Diet Plans: Which one to Choose?
Last Updated on by Sophie
Diet Plans: Which one to Choose?
Obesity in UAE is on the rise, this is common trend everywhere and major health problem too if it is ignored.
Health authorities trying to educate people about obesity and the importance of losing weight for general health, many solutions and products available for helping us lose weight, extreme solution is surgery which is the last resort when health is at risk and all other options failed.
To lose weight you need a plan, looking around, you will find many diet plans, each designed to suit different people, what works for you might not work for me and that is why we have many slimming products and diet plans.
Very low-calorie diets
Your calorie daily intake will be reduced substantially to around 800, which is too low and that is why medical supervision is need when implementing very-low calorie diet and it is generally recommended for obese people for whom nothing else worked and surgery is not an option.
VLCD is used in patient with BMI reading of 27 to 30 with serious medical conditions due to over-weight after through medical examination.
VLCD diet aims at achieving rapid weight loss at the start of the program. With VLCDs the weight loss is substantial in the first 12 weeks and it is around 1.4 – 2.3 kilograms (3-5 pounds) per week or total of 44 pounds over 12 weeks.
The weight loss that has been achieved with VLCD can improve health conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure and cholesterol level.
In a small scale-trial researchers found that diabetics who consumed just 600 calories a day – the amount many people would eat at lunch alone – were able to throw away their tablets. The Newcastle University researchers described the result as remarkable and said it proves that the condition that affects 2.5million Britons need not be a life sentence. Read more
VLCDs depend on commercially prepared formula shakes with salads and vegetables to replace all your food for several weeks or months.
At first days the hunger will be severe and you need to distract yourself until your body gets used to it but you will notice significant loss in body weight.
Minor side effects of being on VLCD diet is fatigue, constipation, nausea and sometime diarrhea. At first days the hunger will be severe and you need to distract yourself until your body gets used to it but you will notice significant loss in body weight. It will take few weeks for these side effects to go away and should not prevent from completing the program.
Most common serious side effect is gallstone formation which is developed in obese people, especially females, and this can be treated with medications
VLCDs is not for everyone, strong well is needed to keep you going, another drawback is you can’t continue with the diet for long (recommended only for 3 months) and you need to work on not gaining weight again and many manage that through taking formula shakes know as meal replacements twice or once a day combined with fitness regime.
Many obese patients benefited from VLCD diet plan, but it is not the final solution and after significant weight loss, weight regain is possible if you don’t change your eating habits. Eating healthy and exercising is important for maintaining you weight and improving your health.
VLCD diet plan is not for everyone, seek medical advice before choosing this plan and make sure you have the well to complete the program if you want to see results.
Low-Fat Diets
We all need some fat in our food, not all fats are bad. However eating too much fat will increase your body weight and makes you obese, with too much fat you will have high cholesterol and this will increase your risk of having heart disease.
Each gram of fat consumed gives you 9 calories, while it is 4 calories for Carbohydrates and proteins. That is why when you cut on high-fat food you will end up losing weight and this is what low fat-diet is about.
Health authorities recommend not more than 35 percent of your total calories should be fat. Cutting down on high-fat food might not work if your total calorie consumed daily is still high even if the source is non high-fat food. For you to lose weight you need to control and reduce total calorie taken daily.
You need to be careful with low-fat diet, because not all fats are bad. Your body needs some dietary fat to help with some essential vitamins and minerals absorption.
In general our food contains two type of fat, saturated and unsaturated fat, both contains same amount of calories but unsaturated fat is healthier which means you should always try to avoid food that is high in saturated fat.
With low fat diet you will be avoiding food that is high in fat to bring your weight down, that is mainly animal product food such as red meat and fried food.
Low-Carb Diets
This is a popular diet for losing weight simply you limit the amount of carbohydrates you consume. It is believed that carbohydrates raises blood sugar level, which cause an increase in your body insulin production. Insulin moves blood sugar into your cells and prevents the breakdown of fat.
Carbohydrates considered fuel source for your energy, whatever is used is burned and the rest stored as fat and this how you gain weight. When you cut down on eating carbohydrates you force your body to use stored carbohydrates to keep you going and this results in weight-loss.
Many people lost weight with this diet, however weight-lost expert do not believe it is because of low level of insulin in the body. Generally low-carb diets reduce your total calorie consumed, burning fat without carbohydrates will result in reduced appetite due to production of ketosis and with decreased intake of carbohydrates your body burns glycogen and releasing water, these three factors could be the main reasons for people losing weight successfully with low carbohydrates diet.
Atkins diet is the most popular low-carb diet followed by zone-diet, protein power. With Atkins diet your total carbohydrate daily intake is limited between 20 and 40 grams. Grains, fruits, beans, breads, pastas and vegetables allowed in very small amounts while other foods such as meat, cheese, eggs, butter and cream are allowed in Atkins diet plan.
Zone diet was created by Barry Sears, Ph.D., it is high-protein low-carb diet designed to increase body metabolic state so you burn fat faster. With this diet your daily calorie intake is not more than 1000 calories by eating food that is customized individually to provide your body with carbohydrates (40%), fat (30%) and proteins (30%). You are required to count your calorie consumption for example your meal should not contain more than 500 calories and your snack not more than 100 calories.
Protein power diet as Atkins & Zone diet also work around reducing carbohydrate intake as it elevate insulin level and this will lead to weight gain. In this diet your carbohydrate daily intake will be reduced to 30 grams and then the carbohydrate is increased, the process depends on how much body fat you lose in the process.
Gylcemic Index diets
Every carbohydrate food has different effect on blood glucose level in our body and for this reason carbohydrate foods are ranked between Low-GI and High-GI and your eating plan is controlled based on this ranking.
It is said that our blood glucose rises and fall when we eat a meal, meal containing too much carbohydrates will cause your blood glucose to rise too much and this will lead to weight gain and to lose weight you need to eat low-gylcemic food.
Two diets known loosely to be based on gylcemic index are South Beach diet and Sugar Busters diet.
Generally with gylcemic diet you need to consume carbohydrates that are low on the gylcemic index. University of Sydney has created a database for GI food ranking where you can find which food is ranked low (good to eat) and which is high.
Which diet Plan to Choose?
We have a lot on our plate. Between working and raising a family and many other activities and if you are long on responsibilities and commitments and short on time, no doubt you need to choose a weight-loss program that is easy to implement and does not add extra tasks to your daily routine.
Making your diet plan difficult will make it difficult to continue with the program and reach the finishing line, simplicity is important to keep you going with the diet program you choose to implement.
Consult your doctor if you have medical condition before going on diet, knowing what is best for your body is the key to succeed in losing weight.
Be patient with yourself and do not expect magical results in short time, body fat that you have gained in years can’t be shed away in days or even weeks, saying that does not mean you can’t lose weight, well if you stress yourself you might not be able to lose weight.
Educate yourself about weight-loss by reading more about it will help you understand how to lose weight and improve your health.
Many has lost weight with these diet plans and you can too, you need to start and posh yourself through the program so you can succeed in losing weight.
