low-carb diet; fat free; cayenne pepper and cabbage soup; dragees and completely yellow water. It seems like every day there's a new weight loss meal plan that promises fast results, from the smart to the crazy. Proper nutrition for weight loss is something that many of us have tried to do at least once. . . or twice. . . or, let's face it, many times.
An important point about proper nutrition
Your cousin swears that giving up bread for a few weeks helped her lose weight before she entered university. On the other hand, you can't eat a single piece of bread for five years and still not lose the last few pounds. As soon as you learn the intricacies of one diet, another appears, threatening to become even more effective.
Take, for example, a study conducted in August 2015. It found that for obese adults, cutting back on fatty foods helped them lose weight 68% faster than reducing their intake of carbohydrates. What news!
But before you start ditching your favorite full-fat dairy, check out another study just two months later. According to this study, following a low-carb diet as well as a Mediterranean diet is more effective in losing weight than limiting carbohydrate intake. Scientists say that no diet works in the long term, and low-fat diets for weight loss can even be harmful.
However, 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. Not in the case of your spouse, brother or coworker, but the ones that suit your body's needs and, combined with regular exercise, make you feel great.
So what is the right diet for losing weight? A meal plan shouldn't be seen as something to be followed for weeks or months until you reach your target weight, after which you can return to your old habits. In fact, falling back into old eating habits is why researchers say diets don't work.
Instead, a healthy diet should be a lifestyle change that you can stick to because, unlike crash diets or extravagant fads, it is something that is sustainable. The way you eat should make you feel better, providing your body with the nutrients it needs so you can live a long, happy, and healthy life.
The right way to eat to lose weight
Below is information on the best healthy eating plans for weight loss that can help you make an informed decision.
low carb diet
By following a low-carb diet or a ketogenic diet (a very low-carb diet), you drastically reduce or eliminate your glucose intake. Once your body has run out of glucose and there are few or no carbohydrates in your food that your body uses for energy, your body will start using stored fat for that purpose, helping you lose weight fast.
Profit:
- You are likely to experience rapid weight loss, especially in the first few weeks and months. When we eat food with sugar and carbohydrates, our body releases insulin, the hormone responsible for storing energy and body fat. This 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 body produces less insulin. Less insulin in our blood means that glycogen is used by our body for energy and not stored, and when it runs out, fat starts to be used.
- You can reduce your risk of developing diabetes. When you switch to a low-carb diet, you naturally consume less sugar and starch. Conversely, a diet high in carbohydrates can increase the risk of diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and obesity.
- Since you're ideally replacing grains and other carbohydrates with foods rich in protein and healthy fats, you'll feel fuller and less hungry. Fat and protein are known for their satiating effects, while cutting carbs helps turn off ghrelin, the "hunger hormone. "
Deficiency:
- Reducing or completely eliminating carbohydrates from the diet can lead to a lack of energy and feelings of tiredness. If you are very active (for example, playing sports), a low-carb diet can reduce your endurance, which is so necessary during training.
- Carbs hide in unexpected places like fruit, nuts, and quinoa. Eliminating them completely from your diet can negatively impact your intake of essential vitamins and minerals.
Low fat diet
Nutrition for weight loss in the form of a low-fat diet reduces the amount of fat consumed, both of vegetable and animal origin. This diet became very popular in the US after the release of federal government dietary guidelines in 1980, which led to the introduction of low-fat diets.
Profit:
- Foods high in fat are also usually high in calories. If you're on a calorie-restricted diet, cutting out high-calorie foods may help you lose weight.
- Limiting your intake of unhealthy fats (such as trans fats) found in candy, fast food, processed foods, and other processed foods can help you lose weight; plus, it will heal your body.
Deficiency:
- Low-fat foods are often processed foods that contain refined sugars and unnatural ingredients designed to make low-calorie foods look like natural fatty foods. These added ingredients can actually lead to weight gain.
- Preferring fat-free foods, people often abuse them. This happens for two reasons: low-fat foods can't match the taste and nutritional value of normal foods, and we tend to eat more of them because we know they are low in calories.
- Our body needs fat! While foods like avocado or butter can be high in calories, they contain healthy fats that our bodies need to function properly. Which do you prefer: butter made from cow's cream or "buttery substance" made in a laboratory?
Mediterranean diet
The Mediterranean diet originates from Mediterranean countries like Italy, Spain, Greece, etc. The Mediterranean diet cannot be called a diet per se - it is a regular diet containing fresh fruits and vegetables, healthy fats such as olive oil, high-quality home-cooked poultry and seafood, all natural and grown without the use of synthetic fertilizers, feed, etc.
Profit:
- Because this diet focuses on natural foods, you'll be consuming very little processed or sugary foods. You're more likely to snack on nuts than cookies, for example.
- An abundance of foods rich in healthy fats helps reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.
Deficiency:
- Even though healthy fats are good for us, we need to control our food intake. Because they taste so good, 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 probably isn't for you.
Vegetarianism or veganism
Although there are varying degrees 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.
Profit:
- A plant-based diet is naturally low in fat and high in fiber. You don't have to count calories when you eat lettuce.
- A vegetarian diet has been linked to reduced blood pressure and reduced cholesterol levels. If you want to control this condition naturally, cutting meat can help.
- Good quality meat can be expensive! Eliminating them from your diet can really help save money in your budget.
Deficiency:
- Avoiding animal products does not guarantee that you will eat a healthy and nutritious diet.
- High-quality animal meat provides the body with essential nutrients that are difficult to obtain from plant foods. Vegans especially need to be aware of their dietary deficiencies and should consider taking supplements.
paleo diet
What about the paleo diet and veganism? These are the two most fashionable diets. "Go paleo" is something we're hearing more and more about these days, especially in the sports community. The paleolithic diet, consisted of the foods our ancestors ate - natural animal meats (fed natural foods for them), wild fish, nuts, tubers, vegetables, and fruits.
Profit:
- Switching to a grain-free diet can be very beneficial because you're cutting out the carbohydrates present in insulin-boosting grains and replacing 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 diet. In fact, if you follow the Paleo diet properly, it can help improve autoimmune conditions and help you lose weight naturally.
- Along with eliminating grains, sugar (a major product that causes inflammation and chronic disease) was also completely eliminated from the diet. Instead, this diet is full of popular anti-inflammatory foods like wild salmon (or similar fish), blueberries, leafy greens, and nuts.
Deficiency:
- Unfortunately, many people following the Paleo diet often consume too much meat, as well as some toxic substances of animal origin.
- In addition, people often consume non-organic foods, including meat, butter, vegetables and fruits. Unless you can afford exclusively organic foods, this diet cannot be considered a Paleo diet.
Remember that you don't have to follow certain diet rules, make up a strict menu of proper nutrition for weight loss. Some aspects of a particular diet may appeal to you, while others may not.
For example, you might want to go vegan 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 your carb intake for a few weeks to even out your insulin levels and then switch to a Mediterranean diet where whole grains are consumed in moderation. All this is very good!
There is no need to eat special diets to lose weight day after day, week after week. It is important to eat right, eat mostly organic products and exclude manufactured foods and sweets whenever possible. Ultimately, the "best" diets (dietary systems for weight loss) come and go, but dieting based on natural vegetables and fruits, meat and fish, nuts and seeds never goes out of style.