Almost any adult will lose weight if they consume 800 to 1300 fewer calories daily. Phase One of the Atkins Diet also restricts carbohydrate intake to only 20 grams of net carbohydrates daily. The definition of net carbohydrates is total grams of carbohydrates per serving minus dietary fibre per serving. Dietary fibre is the non-digestible remains of plant products found in beans, whole grains, fruits, and vegetables.
Carbohydrates are the bodys preferred fuel source. In the near future there will be a recommended dietary allowance, or R.D.A., for carbohydrates of 130 grams daily. 130 grams of carbohydrates our body needs daily is for the proper functioning of the central nervous system and production of red blood cells. Only during Phase Four of the Atkins Diet are participants allowed up to 120 grams of net carbohydrate daily. Low carbohydrate diets are nothing new, they have been around since the 1860s and the Atkins Diet first came out in the early 1970s.
Most nutrition experts agree that to be successful in weight loss a person needs to keep the weight off for 5 years. Over 90% of people who take weight off through a fad diet like the Atkins Diet gain the weight back in less than one year. Participants on the Atkins Diet lose between 10 to 12 pounds in the first several weeks but this is only water loss, not fat. One pound of fat contains 3500 calories. Therefore to lose 10 pounds of fat in several weeks you would need to consume 35,000 fewer calories or burn 35,000 calories more through exercise. Neither is likely to happen.
So, the best way to lose weight and become more healthy is to eat a balanced diet. Dont cut out all your carbs, but dont go overboard with them either. In addition to eating well, exercise in a proportional amount to what you are eating. Exercising too much is as bad as exercising too little.
People believe that they must pay penance for their eating sins. Dietary and exercise torture seems to be good for the conscience and the prescription of the day. How else can we explain off the wall diets and extreme exercise programs?
Whatever happened to eating in moderation and using common sense? Even if you are eating a diet cookie, you cant have all you want.
If you travel, or eat in restaurants frequently, you have to eat in moderation, space your meals out, carry healthy snacks, or visit the salad bar at your local supermarket. There are plenty of good choices, and it wont cost you an arm and a leg.
When you eat, you shouldnt feel stuffed after a meal. This slows down your digestive system, similar to the principle of a log jam, and you may not eat for six hours or more, depending upon the amount of food consumed. This is a time when your body is crying to go for a walk.
You should feel comfortably full every time you leave the table, and you should eat five or six times a day; three moderately-sized meals and at least two healthy snacks.
Sorry to say, diet cookies are rarely healthy. If they were of nutritional value, I would live on the Chocolate Chip Cookie Diet.
Now back to reality, if you love dessert, you cant give it up for life.
Loading...