An imbalance between the total calories you consume and the amount your body burns often results in weight gain. When you need to lose weight, your eating habits play an important part in reaching your target weight and achieving energy homeostasis---a balance between calorie intake and output. A healthy diet plan combines lifestyle modifications and a structure that lets you maintain your weight loss, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Consult your doctor before you start any diet or weight-loss plan.
American Heart Association
The American Heart Association states that a healthy weight can contribute to better heart health. The organization's "No-Fad Diet" is a free, online program that helps you create a successful weight-management plan. This diet plan incorporates reliable nutrition science that helps you meet your health and weight goals. The site's free tools include tips for healthy lifestyle choices and exercise, a recipe collection, shopping and dining-out guides, cookbooks and a body mass index calculator.
U.S. Department of Agriculture
The federal government provides a variety of evidence-based diet resources to help you shed pounds efficiently. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's My Pyramid gives you the option of creating a personalized weight-control program, based on the USDA food pyramid and recommendations from nutrition experts. This diet plan helps you develop healthy eating habits by making better food choices, based on the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Use the site's tools to learn portion control and improve the nutritional content of your daily diet with nutrient-dense foods.
The site provides tips for increasing your level of physical activity, in increments as small as 10 minutes per day. The My Pyramid Food Tracker lets you record your daily caloric intake and estimate the number of calories burned through physical activity, for up to one year.
National Heart Lung and Blood Institute
This federal agency has interactive tools that let you create personalized diets, using proven guidelines for healthy cholesterol, saturated fat, sodium and calorie intake. Choose the Heart Healthy Diet or the TLC Diet for lowering LDL cholesterol levels. Enter your current weight, height and age group, along with your physical activity level. The NHLBI site recommends the appropriate daily calorie, fat and saturated fat intake for you. Use the database of selections from each food group to create your personalized daily meal plans.
Mayo Clinic
Mayo Clinic says it created the Mayo Clinic Diet in response to consumer demand. This structured, science-based weight-control plan became reality largely because of persistent rumors and urban legends about a diet that Mayo did not sponsor or support. The diet's structure helps you achieve immediate weight loss and make long-term dietary changes that help you maintain that weight loss. Mayo Clinic provides directions for this diet in its book "The Mayo Clinic Diet", and offers a companion journal you use to track your progress for 10 weeks. The calorie-restricted diet plan, combined with increased exercise, can help you lose 6 to 10 pounds within the first month. For additional healthy weight loss, follow Mayo's diet recommendations to lose 1 to 2 pounds weekly and to maintain your weight loss.
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