If you have searched the internet for a diet for weight loss, I am sure you must be aware of various diet plans. Diets like intermittent fasting, Mediterranean diet, Dash diet, etc are all very popular. In this post, you will learn what diet to follow for weight loss.
THE BEST DIETS FOR WEIGHT LOSS
As per recent studies, 95% of diets fail for most people. The major reason for this is that avoiding certain food items never goes a long way in helping to lose weight. In fact, such restrictive diets have become a thing of the past.
So what is the best diet plan for weight loss?
There are a lot of diets in vogue right now. It has become something of a fad to follow the latest diet trend. Some diets curb your appetite to reduce your food intake. Others believe in restricting your intake of calories and either carbs or fat to lose weight.
An ideal weight loss diet should
- Suppress your appetite
- Help to lose weight fast
- Not have any health repercussions
In all the confusion, it might become difficult to decide what is the best diet to follow.
Here are some of the best weight-loss diets explained.
- Intermittent fasting
Wikipedia defines intermittent fasting as “an umbrella term for various eating diet plans that cycle between a period of fasting and non-fasting over a defined period.”
In this eating pattern, you forego eating for a certain amount of time. As this format restricts the time of eating, it decreases the amount of calorie intake too.
There are different variants to this modern idea which are as follows:
- a) Alternate Day Fasting is a rigorous form of fast; this involves not eating anything for 24 hours. This is then followed by a day of a normal diet.
- b) Whole-day fasting is where you fast for one or two days every week. During the days of fast, it is recommended to have only 25% of the normal calorie needs.
- c) Time-restricted feeding is where you don’t eat for a particular number of hours every day. For example, a 16-hour fasting cycle followed by 8 hours of eating food normally. This is commonly known as the 16/8 intermittent fasting.
Along with aiding in weight loss, intermittent fasting has other benefits too. This includes anti-ageing effects, better insulin sensitivity, brain health and much more.
- The Mediterranean diet
This diet has been named so because it mainly focuses on the types of food that people from countries like Greece have. Apart from helping to lose weight, this diet also comes with a host of health benefits. This includes reduced heart risks, better brain health and precautions against cancer. The pros in this diet are that it is nutritionally sound and incorporates a wide variety of foods. There is no structure to this diet, but more of certain foods preferred over others. The diet puts a lot of importance to having fruits, grains, nuts and legumes. Non-vegetarian items like fish and seafood are preferred over poultry and eggs. The diet also includes red wine in small amounts. Doctors say that a dash of red wine is good for health, as it contains resveratrol. It is a bit pricey when compared to other diets.
Reference: 3
- Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension
Acronymed as the DASH diet, this diet is aimed at preventing high blood pressure. High BP is connected to a medical condition called hypertension. It is one of the most common lifestyle diseases in the modern world. It is so common that one in every 3 people has it, as per surveys.
In the DASH diet, heavy emphasis is given to eating fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean meats. The diet advises against salt, red meat, added sugars, and fat.
Though it is not necessarily aimed at weight loss, people do lose weight by following the DASH diet.
Reference: 4
- Volumetrics Diet
This diet was created by Professor Barbara Rolls, PhD of the Penn State University. The diet is well researched. The underlying principle behind the volumetrics diet is the energy density of foods. Dr Rolls thinks that a higher intake of foods having low energy density can aid in weight loss.
The diet is based on a healthy quantity of food items like fruits, vegetables and whole grains. In this diet, there is a lot of food items with water and fibre content. These are supposed to increase the feeling of fullness and reduce calorie consumption. The best thing is that the volumetrics diet doesn’t pose restrictions against any food. It focuses more on the number of calories than the type of food.
Reference: 5
- Weight Watchers
Now renamed as WW, this is a very famous weight loss diet worldwide. WW does not restrict any food type but recommends that to reach an ideal weight, you need to eat within a point limit. In this diet, there is a point system. The system values all food items by a particular point. This point is based on the number of calories, fat and fibre content. It also determines the ideal body weight for you. To meet this ideal weight you are advised to eat a particular “point” of calories and not more than that. It has long been recognised as a great weight loss diet. It is flexible so that you can eat whatever you want, provided it is healthy and you reach the daily point limit. This also makes it a best weight loss diet that you can follow long term without much backslides.
Reference: 6
- The Flexitarian Diet
A flexitarian diet is essentially a flexible vegetarian diet. It encompasses fruits, vegetables, whole grains and plant protein.
The term flexitarian was coined by dietitian Dawn Jackson Blatner. The idea of a flexitarian diet is to be a flexible vegetarian. That is, to prefer plant-based foods most of the time, but eat meat if you feel like it. So, this diet doesn\’t ban meat but says a vegetarian diet is more healthy. The diet provides a 5-week meal plan, comprised of different food groups. It outlines meal plans for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. There are calorie limits for recipes but tailored to suit individual needs.
Reference: 7
While there are a plethora of ways in which you can lose weight, diet is prime in changing your bodyweight. The kind of diet you follow can thus have a huge impact on the amount of weight you lose. The important thing is to find the weight loss diet that is perfect for you. It must have the least amount of lifestyle changes. This will mean that you’ll follow the diet more easily. Also, contact a dietician before deciding on everything yourself. Stay healthy!