low-carbohydrate diet; without fat; hot pepper and cabbage soup; strictly yellow dragee and water. It seems like every day there's a new weight loss meal plan that promises fast results, from the smart to the insane. Proper nutrition for weight loss most of us at least once. . . or twice. . . or let's face it, something we've tried to do many times.
Important points about proper nutrition
Your relative swears that giving up bread for a few weeks helped her shed the pounds before entering university. On the other hand, you couldn't eat a piece of bread for five years and still not lose those last few pounds. As soon as you learn the intricacies of one diet, another appears that threatens to be even more effective.
Take, for example, a study conducted in August 2015. It found that for obese adults, cutting down on fatty foods helped them lose weight 68% faster than cutting down on carbohydrates. What a wonderful news!
But before you ditch your favorite full-fat dairy products, check out another study after just two months. According to this study, following a low-carb diet, as well as a Mediterranean diet, is more effective in weight loss than restricting carbohydrate intake. Scientists say no diet works well in the long run, and a low-fat diet for weight loss can even be harmful.
But hope dies last. In fact, there is an optimal nutrition plan that will help you lose weight. This is the meal plan that works for you. Something that works with your body's needs and makes you feel great along with regular exercise, not in the case of your spouse, sibling or co-worker.
So what is the right diet for weight loss? A meal plan shouldn't be seen as something to be followed for weeks or months until you reach your goal weight, after which you can go back to your old habits. In fact, going back to old eating habits leads researchers to say that diets don't work.
Instead, a healthy eating plan should be a lifestyle change you can commit to because, unlike restrictive diets or fads, it's something that lasts. Your food should make you feel better and provide your body with the nutrients it needs so you can live a long, happy and healthy life.
How to eat right to lose weight
Below is information on the best healthy eating plans for weight loss that can help you make the most informed decision.
low carbohydrate diet
By following a low-carb diet or a ketogenic diet (an extremely low-carb diet), you drastically reduce or eliminate your glucose intake. When your body runs out of glucose and your diet has little or no carbohydrates that your body uses for energy, your body will begin to use stored fat for this purpose and help you lose weight quickly.
Advantages:
- You will experience rapid weight loss, especially in the first few weeks and months. When we eat sugar and carbohydrate foods, our body releases insulin, which is responsible for storing energy and body fat. It sends a signal to your cells to store as much energy as possible in the form of glycogen. By drastically reducing our carbohydrate intake, our bodies produce less insulin. Lack of insulin in our blood means that glycogen is used by our body for energy and not stored, and when it is depleted, fat is used.
- You can reduce the risk of developing diabetes. When you switch to a low-carb diet, you naturally consume less sugar and starch. Conversely, a diet rich in carbohydrates can increase the risk of diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and obesity.
- You'll feel fuller and less hungry because you'll ideally replace grains and other carbohydrates with foods rich in protein and healthy fats. Fats and proteins are known for their satiety effects, while cutting back on carbs helps turn off the "hunger hormone" ghrelin.
Defects:
- Reducing or completely eliminating carbohydrates from the diet can lead to a lack of energy and a feeling of fatigue. If you are particularly active (for example, if you play sports), a low-carb diet can reduce your much-needed endurance during exercise.
- Carbohydrates are hiding in unexpected places like fruits, legumes and quinoa. Eliminating them completely from your diet can negatively affect your intake of essential vitamins and minerals.
Low fat diet
A low-fat diet reduces the amount of fat consumed, both from plant and animal sources. This diet became especially popular in the United States after the federal government's dietary guidelines were published in 1980, which led to the introduction of low-fat foods.
Advantages:
- High-fat foods are also usually high in calories. If you're on a calorie-restricted diet, cutting back on high-calorie foods will likely help you lose weight.
- Limiting your intake of unhealthy fats (such as trans fats) found in sweets, fast food, processed foods, and other processed foods can help you lose weight; moreover, it will heal your body.
Defects:
- Low-fat foods are often processed foods that contain refined sugar and unnatural ingredients designed to make low-calorie foods look like their natural fat counterparts. These additives can actually cause weight gain.
- Preferring lean foods, people often abuse them. This happens for two reasons: low-fat foods simply don't match the taste and nutritional value of normal foods, and we're more likely to eat them because we know they're low in calories.
- Our body needs fat! Although foods like avocados or butter are high in calories, they contain healthy fats that our bodies need to function properly. Which would you prefer: butter made from cow's cream or a lab-created "fat substance"?
Mediterranean diet
Mediterranean diet in Italy, Spain, Greece, etc. such as Mediterranean countries. The Mediterranean diet cannot be called a diet in itself – it consists of fresh fruits and vegetables, healthy fats such as olive oil, high-quality natural and synthetic fertilizers, feed, etc. quality poultry and seafood raised without use.
Advantages:
- Because this diet focuses on natural foods, you will consume very few processed or sugary foods. For example, you eat more nuts than cookies.
- An abundance of foods rich in healthy fats helps reduce the risk of developing cardiovascular disease.
Defects:
- Although healthy fats are good for us, we need to control our food intake. Because it's so delicious, it's easy to give in to the urge to eat a little more, which can lead to overeating.
- While the Mediterranean diet is great for your body in the long run, if you're looking to lose weight fast, it's probably not for you.
Vegetarianism or veganism
Although there are different levels of vegetarianism and veganism, most vegetarians avoid eating meat, including seafood and poultry. What do vegans eat? Well, they avoid all animal products, including milk and eggs.
Advantages:
- A plant-based diet is naturally low in fat and high in fiber. No need to count calories when eating lettuce.
- Vegetarian diets have been linked to lower blood pressure and lower cholesterol levels. If you want to manage these conditions naturally, cutting out meat can help.
- Quality meat can be expensive! Cutting it out of your diet can really help you save on your budget.
Defects:
- Avoiding animal products does not guarantee that you are eating healthy, nutritious foods.
- High-quality animal meat provides the body with essential nutrients that are difficult to obtain from plant-based foods. Vegans should be especially wary of dietary deficiencies and consider taking supplements.
paleo diet
What about the paleo diet and veganism? These are the two most fashionable diets. "Go paleo" is something we hear a lot more about these days, especially in the sports community. The paleolithic diet consisted of foods eaten by our ancient ancestors - natural animal meat (fed natural food for them), wild fish, nuts, roots, vegetables and fruits.
Advantages:
- Switching to a grain-free diet can be very beneficial because you cut out the insulin-raising carbohydrates in grains and replace them with more vegetables.
- Following a hunter-gatherer diet can help you get more minerals, omega-3 fatty acids, protein, and healthy fats from your food. In fact, if you follow the Paleo diet correctly, it can help improve autoimmune conditions and help you lose weight naturally.
- Along with eliminating grains, sugar (a major cause of chronic inflammation and disease) is also completely eliminated from the diet. Instead, the diet is rich in popular anti-inflammatory foods such as wild-caught salmon (or similar fish), blueberries, leafy greens, and nuts.
Defects:
- Unfortunately, many who follow the Paleo diet often consume too much meat, as well as some toxic substances from animal sources.
- In addition, people often consume non-organic foods, including meat, oil, vegetables and fruits. Unless you can afford to buy only organic foods, this diet cannot be considered a Paleo diet.
Do not forget that in order to lose weight, it is not necessary to follow a certain diet, organizing a strict menu of proper nutrition. Some aspects of a particular diet may appeal to you, while others may not.
For example, you might want to go vegetarian one or two days a week to give your wallet a break and encourage your family to try different seasonal vegetables.
Or you can reduce carbohydrate intake for a few weeks to balance insulin levels and then switch to a Mediterranean diet with moderate consumption of whole grains. All this is very good!
You don't need to consume special foods day after day, week after week to lose weight. It's just important to eat right, eat mostly organic produce, and avoid any factory-made foods and sweets whenever possible. At the end of the day, "best" diets (diet systems for weight loss) come and go, but building a diet based on natural vegetables and fruits, meat and fish, nuts and whole grains never goes out of style.