Diets to Help You Lose Weight
‘Miracle’ diets to help you lose weight in a short period of time are typically not healthy. They also tend to have a rebound effect, where you return to your normal weight immediately after ending the diet.
If you are thinking about losing weight, the first thing to think about is how to go about it. You will need to change things in your daily life and not be in a hurry. This way you can progressively lose weight, and thus, ultimately help to improve your health.
With a good weight loss diet, you might shed around half a kilo per week, which would be two kilograms per month. However, you have to take into account that each person is unique and you can lose more one week and then less the next. Of course, this should not discourage you or cause you to abandon your new and healthy habits.
In order to lose weight, it is not necessary to follow strict diets where food is prohibited. It is more important to enjoy all of the food groups and get all the nutrients that your body needs. You also need to consume less calories than you burn and avoid unhealthy sugars and fats.
Foods in diets to help you lose weight
Dairy products
Preferably skimmed (milk, yogurt, and 0% fresh cheese). If you drink vegetable drinks, choose those rich in calcium.
Vegetables
All vegetables are recommended. Incorporate them as much as possible, in your lunch and in your dinner as a main dish. Include everything from salad leaves, tomato, cucumber to vegetables such as, eggplant or zucchini. Include cruciferous vegetables too: broccoli, cabbages and mushrooms.
Fruits
We also recommend fruit. Ideally, you should be eating around two or three portions of fruit a day. You can eat it for dessert or between meals. Fruit is an ideal snack.
Cereals, legumes, and root vegetables
This food group is what we use for energy. You must eat these foods so that your body can perform its main functions. But, you must also control the amounts that you consume so that your body can take advantage of the energy reserves (accumulated fat) and lose weight.
You can measure out the recommended amount with your fist and add this to any meal: for rice, pasta, couscous, bread (preferably whole), legumes (lentils, chickpeas or beans), and potatoes.
Protein
- Eggs: three-four eggs per week.
- Meats: Preferably white (chicken or turkey) and one, maximum two, portions of red meat (beef)
- Recommended sausages: turkey breast, chicken, or cooked ham.
- Fish: Increase your consumption in the place of meat. Try to eat white fish (hake, sole, cod etc.) at least three times a week, and blue fish (salmon, anchovies, mackerel etc.) one or two times a week.
- Seafood: you can incorporate fish into your recipes as white fish. Clams, cockles, squid, cuttlefish, prawns etc.
Oils and fats
The recommended oil is olive oil (best raw), although you have to moderate its amount to two or three tablespoons per day. You can also add some avocado or a handful of toasted or raw nuts.
How to prepare your food
It is as important to choose your food well as it is to cook it properly. The recommended recipes are those that can be prepared with very little fat.
Use the griddle and the oven and steam or boil your food. The trick to cooking with little oil is to let food simmer, stir it from time to time, and add a little broth if you see that it is dry or sticky. In order to be able to fulfill the diet, you should always have fruits and vegetables at home.
If you go to a restaurant, choose a salad first and something grilled second. Try not to drink more than one glass of wine and drink plenty of water. And if you are a guest in someone’s home, accept only moderate portions.
Other healthy habits
In addition to using diets to help you to lose weight, exercising will also help you to achieve your goals. Not only does it burn calories, it is also a healthy habit recommended for everyone. It keeps you in shape, improves your muscle mass and cardiorespiratory system and, on a psychological level, it is a great ally. It helps you to release tension and improves your perception of body image.
It is important that you find an exercise that you enjoy. If not, you will end up finding excuses not to do it, also the benefits of the activity multiply if you enjoy it. There are plenty of workouts to choose from. And if you can not exercise in a planned and consistent way, at least try to walk more and climb stairs.
