A single weight-loss program isn't the best for every person. Finding a weight-loss plan requires looking at the types of food you enjoy eating and your ability to stick with the diet over the long-term. By selecting a weight-loss plan you can commit to for life, you'll keep the pounds off over time. Evaluating your weight loss diet options will assist in finding the right plan for your situation.
Glycemic Index Diets
Glycemic index diets focus on using a special index to guide your eating. The index assigns a number to each food, based on the food's influence on insulin levels. Usually, foods high in carbohydrates are assigned the highest index level. Advocates of these diet plans believe that controlling insulin levels promotes weight-loss.
Low-Carbohydrate Diets
If you enjoy eating high-protein foods and don't mind scaling back on carbohydrates, this plan is an option. A low-carbohydrate diet typically requires eating 10 percent of the standard carbohydrate recommendations. Foods high in sugar and refined carbohydrates are limited to keep blood sugar levels in balance. Since this diet approach requires eating high amounts of protein, it's important to select the protein right sources. Skinless chicken, nuts and fresh water fish are good options.
Low-Fat Diets
A low-fat diet encourages consumption of a wide variety of foods, however, you select foods low in fat. Fat contains more calories than any other type of food. By limiting fat intake, you drive down daily calorie consumption, resulting in weight-loss. Typically, you consume 20 percent of daily calories from fat sources. With a low-fat diet, it's important to measure serving sizes. Even if a food is low-fat, it contains calories. Measuring servings will assist in preventing overeating.
Healthy Lifestyle Diets
A healthy lifestyle diet promotes making healthy lifestyle changes, such as eating a low-calorie diet and scheduling regular exercise. These diets focus on changing behaviors linked to overeating. For example, The Mayo Clinic diet focuses on lifestyle, attitude, nutrition, relationship and exercise changes. Healthy Lifestyle Diets recommend eating a variety of foods. Sweets and unhealthy foods are allowed in moderation.
Diets to Avoid
Avoid fad diets, which promise rapid weight-loss. Red flags for these diets include the use of skin creams, fat blockers or supplements. Eating a single food, like cabbage soup, isn't recommended, either. Fad diets might work for the short-term. However, once you stop using the diet weight gain usually returns.
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