Diets And Dieting, Choosing The Right Diet For You

Before we dive into this article on diets and dieting, I want to be clear about something we are talking about here. We're talking about diets for overweight people - not about reversal diets.

What are reversal diets? Reversal diets are diets for reversing a disease or serious medical condition. If you are looking to start a "reversal diet" for ANY HEALTH CHALLENGE, PLEASE DO SO WITH - AND UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF - YOUR DOCTOR. DON'T DO IT ALONE! You won't find the information you need for reversal diets here.

Whew! That being said, let's dive into diets for the rest of us, shall we?

Did you know? "...The word 'diet' is often interpreted as 'a temporary regimen that leads to permanent weight loss,' rather than its original meaning of 'how one eats.'"

Most experts agree, quick weight loss diets do not work in the long run. "Research has shown that the faster you lose, the more likely you are to regain the weight and the greater the danger to your health."*1 According to PDRhealth, to "lose weight safely you should choose a program that recommends plenty of vegetables, fruits, and whole-grain products; and includes beans (legumes), as well as some nonfatty fish and poultry for protein and nonfat dairy products for calcium... That's a far cry from the high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet of the past, now believed to be a sure path to quick fatigue and poor performance."

It's also a far cry from the controversial high-protein, low-carbohydrate Atkins diet and other similar diets.

Diets And The Food Pyramid

It's interesting to note that many of the more highly recommended diets considered "safe" among most experts follow the Food Pyramid food types fairly closely, even though some may skew the servings a bit for each category.

Other experts on the other hand, encourage eating more low-glycemic foods, and less high-glycemic foods many of which are major components of the Food Pyramid.

Note: In the Low-Glycemic Index Table, most popular vegetables are acceptable - however, beets and potatoes are not allowed.

Calories And Your Diet

Perhaps the hardest part for dieters is watching the calories consumed, because if you consume more calories than you burn - whatever their source - you will gain weight. "The consensus is that calories do count, although extremely low-calorie diets can be unproductive." When you look at the old Food Pyramid, you'll see the largest portion of the pyramid fell under the "Bread, Cereal, Rice and Pasta Group" and in most cases this is where the calories tend to add up quickly.

Here might be where Low-Glycemic Index Table (L-GIT) foods make considerable sense. For example, there are no acceptable breads on the list, unless they are made with unrefined flour made with kernels of the grains - usually harder to find, yet well worth the health gain when you realize the benefits.

Additionally, all forms of rice are considered good L-GIT foods, and are generally also low in calories. But most cereals are considered high-glycemic, and therefore it's recommended to look for high-fiber cereals. When counting your calories, you want to look at the calories/serving listed on the food labels, while at the same time pay attention to listed nutrition values.

The good news about choosing L-GIT foods is the wide variety of food choices open to you. You want to avoid diet plans and programs with excessively restrictive food choices. They are a recipe for failure in the long term, and in some cases may even cause more harm to your body than good (however, not all experts would agree with this statement).

Diets And Exercise

It goes without saying, yet I'll say it here anyway - a good weight loss program should include exercise. PDRhealth*1 recommends "The best way to slim down and achieve fitness is with an easy program you can stick with and work into the rest of your daily activities; one that you can enjoy no matter how unfit you are to start with."

We've included their very simple Kitchen Counter Hop on our easy exercise tips web page here at BestLiquidVitamins.com as well as links to further resources.

What many diet products and programs fail to point out is the positive effects exercise have on insulin in the body, but there is not enough time and space in the scope of this short article to discuss those benefits here.

Choosing The Right Diet

Important Note Worth Repeating: If you have a medical problem we strongly advise you to choose your weight loss program with your doctor's help! Personally, I feel your doctor should be made aware of any major lifestyle changes that may directly (or indirectly) affect your health.

That being said, what is your perfect weight loss diet program?

I feel the best diet program is one which will fit most easily into your current lifestyle. Let's face it, when you're choosing a diet you are choosing a personal behavior change. In other words, making a difference in what and how much you eat is a behavior choice - and you want one that can be easy for you to achieve in order for it to work. Make sense? *1PDRhealth writes "...the secret lies in finding the nutritional strategy that works best for you."

You'll want a program that you are most likely to stick with. It makes sense, therefore, to choose one which: contains a wide variety of foods to eat, encourages exercise (without being too extreme), helps you lose weight slowly over time, and does not starve your body of needed nutrients ... basically, a diet program which you AND YOUR BODY can live with comfortably for a long period of time.

The Great Nutrition Debate*2, put together and filmed by the USDA in February 2000, includes leading founders of several popular diets. BUT MAKE SURE YOU LISTEN to the entire 3 hour debate to get the full story of each of them. There's some powerful information near the end which you simply DON'T WANT TO MISS. You'll need RealPlayer installed. You can get a free copy of RealPlayer here. To listen to the entire Great Nutrition Debate online, simply click this link and it will start your RealPlayer. Remember, it's almost 3 full hours, so be prepared to sit back and listen. Not enough time right now? Then bookmark this page and return when you have more time, okay?

So now the rest is up to you. Do your research. Check out the many resources available, both here on our website as well as other highly respected sources, and go for it!

PS: Always remember, be kind to yourself. You are very special to all of us here at Best Liquid Vitamins!

Additional Sources And Resources for Choosing the Right Diet for You

• *1 PDRHealth - How to Pick a Nutrition Plan
• *2 USDA Symposium - The Great Nutrition Debate (Streaming RealMedia Format. RealPlayer required to view/listen.)
• USDA Symposium - The Great Nutrition Debate/Verbatim Transcript of Debate
• The Atkins Diet Controversy
• Calorie Calculator for Women
• Calorie Calculator for Men
• Body Mass Index Chart