Thursday, March 11, 2010

What Are the Best Diets

What Are the Best Diets?
By Meadow Summers


This is the ongoing question that plagues us all. Just what are the best diets? What are the best ways to lose weight and keep it off? Is there an easy method that will enable us to eat what we want and still lose weight? The simple answer is no!

Most of us have dieted at one point or another. If you are like me, you have tried every new diet out there that claims to help you drop the weight and keep it off. Back in high school, I remember trying the diet pills that were available in the 1980s in drug stores.

I was convinced that taking these pills would curb my appetite and make the weight drop off. After one pill, I couldn't take them anymore. I was so shaky and felt so hyped up, I swore off of them immediately. Of course, the purpose of those pills was to help you to eat less, therefore, aiding in the loss of weight.

So the question still looms, what are the best diets? And the simple answer is, there are no diets that are the best diets. There is no long term solution to weight loss without a change in lifestyle and eating habits. It is simple yet it is so elusive.

But guess what, weight loss is attainable. And, you can do it while regaining your health and vitality. All it takes is the mind set, planning and dedication. Simply put, you have to change your lifestyle and commit to the changes that you have made.

Here is my strategy for losing 50 pounds in 9 months. I lost it slowly and steadily. And, the actual goal was to improve my health. The weight loss was a side effect of a more healthful way of eating.

• Eliminate processed foods - shop the perimeter of the supermarket. Focus on whole foods and organic produce.

• Eliminate refined sugars - this goes hand-in-hand with the previous tip. Processed foods contain loads of sugar. Actually most packaged products contain sugar. Some may surprise you. Try to eliminate as much refined sugar from your diet as possible

• Eliminate processed white foods and stick to whole grains (brown rice, quinoa, millet, etc.)

• Eliminate saturated fats - stay away from the fast food restaurants, baked goods and snack foods. Ditch the fried foods and eat healthier fats such as monounsaturated fats found in olive oil and foods like avocado

• Cook from scratch. Yes, it is more work. Yes, it is more time consuming. But it is the best way to ensure that you know all of the ingredients present in the foods that you eat.

These five steps are vital to good health and losing weight and keeping it off. You may find it easier to attempt these changes slowly. By incorporating lifestyle changes a little bit at a time, you are ensuring success. It is easier to take small, baby steps to get to your goal than to jump in to what might be an overwhelming set of changes that you won't be able to stick to.

The key to success and the best diet is the one that contains more whole foods and less processed foods. It's time to get back to nature. You will be rewarded with good health and vitality.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Meadow_Summers