5 Things You Need to Know About The Diet Smart Plan

1. Begin With the Basics

The Diet Smart Plan is less of a diet and more of a lifestyle change. The diet follows the book that shares its name. The idea is that you make small dietary changes over a period of time, so you don't feel restricted and are more likely to stick with the changes in the long run.

2. Follow the Rules

There are three solid guidelines for this program. In order to lose weight, you are asked to count your calories and eat eight times your body weight daily. Once you've reached your goal weight, you eat 11 times your body weight in calories daily to maintain your current weight. In addition to calorie counting, you eat five small meals throughout the day and weigh in twice daily. Weighing yourself helps keep your mind on your weight loss goal and motivates you to keep going. Once you start seeing changes in the number on the scale, the twice daily weigh-ins serve as a reward for your success.

3. The New Food Groups

Food is categorized into one of five groups in this diet. The free food group consists of low calorie vegetables. Making vegetables a "free" food encourages you to consume as many as you can over the course of the day to stay satisfied. Basic foods count against your daily calorie intake, but you should still eat as many of these as you can before moving onto another category of foods. Some examples of food in this group include lean proteins, rice, potatoes and fruit. The remaining three categories consist of the single portion category, the modified foods category and the limited foods category. No foods are forbidden on this diet, but it is suggested to limit the foods in the last three groups to occasional consumption.

4. Diet Smart Plan Tips and Tricks

Reach for a vegetable from the free food group if you feel like an extra snack. Since you're working on a lifestyle change while on this diet, don't suffer through hunger or a bout of the munchies. Carrot sticks, celery and cucumber slices can be prepped and kept on hand for one of these snack attacks. Keep your other snacks in pre-portioned bags to make good decisions and stick to your calorie goal for the day. The Diet Smart Plan is full of tips to help you maintain a new, healthy lifestyle.

5. Some Things to Consider

There isn't much focus on overall nutrition in this diet. While you are very likely to lose weight by sticking to a certain calorie limit, you might be shorting yourself of necessary nutrients for overall health. You want to monitor protein, carbohydrates, calcium, sodium, fiber and fats at some point to ensure you're getting what you need. Eating a good variety of food is the best way to increase your chances of getting all the nutrition you need.