Looks and likes
Every person on this planet wants to look good. Women want to have an hourglass figure which makes them more self-confident and men want to have the perfect abs to flaunt. In this age of hustle and bustle, we want everything in a jiffy. The perfect looks and body is the ultimate goal for most of us.
But my dear friends all this require a lot of sincerity, time, effort, and sacrifices from the side of the individual. The only 2 prerequisites to attain the perfect shape are:
- Sincere determination
- Regular Exercise
- Restricted Balanced Diet
Sincere determination is the main switch that is required to establish and run the circuit of losing weight. It is a strong determination that paves the way for doing regular exercise and a restricted diet keeps the mind and body both nourished and satisfied.
Diet and Balanced Diet
Diet is considered as a pattern of eating habits that an individual follows normally. When eating habits are restricted to certain kinds of foods that provide nourishment and repair the body along with either losing or maintaining body weight it is referred to as a Balanced diet.
There are various diet plans that can be followed to lose extra fat. These diet plans will be discussed subsequently. But before that let’s look at foodstuffs that should not be ingested eaten for losing weight.
Also Read:What are the healthy foods that you can eat frequently?
What not to eat?
Refined sugar, processed foods, junk food, artificial sugary soft drinks, beer, candy bars, oily items, and overloaded nutraceuticals, etc are a strict no-no in order to shed excess fat.
Parameters for diet plan
Now, we know what to avoid. Let’s focus on what type of diet plans should be undertaken to successfully shed weight. Before exploring further let me also list out certain parameters that determine which diet plan should be followed:
- Age
- Location
- Life style
- Food preferences
Age: It goes without saying that a diet plan should be made keeping in the mind the age of the individual for optimal weight loss. The diet plan of an obese kid and that of an adult will not be the same. Children are growing hence require better nutrition whereas the adult diet should focus on the maintenance of the health aspect.
Location: The place we live, its climatic conditions, local produce also determine our diet plans. For example, in South India, the staple food is rice-based whereas in North India the food is mainly wheat-based. South Indian people have better enzymatic processivity for rice-based foods while north Indian can metabolize wheat-based food products better. Hence it is wise to choose the diet plan based on the location.
LifeStyle: Individuals with a sedentary lifestyle should follow a diet plan that is light on their stomach (for example fewer carbs) as their metabolic activity is quite low while people pursuing active lifestyle like farmers, construction workers involved in intense physical labor should consume more carb-based diets. In short, the work we do dictates what we eat.
Food preferences: Any diet plan can be successful only when the individual has a likeness toward it. If the food does not suit the taste palate then he or she would not feel like continuing it till the time it shows a visible difference. So choose what you eat, eat what you choose.
According to the experts there are five popular diet plans. They are as following:
- Intermittent Fasting
It is a strategy that oscillates between a period of fasting and eating. 16/8 Method is very popular wherein the calorie intake is limited to 8 hrs/day. The Rest 16hrs is reserved for fasting. 5:2 methods also offer weight loss wherein the calorie intake of 500-600 cal twice/ week is allowed. This is the simplest and easy way to lose weight. All one has to do is restrict eating time. This method not only yields weight loss over a period of time it also has immense health benefits like reduced heart problems, reduced inflammation, increased agility, etc. Research has shown that 3-8% weight is lost over a period of 3-24 weeks. This program can be followed irrespective of time and place.
- Plant Based Diets
Animal-based diets are generally rich in fat. So plant-based diets are the next alternative. This diet involves consuming whole grains, legumes, fruits and veggies, and a restricted dose of dairy products like milk, cheese, butter, ghee, etc. The diet is rich in fiber and low in high-calorie fat; hence the stomach is fuller for a long time. Plant-based diets keep heart diseases, hypertension, a certain form of cancers at bay.
Also Read: How Intermittent Fasting is helpful in losing weight?
- Low Carb Diets
Atkins diet, Keto diet, LCHF (low carb high fat) diets are some of the examples of low carb diets. In all these diets the common factor is a highly reduced intake of carbs. This is replaced by more protein and fat. Proteins curb the hunger feeling, raise metabolism, and increase muscle mass. In the case of keto diets, the body utilizes fatty acid metabolism for energy production. Low carb diets essentially reduce belly fat. Research has shown that they reduce heart ailments and regulate blood pressure etc.
- The Paleo Diet
This diet also called the cavemen diet makes use of eating raw unprocessed foods like lean meat, fish, eggs whole foods, fruits, nuts, and seeds. Paleo diet makes use of high protein content. They regulate blood pressure and hypertension and promote weight loss.
- DASH Diet
A dietary approach to stop hypertension is designed to treat or prevent high blood pressure. It involves eating plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean meats and is low in salt, refined sugars, and fat. The DASH diet encourages a specific amount of different food groups. For example, an average person on the DASH diet would eat about 5 servings of vegetables, 5 servings of fruit, 7 servings of healthy carbs like whole grains, 2 servings of low-fat dairy products, and 2 servings or fewer of lean meats per day.
Apart from these, there is a Mediterranean diet, low-fat diets which specifically encourage whole unprocessed foods and low-fat foods respectively. These diet plans not only help in reducing weight but also offer other health benefits. We should wisely choose a feasible diet plan to achieve optimal fat loss.