Choosing a diet plan you understand and can follow lays a solid foundation for successful weight loss. Although an ever-increasing amount of weight loss information, advice, plans and techniques may lead you to believe this is a complicated process, in reality it is not. Weight loss is simply a matter of reducing calories and increasing physical activity. To accomplish the first part of this equation, all you really need is a basic understanding of balanced nutrition and the tools to create a simple weight loss menu.
Goals
Healthy weight loss is gradual weight loss, says the National Institutes of Health and the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. A weight loss plan that reduces your calorie intake by 500 to 1,000 calories each day enables you to not only lose one to two pounds a week but also gives you time to adjust to new ways of eating. Healthy weight loss also involves choosing foods that increase your health, not your waistline. The NIH and NHLBI recommend a diet that includes about 1,200 to 1,400 calories of healthy food each day to help you accomplish these goals.
Features
A healthy meal plan features the right amounts of carbohydrates, protein, fat and fiber each day. In general, about 45 to 65 percent of your daily calories should come from carbohydrates, 10 to 35 percent from protein and 20 to 35 percent from fat, according to MayoClinic.com. In addition, you should get about 21 to 25 g of fiber each day if you are female and 30 to 38 g if you are male. As an illustration, if your menu plan includes 1,200 calories each day, 540 to 780 calories, or 135 to 195 g, should be from carbohydrates, 120 to 420 calories, or 30 to 105 g, from protein and 240 to 420 calories, or 27 to 47 g, from fat.
Food Types
Healthy eating recommendations provided by the Centers for Disease Control include a diet based on fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, fat-free or low-fat dairy products, lean meats, poultry, fish, beans, eggs and nuts. Foods the CDC recommends you eliminate from your diet include foods high in saturated or trans fat, cholesterol, salt and added sugars.
Sample Menu
An example of a 1,200-calorie simple weight loss menu that includes breakfast, lunch, dinner and two snacks, according to EveryDiet.com, includes the following:
Breakfast: 1 cup bran cereal, 1 cup skim milk and a banana
Lunch: a tuna sandwich with low-fat mayonnaise on whole wheat bread, 2 cups of raw vegetables and a small apple
Supper: 3 oz. grilled chicken breast, ¾ cup steamed green beans, a salad with 1 cup lettuce, 1/2 cup each of cherry tomatoes and grated carrot, 2 tsp. olive oil and balsamic vinegar and a fresh peach
Snacks: a nectarine and sparkling water with lemon in the afternoon and a small pear in the evening
Considerations
Talk to your doctor before getting started on any weight loss program. This is especially important if you have a medical condition such as high blood pressure or heart disease. Your doctor may have alternate or additional recommendations specific to your condition.
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