Too many diets start with a bang and end with a whimper, followed by the return of all those pounds lost to get into an old uniform, new wedding outfit or pre-baby shape. Most fad diets deliver on fast initial weight loss, but few help keep those pounds off permanently because that initial spurt is based on water loss. Permanent weight loss depends on individual commitment to exercise, established principles and sensible menu planning.
Part of a Whole
Menus for individual meals must be complete and easy to stick to over the long term. That means that favorite foods and snacks should be included in a way that fits into an overall balance of nutrients. It also means that breakfast menus must include some of the daily requirements for fruits, vegetables and carbohydrates to provide the most benefit. Include restaurant meals in your menu planning; you can take away most of the portion to use the next day. Use interactive planners published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture or National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, or NHLBI, that help you construct menus to achieve your daily requirements.
Portion Control
Portion sizes served in restaurants have been growing as fast as waistlines. A fast food cheeseburger in the late 1980s contained 333 calories; the cheeseburger of the New Millennium contains 590 calories, according to the NHLBI. Meals served at home have grown too. A plate of spaghetti has grown from 1 cup of pasta with sauce and three meatballs worth 500 calories to 2 cups of spaghetti with sauce and three big meatballs worth 1,025 calories, the NHLBI reports. Successful weight-loss menus use conservative portion sizes such as 1/2 cup and 3 ounces rather than big servings of cups and half-pounders. Use nutrition label portion sizes and consult a certified nutritionist or registered dietitian for assistance if you have a chronic medical condition, such as Type 2 diabetes or a heart condition.
Reduce Calories, Establish Balance
Weight loss depends on consuming fewer calories than your body burns. To lose 1 to 2 pounds a week, the rate recommended by the Mayo Clinic, your body needs to burn 500 to 1,000 extra calories a day. Reducing intake forces the body to burn stored fat; but if too few calories are consumed, your body begins burning muscle and body tissues. Menus that help weight loss keep fat burning slowly and steadily. Fat burns continuously when meals are small and balanced and supplemented by snacks, such as fruits and vegetables, that keep the system burning between meals. As you make out your menus for meals, add wholesome snack options to bridge the void between them.
Borrow What Works
Study up on diets recommended by health and nutrition professionals. The Mayo Diet, the Mediterranean Diet, vegetarian, Latin and Asian pyramid-based diets all balance nutrition and provide options that you need to build your own eating plan of menus. Borrow freely to provide variety as you pursue your own goals. Use nutrition labels to choose foods and serving sizes that fit your plan.
References
- Nutrition.gov: Weight Management
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration: Make Your Calories Count
- National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute: Portion Distortion!
- National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute: Evaluation and Treatment of Overweight and Obesity in Adults -- Dietary Therapy
- MayoClinic.com: Weight Loss -- Six Strategies for Success
- MayoClinic.com: Mediterranean Diet
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