Diet and health are intrinsically linked. How we feel physically, how sharp and mentally alert we feel and how much we weigh are all determined by what we eat. Not to mention the longer term health implications. Being obese is now proven to increase the risks of related diseases like cancer, heart disease and diabetes. Health researchers are now also beginning to demonstrate a possible link between Alzheimer’s and our diet.
I believe that all calories are not created equal. It’s important to include in our regular meals as much nutrient rich food as we can. Eliminating from our every day routines the empty calories of soft drinks, sweets and heavily processed food is also important. These elements should be treated as treats and saved for high days and holidays.
What is the Best Diet to Help You Lose Weight?
Some of the leading styles of healthy diets for weight loss are:
Paleo or Caveman diets only include items which our ancestors might have eaten millennia ago. They exclude all grains. Research is beginning to show that grains, particularly wheat, may have an adverse affect on both our guts and our brains.
Low Carb Diets include the latest thinking on diets. Similar in some ways to Paleo style diets but much more restrictive in terms of the amount of carbohydrates eaten. These diets lead to weight loss but can be difficult to maintain in the longer term. The Atkins and Dukan diets are included in that category.
Low Fat Diets were the predominant methods of attempting to lose weight for about 40 years. These are beloved of the food industry who have transformed their processed foods with industrially processed sugars and fats to reduce the amount of fat while maintaining the taste and mouthfeel that consumers enjoy.
Low GI Diets contain a mix of fats and carbs. The key feature of Low GI diets are that the carbohydrates included in the diets are complex ones which are released slowly into the bloodstream. This type of diet is recommended for people with diabetes – or who may be at risk of developing it.
Diets For Weight Loss
Sometimes losing weight can feel as daunting as climbing these rocks…
There are hundreds of different weight loss programs out there all promising to help you lose weight. And the interesting fact is of course that almost all diets will work. If, of course, you can stick to them.
Keeping your level of motivation up is one of the top challenges to successful dieting. It’s all too easy to succumb to social pressure of friends who may congratulate you on losing weight, but don’t seem to want to help you with the slimming process. I’ve lost count of the times I’ve been pressurised into “just a sliver of cake – I made it myself” accompanied by that hurt look which makes it impossible to say no without appearing rude or heartless. The Venus Factor weight loss plan creators have a great way of looking at this. Their take on it is to eat normally in public but diet in private. Don’t tell anyone you’re fighting the flab, just let people notice how great your new svelte body looks. It’s a strategy which should work for anyone who’s social circle are great at sabotage.
Families however are different. It’s really important to get them on board to help with the process from the start. If they’re involved in your fat busting plan they can help provide support, motivation and (non-food based) treats as rewards for success.
The other thing you may have to negotiate is the side effects, sticking to a diet of predominantly cabbage soup will undoubtedly help you become the slim waif of a thing you may have been dreaming about, but at what cost? Embarrassing flatulence, tummy rumbles and that lingering smell. That’s one that I – and anyone I live with – will be avoiding!
So it’s important to find a solution which doesn’t make you shall we say “unwanted” by your nearest and dearest and also that you really believe that you can continue without becoming bored and fed up. One which will allow for treats but not make food based treats the norm – cookies should not be rewards!
The easiest solution for weight loss is also the healthiest as the long term key to weight loss is a gradual change of lifestyle to incorporate more home cooked meals, more vegetables and fruit and less of anything which has an ingredient list on the packet.
Apples, mushrooms, broccoli and steak don’t come from the shop labelled with the ingredients. This means that they are in themselves unprocessed, healthy and nutrient dense foods which promote good health and wellbeing.
If you cook at home, using predominantly fresh, unprocessed ingredients it’s much easier to control what you eat and how much of it you consume. It’s also easier to add a pudding or desert as again you can make sure that whatever you choose will be of the quality and quantity to do you good.
The more people cook at home, the lower their weight. One study by researchers from Johns Hopkins University has shown that people who cook most at home eat a better quality of diet and lose more weight than people who eat pre-prepared foods.
It’s not a fast weight loss solution, but it’s one which will reap long term benefits as you won’t suffer the effects of yoyo dieting and your weight loss will be easy to maintain in the long term.