1. Cutting Calories for Heart Health
We already know that maintaining a healthy body weight through a combination of a calorie-controlled diet and regular exercise is good news for heart health. It promotes normal blood pressure, lower LDL ("bad") cholesterol and a better total cholesterol-to-HDL ("good") cholesterol ratio. Cutting calories also may keep your cardiovascular system from aging. Researchers believe that prolonged calorie restriction can decrease oxidative stress and activate special anti-inflammatory mechanisms that defend us against the onset and progression of vascular disease.
2. Glucose Tolerance and Insulin Action
The extra weight around your middle isn't just bad for your heart -- it significantly increases your risk of developing Type 2 diabetes. As your weight increases, so does your insulin resistance. This means that your body requires more insulin hormone to deal with that extra piece of cake. Your pancreas is then forced to work overtime to produce the additional insulin. When you couple that with the normal effects of aging, you have the perfect recipe for diabetes. Following a calorie-controlled diet, especially in conjunction with exercise, will help to maintain insulin sensitivity and keep your pancreas performing at its peak.
3. Cost of Cutting Calories
Many people argue that it's more budget-friendly to rely on processed, convenience foods rather than fresh produce, meats and dairy products. There are strategies, though, that will help you tighten your waistline and your wallet. Shop in season when buying fresh produce or substitute frozen fruits and vegetables instead. Picking up a whole chicken or lean ground beef is much more cost-effective than skinless, boneless chicken breasts or pre-formed burgers. That way you're not paying someone else to do the prep work.
4. Avoid the Fad Diets
Devotees of popular fad diets typically believe that they've stumbled upon the magic formula for weight loss, but plans like Atkins and "The Zone Diet" are merely calorie-controlled diets in disguise. Severely limiting carbohydrates, eliminating entire food groups or requiring college-level math to plan your meals all result in taking in significantly less calories. These "gimmicks" help to sell diet books, but in essence the concept behind them is the same: If you take in fewer calories than you burn throughout the day, you'll lose weight.
5. Estimating Intake
If you've ever logged calorie intake in a failed effort to lose weight, this may be the culprit. People typically underestimate the calories in perceived "healthy" foods and overestimate them in so-called "unhealthy" foods. Also, as a person's body mass index (BMI) increases, so does the tendency to incorrectly estimate calorie intake. Go ahead and pick healthy foods, but just make sure you read through the nutrition label first.
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