, pasta, cereals and potatoes.
? Make gradual dietary changes.
? Provide knowledge.
? Allow you to eat all foods
? Recommend physical activity.
Fat calories are more fattening than carbohydrate calories. Your body can easily convert the fat you eat in food into body fat, so to lose weight you need to cut down on fats and foods that contain it.
Consider the following steps to reduce fat in your diet.
? Use skimmed or skimmed milk in drinks, cooking and on cereals.
? Buy a non – stick frying pan.
? Buy a cheese slicer
? Cut the visible fat from meat.
? Eat very little pastry.
? Learn how to read a food label.
? Substitute low fat yoghurt for cream.
? Remove the skin from chicken and turkey.
? Eat fruit as snacks rather than eating chocolate and biscuits.
? Eat fewer burgers and sausages.
Gary Matthews is a fitness trainer from “down under” who has been coaching clients from athletes to bodybuilders for two decades. You may contact Gary directly at [email protected] and visit his website at
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Diet or Lifestyle?
"I am going to start a diet tomorrow". How many times have we said or heard these words? What do these words mean to you? For most of us it means a period of time in which we will subject ourselves to torture in order to lose a few pounds. Eventually we grow tired of this torture and go back to our old habits and gain those pounds back. I have known people who have been on this diet merry-go-round for years. One person comes to mind who actually uses the words: "I need to stop eating for a while"! This person thinks that the key to ideal weight and health is to not eat. He will skip breakfast and eat a pack of crackers for lunch and then a light dinner in the evening. He loses weight only to gain it back when he decides "to eat" again. This is an unhealthy practice which has been proven not to work on a long term basis.
On the other hand I have known people who have taken part in a weight loss program such as ediets.com or weight watchers and have radically transformed themselves. A person comes to mind that I know rather well. She would actually enjoy her well planned meals and she often talked of taking regular walking trips with her mother. She lost weight and has managed to keep it off.
The obvious difference between the two people I mention is that one is on a diet and the other has changed her lifestyle. Let’s go deeper. Why is it that a program like ediets or weight watchers can help a person achieve a lifestyle change and so successfully reach their weight loss goals? I think the reasons are many but I want to focus on one which I feel is instrumental in helping someone achieve a lifestyle change. Education.
One thing I have noticed when talking with people about weight loss and exercise is that everyone thinks they know how it is done. Unfortunately the ways they know are not healthy nor are they long term answers to being overweight.
A lifestyle change comes from a transformation of thought which comes from learning something new or a powerful emotional incident. A perfect example would be of me learning about Cola’s and the sugar they contain. Did you know that one can of Cola contains nearly 10 teaspoons of sugar or the entire daily recommended amount of calories from sugar? I certainly did not know this and was very startled when I learned it. Ponder on that for a while and it will certainly change your beverage consumption. Making a decision to change from cola to water is not very appealing. After studying the health consequences of cola and then studying the rewards of pure water?drinking water is now an enjoyable experience. When I go to take a sip of water my thoughts are on how cleansing it is to my body and how healthy it is to be well hydrated.
I know that the above example is an oversimplification but my point is that education is the key to lifestyle change and programs like weight watchers and ediets are perfect ways to get this education in a supporting atmosphere. I like the fact that some weight loss programs can be done online in the privacy of your own home. You can be united with other members and join them in chat rooms and discussions. You can share recipes, success stories, and emotions. Joining together with thousands of other members give you access to physicians, counselors, dieticians, and other motivated people at a fraction of the cost it would cost you if you tried to hire them one on one.
If you have read any of my other articles you will know that I am a firm believer in a healthy lifestyle, exercise, and supplementation. I also know how hard it is to break destructive habits with willpower alone. We all would like to believe that we can lose weight when we make up our mind. Trouble is, we never really make up our mind so we spend our time on the diet merry-go-round.
My wish for you is that you live a healthy lifestyle with plenty of energy to enjoy life to the fullest. Online weight loss programs can be a tool in your arsenal to help you achieve the lifestyle changes required for a lean, fit, life.
Yours in health,
Bill Herren
Bill Herren is the webmaster for weightloss-articles.com Everything weight loss related! Weight loss success stories, product reviews, exercise articles, weight loss recipes, and diet articles. All Free and all designed to help you lose weight!
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