Healthy Diet Plan To Lose Weight Fast

Exercising on a regular basis will not help you shed pounds fast if you don't make healthy adjustments to your eating habits. Losing weight requires creating a calorie deficit, which means that you have to burn more calories than you consume. Although you may be tempted to dramatically increase yur exercise and drastically reduce your calories, this really isn't the best way to go about weight loss. The Mayo Clinic website recommends losing 1 to 2 lbs. per week. This is an attainable loss, and if you do it the right way, you will take on a new, healthy lifestyle.

Eat Natural Foods

Eating foods in their natural form keeps you feeling full throughout the day and minimizes hunger pangs. Shop for unprocessed foods, meaning foods that have not been manipulated before they get to you. Frozen dinners and packaged foods contain large amounts of chemical preservatives, sodium, refined sugar and fats that contribute to weight gain. Fill up on foods such as nuts, chicken, tuna, turkey, whitefish, salmon, lean red meats, soybeans, vegetables, good fats like olive oil and seeds, Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, whole-grain breads, brown rice, oatmeal and fruits low in sugar like kiwi, apples, grapefruit and berries.

Avoid High-Calorie Foods

Stay away from foods high in saturated and trans-fats and refined sugars. Avoid desserts, pizza, fried foods, potato chips and candy. Reach for fruits and vegetables instead. Fruits and vegetables take longer to digest, so you they fill you up with fewer calories. Keep vegetables and fruits washed and cut in the refrigerator so they are readily available.

Eat Frequently

Consume five to six small meals per day instead of two or three large meals. Eating every three to four hours helps prevent cravings and hunger. Have a serving of protein and complex carbohydrates at each meal. For example, have 4 oz. of grilled salmon, half of a sweet potato and 1 cup of spinach for lunch.

Limit Alcohol

Cut back on the bar crawls with your buddies. Drinking can load you up with empty calories and encourage weight gain. One and a half ounces of vodka with 1 cup of cranberry juice have 230 calories. Consuming a couple of these daily can add up to a weekly weight gain of 1 lb.

Cut Calories

Decrease your daily calorie intake by 500 to 750 calories per day to lose 1 to 2 lbs. per week. Do not cut your calories to the point of starvation in an attempt to lose more weight. The lowest recommended calorie intake is 1,200 calories for women and 1,500 calories for men, according to the MedlinePlus website.