How To Choose A Diet Plan To Lose Weight
When it comes to weight loss, a lot of factors can influence your results. And knowing how to choose a diet plan that works is crucial.
Your weight loss journey will be different from your sister’s, even if you follow the same diet, go to the same gym, and do the same exercises.
This is because many factors contribute to weight loss, such as your BMI, BMR, sleeping habits, age, immune system, gut health, lifestyle, and so much more.
When it comes to losing weight, everyone will have a different approach and theory; you will see plenty of advice on the internet and magazines. There are indeed many ways to lose weight.
However, it must primarily center around two things: diet and physical exertion.
Choosing the right diet is essential to experience successful weight loss. If you eat the wrong kind of food, your body will stay hungry and unsatisfied, which will cause you to eat more food and give up your weight loss plan quickly.
While there are different natural treatments to manage obesity, you must focus on three things to make your plan work:
- Reducing appetite by having balanced and nutrition-packed meals;
- Improving your rate of metabolism or metabolic health;
- And doing the right kind of exercise.
In this article, we will talk about the key factors to choose a diet plan that really works and helps reduce weight naturally.
Choosing Your Diet Plan For Weight Loss
When choosing your diet plan, if you remember the following three things, you will tread the right path of your weight loss journey.
1. Forget Refined Sugar And Bad Carbs At All Cost
Sugar has nothing, but an endless amount of empty calories. When you cut back on refined and processed sugar, your digestive system improves, your immune system boosts, your mind clears, and your metabolic rate increases.
After a week of cutting back sugar in your diet, your appetite improves and your hunger level goes down significantly.
Avoid sugary products, including fruit juices, canned drinks, alcohol, and dried fruits if you wish to reduce weight quickly.
Alternatives to sugar include Stevia, cinnamon powder, and date syrup.
There are two types of carbs – good (complex) and bad (simple). You cannot completely cut down carbs, because it is one of the prime sources of energy. Your diet must include 5 -10% carbs, but only good carbs.
Bad carbs, like refined foods (white rice, refined vegetable oils, white flour, etc.), processed foods, and packaged and tinned foods, can spike up your insulin levels, disrupt your good hormone production, and promote water retention and bloating. Bad carbs can also increase the risk of type 2 diabetes.
Cut back bad carbs and refined sugars and add good carbs and organic sugar to shed more weight.
Good carbs (whole products) that you can add in your diet are quinoa, oats, legumes, bananas, sweet potatoes, buckwheat, whole wheat, multigrain products, and whole fruits.
2. Include Protein And Fiber In Your Diet
Protein is the main nutrient that promotes weight loss.
Your every meal should contain 30% protein. Generally, to lose weight and stay fit, you must have 1 gm protein per kg of your weight.
For instance, if you are 65 kgs, you must have 65 grams of protein per day. However, if you are obese, you must calculate the protein intake according to your ideal weight.
However, if you are not able to achieve this number, make sure you have at least 35 to 50 grams of protein per day.
Protein in your diet can boost metabolism by 100 calories per day. Protein can also reduce appetite, keep you full for a longer time, promote lean muscle growth, and reduce the desire of snacking.
In fact, a protein-rich diet can make you eat up to 441 fewer calories per day.
Fibrous foods will also help you reduce weight naturally, improve your digestion, bulk up your stool, improve your cardiovascular health, and keep you full for a longer period.
Foods that are high in protein are chicken, beef, pork, eggs, legumes, pulses, seafood, and diary-based products.
Foods that are rich in dietary fiber are whole wheat products, vegetables, such as broccoli, carrots, greens, sweetcorn, and peas, beans and legumes, potatoes, certain fruits, and whole grains.
3. Do At Least 30 Minutes Of Exercises Daily
You must exercise for at least 30 minutes to see improvement in your weight loss journey. Your exercise should include cardio, weight lifting, HIIT workouts.
Weight lifting burns more calories and improves your metabolism. Weight lifting along with a low-carb, high-protein diet will burn fats naturally and promote good muscle growth.
If you are working out at home, then, of course, you won’t be able to lift weights.
In case of exercising at home, try to use your body weight as a way of training and include more of jogging, brisk walking, swimming, HIIT, steppers, Yoga, and strength training exercises.
The best way to lose weight is by achieving a calorie deficit – a state where your body sheds more calories than the calories it needs.
To achieve this, you must eat at least 500 calories less, and it is only possible when you exercise regularly and include more proteins, zero fat and moderate amounts of carbs in your diet.
Hopefully, these tips will help you choose a diet plan that perfectly fits your lifestyle and goals. Remember, what works for your friend might not work for you, and vice-versa.