Diet Vs Diet

Americans spend tens of billions of dollars a year in their quest for losing weight, and getting fit. As I’ve said before, there are a number of different approaches to dieting, and a number of these approaches will produce results. The key is in finding an approach that works for YOU, and one you can be CONSISTENT with.

Listed here, for you, are some of the most popular diets available today, some information about them, and the results of some studies done by some of the top universities in the country. The studies followed groups of people following one of the specific diets listed, and compared the weight loss results of each group of dieters after extended periods of time. So which diet will shed the most pounds after a year? Keep on reading to find out…the results may surprise you!

The Diets:

Atkins Diet (low carb)
A high protein diet, encourages some form of meat at every meal, and restricts carbohydrates.
Calorie Breakdown:
20% Carbs
30% Protein
50% Fat

Weight Watchers (low fat)
Emphasizes portion control. Encourages grains, fruits, vegetables, and modest servings of meat.
Calorie Breakdown:
50% Carbs
20% Protein
30% Fat

Zone Diet
40/30/30 ratio theoretically stabilizes hormones that trigger hunger and weight gain.
Calorie Breakdown:
40% Carbs
30% Protein
30% Fat

Mediterranean Diet
Prescribes grains, vegetables, and sources of healthy fats such as olive oil and nuts.
Calorie Breakdown:
45% Carbs
20% Protein
35% Fat

Ornish Diet (Low fat vegetarian)
Recommends eliminating nuts, meat, and fish.
Calorie Breakdown:
70% Carbs
20%Protein
10% Fat

THE RESULTS:

Low Carb vs. Low Fat vs. Mediterranean

Pounds lost at six months: Low carb 14 lbs, WW 10lbs, Mediterranean 10 lbs

Final loss (two years): Low carb 12 lbs, WW 7 lbs, Mediterranean 10 lbs

Low Carb vs. Low Fat vs. Zone vs. Ornish

Pounds lost at six months: Low carb 14 lbs, WW 9 lbs, Zone 6 lbs, Ornish 6 lbs

Final loss (one year): Low carb 10, WW 6 lbs, Zone 4 lbs, Ornish 5 lbs

Low Fat vs. Exercise

Pounds lost at six weeks: WW 6 lbs, Exercise 2 lbs

Final loss (three months): WW 9 lbs, Exercise 3 lbs

So what does this mean for you?

Well, by looking at the numbers, you can see that all of the diets produced results. And, with the exception of the subjects following the Mediterranean diet, the dieters tended to gain some of the weight they had lost back over the long term. This is most likely because they failed to follow the diet as strictly over time as they had in the beginning.

This is a problem most dieters have with most diets…consistency. Everyone charges out of the gate ready to cut down on carbs, fat, or to consume the magic ratio, only to find that after a period of time this way of eating is something they can’t maintain over the long term. It’s not a change they’re willing to make with the rest of their life.

My advice to you is the same as always…choose something that’s right for YOU. Choose foods you like, eliminate the refined ones, and consume in MODERATION in combination with EXERCISE. The above diets work because they control the amount, and in most cases, the type of food being eaten. As should be evident from the results, the control part is much more important than the type of food being eaten.

So take control of what you eat. If one of theses diets works for you, then GREAT! Pick it, and stick with it. If none of them float your boat, no problem. Choose the foods that work for you, control how much you eat, and be consistent. Combine your efforts with some exercise, commit to sticking with it for at least a year, and watch what happens.

Diet

Diet Modifications to Decrease Fats

I’m sure that anyone will do anything just to get rid of those unwanted and unhealthy body fats that are deeply deposited in one’s body. Along with regular exercise, a healthy diet is recommended in order to achieve a healthier or sexier body. But there is always a barrier that separates us from our dreams. In this case, it will be the food. Those delicious mouth-watering stuffs that we just can’t ignore and no matter how we resist them. It still manages to get in side of our system. But there is always a way to keep our love for foods intact. One way of doing it is to carefully choose the food we ate. Here are some great things to know about the food we love and therefore decreasing our fat intake in the process.

BEVERAGES

 – When it comes to drink, water is the healthiest stuff for you and there is nothing better than that. But I know there will be time when water is just not enough. When choosing milk, choose skim milk or skim buttermilk. They contain lesser body fat than regular whole milk and chocolate milk by up to 50% and say no to evaporated milk. When it comes to sodas, they don’t contain fat contents but they do contain a bombshell of sugar. Keep your soft drink intake for just 2-3 regular cans a week.

BREADS AND CEREALS

– Choose whole grain, soda crackers and bagel breads. Unbuttered and whole grain cereals are also recommended since they contain lesser fats. Avoid tortillas, muffins with frostings, sweet rolls and sugar dipped pancakes. These stuffsare usually made with egg whites and unhealthy oils that contain loads of unsaturated fat.

MEATS

– This goes to all meat lovers out there. When choosing poultry meat, choose the breast part with no skin on it. Ducks and goose contains huge deposits of fats so it is not so healthy for a health enthusiast. For beef, the best cuts to use are the flank, sirloin, tenderloin and flank steak. Avoid processed beef like corned beef and beef ribs. For pork, almost every part except the internal organs contains almost the same amount of body fat so any cut of pork will do as long as all visible fats are removed. Avoid pork ribs spare ribs, sausages, ground pork and hamcocks. Avoid processed fished especially if they are canned and have lots of oil in them.  You should also avoid bologna, salami and pimiento loaf.

– But this doesn’t mean you have to cut all connections between you and these delicious meat cuts and meat products. You are still required to eat some of these in order to complete your nutritional needs.  You just have to minimize your intake of them, the general guideline in eating meat is. Your portion should not be bigger that the palm of your hand.

DESSERTS AND SWEETS

– Desserts and sweets should be done in moderation. The recommended desserts that contains lesser loads of fats are, vanilla wafers, graham crackers, yogurt, molasses, gumdrops and pudding made with skim milk. You should avoid any desserts that contain buttered milk or eggs.

Then again, you really don’t have to stop eating the foods that are loaded with fats. You just have to know your portion and you should only eat unhealthy foods in moderation. You may also want to talk to a professional dietician so that he or she can come up with exact measurements for you. Don’t also try to follow a diet regime from someone else because we all have different body composition and what works for others may not work for you.