Fast weight loss diet
March 17, 2009 by Lyle Neander
Filed under Weight Loss
When it comes to weight loss we all want quick results. We want to look slim and terrific now, not is six months time. We want the new car now, the new plasma television, the new house. We have become a society of instant gratification. And as long as the credit card holds up we can achieve most of these goals.
So how are we going to get there? Looking trim, taut and terrific is not going to happen overnight no matter how hard we try or wish it was so. Well, there are some proven successful fast weight loss diets that can get us to our destination a little sooner if we are prepared to given them a chance. Together lots look at some.
Always in the news, of the most famous and controversial weight loss program must be the Atkins Diet. I have personal experience of this diet and I will say that it works. I lost 10 pounds in 3 weeks and it was genuine weight loss, i.e. fat not water. Critics of this diet argue that the weight loss comes from water loss by the body but this wasnt the case when I used the diet. This is how the Atkins Diet and all the low carbohydrate diets work.
Carbohydrates and protein both contain 4 calories per gram. However when we eat carbohydrates our bodies digest them and convert them into sugars which the body can use for fuel. When sugars are absorbed into the bloodstream our pancreas responds by releasing insulin which either converts the sugars into glycogen which it stores in the liver for future energy needs or into fat which it stores in the muscles. The more carbohydrates we consume the more is converted into fat which we store and which leads to obesity.
Dr Atkins used existing research to suggest that the overabundance of carbohydrates in our diets was the cause of most of our ills, from diabetes type 2 to obesity and heart disease. He believed that if we severely limited carbohydrates in our diets, our bodies would be forced to utilise the glycogen in our livers for energy first and then start converting stored fat into fuel for energy. Meanwhile our diets would have much higher proportions of protein and fat. This process is known as ketosis and kicks in after 2 ” 3 days. The body changes over from intake mode to consumption mode where it starts using its stored fats. If we stay on this very low level of carb intake we can watch the fat drop off. I have used the diet and I can categorically state that it works very well if you stick to it. I lost over 3 pounds a week for better than a month and stopped because I hit my goal weight.
The difficulty is that your diet becomes very restricted. For example in the first two weeks you can have 20 grams of carbohydrates a day, which is about one slice of bread. After 2 weeks you can increase the carbohydrate intake for the next 2 ” 4 weeks and so on until you find a carbohydrate level which maintains you weight where you neither gain nor lose weight. It just got too complex for me. Also I found it difficult to stay on long term because of the need to constantly monitor my carb levels. However it definitely works and I lost 10 pounds in the first three weeks and my body shape changed to reflect. It was not water loss despite the naysayers as the weight I lost came back quite slowly over the next two years. Atkins works if you can devote the time to creating a new menu for living and can live with the restrictions. With “meal planner” software and a bit more commitment to simplify my daily diet I think I could live with the program.
The next fast weight loss diet popular at the moment is the “meal in a shake” style of diet. Essentially you replace one or more meals with a pre-packaged milk shake. The results are fast if my friends are anything to go by. One lost 51 pounds in 17 weeks or an average of 3 pounds a week. (Unfortunately as soon as she returned to regular meals her weight also returned.) However now you are stuck with shakes the rest of your life. Your lifestyle hasn’t changed for the better and you have built in no strategies for staying slim in the long term. There is no exercise program provided and only general information on diet. My final problem with this style of diet is the content of the packets. You have now entered into the world of processed foods which have questionable nutritional value and are actually very high in carbohydrates in order to have any flavour. In addition they are expensive compared to “real” food and they don’t prepare you for the future.
Finally we have to consider the “Meal Plan” diets provided by big companies like Jenny Craig, among others. There is no question that they work and they use real food to achieve their aim. And their food looks and tastes great according to friends who have tried it. These are respected companies with long histories and good track records. As fast weight loss diets go these are probably the easiest to follow and enjoy results from.
However there is a downside and that is the cost. If you buy their ready-made food the cost is enormous. It is a weight loss strategy for the rich and famous in the long term. It also does not equip you to look after yourself in the long term. What are you going to do when you are on holiday and away from home or eating out?
If you want to achieve fast weight loss the only solution is to put aside the silly, expensive and unsustainable diets and find a program that prepares you for the long term. It should help you lose weight in the short term as well. It must provide dietary information you can use, meal plans you can easily prepare without struggling to count carbs, calories or grams of fat. This is preparing you for the real world.
To successfully achieve fast weight loss you need a weight loss program that makes good sense and commit to it. The program should provide really useful information on how to plan your meals and must include a meal planner program that helps you plan ahead with your grocery shopping. An exercise program integrated into the program is a must. The rule of weight loss is that you have to move it to lose it! There are some excellent weight loss programs available on the web but the key is to find a good weight loss program and commit yourself wholly to it. Stay with it for the weeks and months until you reach your goal weight. By then your new lifestyle will be so ingrained you won’t return to the unhealthy lifestyle you once had and a new and slimmer you will enjoy life. Now that’s SUCCESS!
Over The Counter Diet Pills Not Tested Or Monitored by FDA
January 13, 2009 by Richard Olson
Filed under Diet
Many people who want to lose weight fast consider weight loss pills as a possible solution, since this means fewer food cravings and the possibility of losing all their excess weight. Weight loss is possible with behavior modification, such as a lower calorie intake and a higher exercise regime but diet pills can reinforce the diet plan and might be the different between success and failure, thanks to their ability to lessen the appetite. But the question remains, are diet pills safe?
Some weight loss pills contain only herbal or natural ingredients. These work by curbing the appetite and some also include dietary supplements and multi vitamins which can psychologically help a dieter. In addition to the weight loss pills, the dieter will need to watch what they eat, make sure their portions are reasonably sized and get more exercise.
Are any diet pills safe? Well, according to the FDA, they do not test and monitor over-the-counter drugs, nor have proof of any effectiveness of any weight loss pills except Alli, which they approved as over-the-counter weight loss pills that work. Of course, everybody has heard some of the problems associated with Ephedra.
When you think about the fact that most over the counter pills are not governed or monitored by the FDA, you will find that with the exception of Alli that you will not know whether they work, what the real side effects that you might experience are or what might happen to you. Many of them use caffeine as a primary ingredient, and will tend to have the same effect on you as tea or coffee, though of course the weight of your wallet will definitely be lighter. You may even find that you can have a nasty allergic reaction to the ingredients that are found in some weight loss pills.
When you are thinking about weight, you may find that you are dealing with a disciple issue, and if this is something that you need to overcome before you lose weight, you’ll find that weight loss pills aren’t going to effect the large changes that they need to. Remember that claims that a pill will allow you to eat all that you want are largely false in the long run.
It is important to realize that to lose weight, you need to take in fewer calories than you burn, with weight loss pills or without. If you do not lower your calorie intake, a pill is not going to miraculously take the weight off. Weight loss pills can be used as an additional aid, but they should not be taken with other medications without consulting your physician.
To lose weight, you need to think about eating the right amounts, eating to keep your metabolism up, giving your body the food that it needs and giving yourself enough variety so that a low fat diet stays interesting to you.
Weight loss pills are not cheap and they are not all proven safe to use. If you are already on medication for high blood pressure or heart problems, diet pills might be dangerous. The best way to shed pounds is a weight loss plan like FatLoss4Idiots; you should check it out quickly at the link below, which offers what you need for permanent and healthy weight loss.
How Hollywood Celebrities Diet And Maintain Their Weight
January 4, 2009 by Christine G. Shannon
Filed under Diet
Have you ever wondered how Hollywood celebrities manage to look stick thin? Which diet do they follow? If you look closely, you can also see that a lot of these celebrities look ill. Starving themselves might give them skinny bodies but it deprives the body of necessary nutrients, leads to tiredness and side effects such as headaches and bad breath and constant hunger pangs are nobody’s idea of a good time.
There are always stories of celebrity weight loss in the newspapers and in magazines. Celebrities also come up with fictional diets to explain how they shifted the weight, whereas in reality they just starved themselves, not only of food but of the essential foods and fluids necessary for the body to properly function.
Sure losing a great amount of weight in short periods of time may be somewhat the norm for some who are overly obese, since they are carrying large amounts of stored fat along with them. However, for those who are just a few pounds overweight, losing 40 pounds in a month is terribly unhealthy. It can lead to more serious problems for some individuals. The first thing to know about successful dieting is that it does take time. All those extra pounds did not show up overnight or even within just a few days. Our bodies fluctuate daily.
Without a maintenance diet program, to keep your weight stabilized after a large weight loss, you will put the weight back on. Dieting involves self-discipline and willpower in addition to knowing what foods to eat and when. Many of the celebrity diets are actually starvation type diets that are not healthy or worth risking other side effects.
Hollywood juice diet is the only thing you drink for a few days, no other essential nutrients or water. The weight comes off because you are starving, like being in a famine, but once you stop the juice diet and start eating regularly again, the weight will come back. If you only drink a juice diet without food, your body is going to suck up any food it gets and store it for later, in case you encounter another famine.
Like a lot of famous diets in Hollywood, if your body thinks you are starving, it is going to hold on to every calorie you take in to keep you from starving to death instead of burning them for energy. When you follow a properly balanced weight loss diet, your metabolism will hardly notice the decrease in calories and continue to burn fat it doesn’t need to store. This is a more long-term weight loss strategy.
Many celebrities have personal trainers working for them that tell them what to eat and how to exercise. They are just like the rest of us, other than they end up becoming a weight loss diet spokesperson after they have taken off the weight. Many of them get paid to advertise weight loss diets, whether that is what worked for them or not.
Celebrity diets involve a level of commitment and dedication which we struggle with. The best celebrity diets involve eating sensibly and limiting our calorie intake. One great diet which has been proven to work for many people is Fat Loss 4 Idiots at the link below. This is an easy to follow diet which might just work for you.



