What Are Your Diets Plan Options For Losing Weight?

What Are Your Diets Plan Options:

Diets Plan Options:

You probably have been overwhelmed by the number of diet plans that promise “Lose 10lbs. in 10 days’. These plans do not offer you a plan you can use for the rest of your life. What they offer is a quick fix that will get the weight off but if you use those plans the weight will come roaring back as soon as you stop the diet. That doesn’t mean that all diet plans are bad it just means that some make promises that are unreasonable and not life-changing. Losing

I am sure you are familiar with all the ‘Big’ names in the diet world, plans like Jenny Craig, Weight Watchers, NutriSystem and so many more. I bet you have been thinking that somewhere out there is the diet plan for you. Well, in this section I will be discussing the different diet plans and at the very end, I will tell you what my plan is. So let’s get going.

The Plans:

From my research, I believe that there are approximately six diet plan options that give you a reasonable weight loss plan. Each plan has its own particular strengths and weaknesses but they all offer you a decent plan. As you are probably aware, some of these plans require you to join a club and buy pre-packaged foods steering you away from the foods they consider ‘bad’ and buy only the foods they believe are ‘good’.

It would take too long to go into every detail of each program so instead, I will give you an overview of the programs and a short list of what I believe are the ‘Pros’ and ‘Cons’ of each plan. My goal is to present important information you can use to make fundamental changes in your life.

Atkins Diet:

This diet has been in the news for a few years. It is a low-carb diet and that is the primary method this diet uses to reduce weight. The other important feature of this plan is that you consume high protein foods such as meat, eggs, and seafood as well as monounsaturated fats, i.e., cheeses, butter, sausages, etc.

When you first begin the Atkins Diet you are in what is called the ‘induction phase.’ What does that mean? It means that in the first two weeks of starting the Atkins Diet you cannot eat more than 20 grams of carbohydrates per day. These carbohydrates are usually derived from vegetables but you have to avoid high carbohydrate foods such as potatoes, carrots, and corn.

The way the Atkins diet works is that you can increase your carbohydrates by 5 grams every week until you hit a predetermined maximum (total) of between 40 to 90 grams. When you reach that point in the Atkins diet you are considered to be in the ‘maintenance’ phase.

Here’re The Pros and Cons as I See Them:

Pros:

• You lose weight on the Atkins Diet. Millions of people will attest to that.
• Your carbohydrate intake is very controlled and to a certain degree, that is good.
• The Atkins Diet endorses that a dieter must put a limit on the number of high sugar and processed foods they consume.

Cons:

• The most recent scientific research endorses eating more fruits and vegetables. On the Atkins Diet, the consumption of these food groups is limited.
• High-fat foods such as red meat, which is a fundamental food group in the Atkins, cause problems for our hearts and might be linked to serious illnesses.
• We use protein to build muscle but on the Atkins Diet, there are few carbohydrates to burn for energy. It is true that consuming protein will lead to weight loss but without the carbohydrates, in the diet, your body may resort to using your lean muscle mass for energy. That is never good.
• Only small portions of carbohydrates are allowed on a weekly basis, 40 to 90 grams, and this goes against everything modern science and nutrition believe is healthy.

Conclusion?

The conclusion is that with the Atkins Diet you will lose weight however due to the structure of the diet, high fat and low carb, it may not be a healthy diet over the long run. Remember, we are looking for a diet plan that we can use for the rest of our lives not just for a few months.

A study:

A study was done on people using the Atkins diet, The study found that up to 40% stopped using the Atkins Diet plan within 12 months. The people stated that the diet was just too hard to stay on. However, the remaining 60% did lose weight, an average of 16 lbs. in the first six months. But the weight loss dropped to 10 lbs. after one year on the Atkins Diet.

One of the fundamental reasons people stop a diet is that they miss all the foods they had to give up and this is one of the reasons people find the Atkins Diet difficult to use for an extended period of time.

As Discussed Earlier, Our Bodies Are Very Intelligent:

If our body detects that something is missing, it will send us a message which we call a ‘craving’. As soon as you stop a diet that restricted your foods you will begin eating the foods you craved and as you do you will gain all the weight back.

Low Carb Diets:

Our bodies do not know the difference between a spoonful of sugar or a bite from an apple. To our bodies, it doesn’t matter because it all gets converted into sugar. Our bodies have to have sugar for fuel and without sugar, we are in trouble.

• A low-carb diet is based on limiting our carbohydrate intake.
• This results in our body experiencing times when there are no carbs to burn and when our body faces that situation it will burn fat.
• A low carb diet is similar to Atkins however it does not go as far as Atkins in limiting carbohydrate consumption.
• The basic principle behind a low carb diet is to create a shortage or deficiency of sugar in our body.
• This shortage of sugar forces our bodies to burn fat and if you burn fat you lose weight.
• A low carb diet differs from the Atkins diet in that the low carb diet will limit you to the lower end of the recommended daily intake of carbs.
• A low carb diet also requires you to reduce or completely stop consuming the quick simple sugars that are in foods.

Remember,

Simple carbohydrates are broken down quickly which allows the sugars to immediately enter your blood supply. On the other hand, the body takes longer to break down complex carbohydrates and this longer breakdown time provides your body with a sustained energy source.

The problem begins when you consume large amounts of simple carbs and then do not have any physical activity. The sugars are then converted immediately to fat. When you consume simple sugars you must accompany that with some type of physical activity.

Pros:

• You will consume less simple carbs. This means two things:

First, you will limit the amount of sugars that your body has to burn immediately.

Second, because you are limiting your simple carbs you are not consuming all the fat that goes along with this food group (not fruits and some vegetables).

Remember, you are on a diet so you are trying to reduce the amount of fat you consume.

• With a reasonable level of physical activity you will burn the small amount of sugar that you are consuming and then you will begin to burn fat. This is what we want!
• You can consume some of the carbs you like but not at the same level as Atkins.

Cons:

• Weight loss will occur, however, you will have to give up many of the foods you like, just like in the Atkins Diet. This might become a problem in keeping the weight off for the long term.
• A strict adherence to this diet might mean that you go too far in reducing your carbohydrates and too severely limit yourself from healthy fruits, vegetables, beans, legumes and whole grains.

It is a good idea to reduce the carbs in your diet as long as you aren’t reducing to the point of limiting the important fruits and vegetables and missing out on important nutrients.

To Be Successful on a Low Carb Diet:

• You must like foods low in carbohydrates. I realize that saying that sound painfully obvious but people do not always think about the implications of a diet.
• You have to enjoy eating meats, cheeses, poultry and other high protein foods. These are the types of foods a low carb diet is based on. Losing

Low Fat Diet:

This is probably the most popular diet. This is so popular because you can still eat many of your favorite foods you just can’t eat them all the time.

The reason why these diets are so popular is that it is common knowledge that fat = calories. This is absolutely true; fat is the densest food we eat in terms of calories. So it just makes sense that the less fat we eat the fewer calories we consume which will, in turn, make it easier for you to lose weight.

However, there is something you must be aware of. It is not healthy to remove all fat from your diet. There are two kinds of fat and you need to know the differences. The first group of fats I will call the ‘Bad’ Fats.

I. Bad Fats: Losing

• Bad fats are saturated and trans-fats. These fats are ‘bad’ or unhealthy for us to eat because they are linked to cardiovascular disease.
• Another reason these fats are bad for us is that they raise our cholesterol more than any other food item in our diet.

If your diet consists of foods that raise your cholesterol then the following will happen:

• your arteries begin to get clogged which makes them smaller and restricts the flow of blood through your body.
• As a result of your arteries being clogged your heart has to work much harder to pump the blood through all your arteries.
• If your arteries become so clogged that the blood cannot circulate then you have reached a point of having a life-changing event, a very bad event.
• The fact that is considered the worst of the bad fats is trans-fat.
• Another method to identify a fat as a trans-fat is if you see partially hydrogenated on the label.
• It is almost guaranteed that the product contains trans-fats.
• Trans-fats lower the good cholesterol (HDL) and raise the bad cholesterol (LDL).
• The only purpose of trans- fats is to increase the shelf life of the food item; there is no nutritional value to a trans-fat.

II. Good Fats:

Good fats are monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. These types of fats contain elements that aid proper cell structure, the production of hormones and these fats get stored for energy. Monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats contain Omega-3 fatty acids, which have been shown to reduce heart disease, diabetes, stroke, and high blood pressure.

It is difficult to see how you could go wrong consuming something that reduces the chances of getting those terrible diseases. Anytime you can consume something that reduces those devastating diseases, you are doing exactly what you should be doing.

Pros:

• Low-Fat diets are one of the easiest methods to lose weight. By reducing the level of fats in your diet you also limit your calories. Think of how this would help you reach your 500 calories daily deficit.
• Your favorite foods are still on your menu. You won’t find yourself craving your favorites and although the foods you eat might be high in carbs it is also low in fat and that’s the key to this diet.
• You can eat from all food groups. Take your pick, carbs, fat, proteins and nutrients are all part of an important to this diet.  Losing Losing Losing Losing Losing

Cons:

• If you go overboard and cut out all fats, you might be losing some very important facts that will help in developing healthy cells and storing energy.
• This diet makes it easy to cheat. It is very easy to grab a piece of cake, a chocolate bar, or other favorites when you don’t have a restrictive diet. If in your mind fat doesn’t equal calories then you might not be able to sustain this diet.
• As with any diet you have to be committed to making the diet work. This might mean not being able to eat all of your favorite foods. So commitment is absolutely critical. Take a look at the diet and then be honest with yourself and decide whether you can commit to this program.

Weight Watchers-Jenny Craig: 

Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig are two of the most popular diet plans. One of the main concepts behind each of these plans is counting calories. Both Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig have their own line of foods and supplements that are high in protein but low in sugars and fats.

With Jenny Craig:

You purchase the meals directly from them as opposed to Weight Watchers where you purchase their food at the supermarket.

• A strong point of both plans is the support from other members and it probably is no surprise that the support is a strong selling point.
• It is proven that people who have a support system stand a much greater chance of succeeding at weight loss because everyone enjoys having people cheer them on and help them over the hurdles.
• These two benefits, the support, and the food make Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig two of the most popular plans available today.