According to the English dictionary, there are several meanings of a diet. One is the kind of food that a person, community or animal habitually eats. Another one is a special course of food to which someone restricts his/herself for either medical reasons or to lose weight. The one we’ll be focusing on is restricting oneself to a special kind or lesser amounts of food for weight loss.
When most people hear the word ‘diet’ what immediately crosses their mind is a mixture of unpleasant foods that are not tasty. But that could not be further from the truth because there are plenty of weight loss diets that have tasty and delicious foods.
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In order for a diet to work and be nutritious at the same time, it should have several food groups in it as one food group cannot provide everything that you need for good health. A diet helps you to do portion control of the foods that you eat.
Diets for Weight Loss
There are many types of diets and some are crash or fad diets which always sound promising but they rarely provide all the nutrients that the body needs and they only lead to temporary weight loss. Having a healthy diet plan will help in losing weight gradually and in sustaining the new weight for the long term. Below are a few things you tips you should follow if you want to succeed in your weight loss diet.
Moderation
Setting a reasonable weight loss goal of about 1 to 2 pounds per week and giving yourself adequate time like weeks or months to achieve your goal is practicing moderation. Doing an extreme diet would rob you of energy and it probably won’t work in the long run.
Exercise
Exercising and dieting go hand in hand with a solid weight loss plan. Before going on a diet you would need to consider the types of exercises that energize and motivate you.
Do Your Research
Educate yourself on nutrition and the types of foods and drinks that you will be eating and drinking on a daily basis. Also, learn about the types of foods and drinks that you should cut back on.
Break Bad Habits
It takes about two to three weeks to create a habit and about a month to kick out an old one. One of the hardest things to do when dieting is kicking out old habits like eating and drinking anything you want anytime you want and the portion that you want. Discipline is key here because without it you will find yourself back on your old habits.
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See a Doctor
It is important to have a talk with your doctor before starting any weight loss plan. It is especially important if you have a history of eating disorders or an existing medical condition.
Be Realistic
Another thing to note is that just because a particular diet worked for a friend or a family member, it doesn’t mean that it is the right diet plan for you. According to World Health Organization (WHO):
- We should limit our energy consumption from total fats and aim for less saturated fats and more unsaturated fats.
- We should aim for a healthy body weight and energy balance.
- We should limit our consumption of salt/sodium and make sure our salt is iodized.
- We should consume as little sugars as possible.
Share with us any weight loss diet tips that you may know.