Healthy Diet for Life Is Your Best Weight-Loss Strategy

Creating a healthy nutritional lifestyle is the most effective approach to losing weight. When we choose wrong foods on a regular basis, we stimulate our bodies to accumulate toxins and lots of adipose tissue - those undesirable fat and cellulite deposits on our hips and tummies. However, it is relatively easy to break the vicious circle of gaining weight - we just have to change our everyday dietary habits! Once we start giving preferences to healthy, slimming foods, our bodies will successfully clean and rejuvenate themselves, which will involves a gradual loss of weight, as well.

In order to change your nutritional lifestyle, it is important to understand what triggers your wrong dietary choices. Do you eat when you are not hungry? Are you known as an emotional eater? Do you reach for foods when you are bored, nervous, or tired? To identify your weight gain triggers, start with keeping a journal of your dietary patterns. Write what you eat, why you choose certain foods, and how you feel after eating them. While recording and analyzing your choices, you may be surprised to find specific patterns you were not aware of before. Once you understand the underlying motives for selecting certain foods, you will be able to successfully change your unhealthy dietary habits.

Analyze how many calories you eat every day, and where these calories come from - are they coming from life-giving fruits, grains, milk and vegetables, or do you prefer unhealthy, fatty snacks and sugary drinks? Packaged foods that are bursting with refined sweeteners, including sugar, corn syrup, or dextrose, cause our bodies to produce excessive amounts of insulin - the hormone that stimulates weight gain. When the level of blood glucose climbs up too fast, it is followed by a sharp fall, which makes us tired and can trigger cravings for more sugary foods.

Natural, whole products do not produce abrupt spikes in blood sugar levels. A diet which is based on unrefined complex carbohydrates (whole grains, fresh fruits, veggies, nuts and milk, etc.) is the most effective regulator of both blood glucose levels and food cravings. A truly balanced weight-loss diet should feature a variety of healthy, low-calorie foods eaten in moderation.

Selecting right times for your meals is almost as important as making right dietary choices. Try to schedule your mealtimes so that you can sit down, relax, and chew your foods slowly. Do not eat “on the run” - it is unhealthy and can lead to gastrointestinal problems. Since you probably spend most of your time at work, make sure to eat a hearty, filling breakfast that features a selection of healthy carbohydrates, proteins, and some fats - a bowl of oatmeal with a spoonful of cream and a handful of almonds, or a serving of wholemeal bread with cheese and eggs. During your lunch break, opt for slimming foods, such as a low-fat turkey wrap, salad, brown rice with salmon, or bean soup. Do not be afraid to eat several small snacks during the day to speed up your metabolism. Choose your snacks wisely - a piece of fruit, a handful of unsalted raw nuts, or a cup of low-fat yogurt are your best choices. Make your dinner a light meal, and do not snack before the bedtime, since most weight is accumulated when the body is asleep.

Eating out can create many problems when you are trying to lose weight. However, most restaurants would be happy to serve you healthier meals if you ask for them. Skip the salad dressing and order some extra-virgin olive oil and lemon for your salad instead; request additional serving of steamed veggies; and order your chicken breasts or fish steamed or baked instead of deep-fried.

To sum up, here are some simple tips that will help you establish a healthy and practical diet for life:

-   Observe and analyze what triggers your unhealthy, fattening food choices. Change your dietary habits, stick to the changes, and watch your excess pounds disappear!
-   Build your diet around a variety of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, pulses, nuts, lean cuts of meat, low-fat dairy products, and moderate amounts of oily fish.
-   Do not keep at home foods that can compromise your weight and health.
-   Do not shop on impulse, especially when you are hungry. Get a habit of writing the weekly meal plan and use it as your shopping guide.
-   Buy only fresh, whole, unprocessed foods in season, preferably, from your local farmer’s market.
-   To activate metabolism, eat five to six small snacks throughout the day instead of eating just a few huge meals.
-   Control the amount of calories and the size of portions your eat every day.
-   Replace sugar, white rice and white bread with honey, wild or brown rice, and whole wheat products.
-   To keep high energy and benefit from antioxidants, drink green and herbal tea in between your meals instead of coffee.
-   Avoid unhealthy fats; sauté your veggies with extra-virgin olive oil or just water.

Terry Smith