Is dieting as effective as it’s normally portrayed?
Dieting is a very popular subject of conversation and some people are seemingly on an endless diet, trying all sorts of weird and wonderful diets. The reality about dieting is that most experts will warn against any diet that does not involve a healthy, balanced eating plan; many of the diets in the media and online involve cutting out whole food groups, cutting calorie intake dramatically or sticking to a small number of foods for a period of time. These diets may work to begin with but it is very difficult to maintain the weight loss, especially if you are depriving yourself of lots of different foods and eating less than your body needs.
Diet cons
Fad diets are often criticised because they represent an unrealistic eating plan; eating cabbage soup for a week, liquidising food and cutting out carbohydrates may make you lose weight quickly but it will probably also make you grumpy and irritable and you may find yourself constantly dreaming of food and thinking about the meals you wish you could be having. The aim of weight loss should be to reach a healthy, stable weight, not to lose as much weight as possible.
Healthy dieting
Dieting can cause people to despair and consider extreme measures, such as gastric band surgery or gastric bypass surgery, but it can be effective if you follow a healthy eating plan; healthy eating plans are designed to provide your body with all the vitamins, nutrients and minerals it needs, keep your body fuelled so you don’t get hungry and facilitate steady weight loss. A balanced diet is meant include an array of different foods from all the different food groups, including carbohydrates, proteins, fats and fruit and vegetables. Fat intake is usually modified because eating a large amount of fat is not good for you and it will contribute to weight gain. More information on weight loss surgery is available on www.gastricbands.co.uk.
Many healthy foods contain a small amount of calories so a good plan could actually provide a lot more food than your usual diet. A good plan should encourage you to adopt habits that will last a lifetime and it should not ban any foods; if you fancy fish and chips once in a while, you can cook it yourself for a fraction of the price and half the calories of getting a take away.
Exercising
Dieting alone is often not as effective as when combined with exercising; exercising burns the calories you take in and it also provides a host of health benefits. Exercise will also help to improve your muscle tone and keep your body weight stable, which will increase your confidence.
