Friday, March 7, 2008

Truth About Diets - Low Calorie, Low Fat, Low Carb

With all the hype found in today's media you may be looking for the truth about diets. We have heard all the claims of low calorie diets, low fat diets and low carb diets. So, what is the truth about dieting?

If you are trying to lose weight, you want to eat a well balanced diet. Generally, anything to the extreme is not a good thing. You want to eat foods that are nutritious and low calorie. You will want to incorporate low fat foods as substitutes for higher fat foods, such as cheeses. Finally, low carb is fine; but good carbs are better, whole grains are best.

When cutting down on carbs it is important that you not cut them out completely. Effective weight loss depends on exercise and activity, without some carbs in your diet, you won't have the energy you'll need to effectively burn off calories.

It is best to begin with a baseline diet that dictates at least half of your calories come from low calorie foods such as vegetables, fruits, natural starches, and whole grains. The rest of your diet should consist of low fat proteins like fish, chicken, and lean beef. You need to balance out your low carb diet with protein and stay away from those useless carbs, especially at night.

When we talk about protein, many people wonder just how much is enough or how much is too much. In general, experts say you should eat 1 gram of protein for every pound of body weight per meal. That might seem like a ridiculously large amount of protein, but remember, we are talking about lean proteins. Plus, eating protein speeds up your metabolism and accelerates weight loss.

The truth about diets is that every one is different and every one of our bodies react differently to different foods and activities. That being said, most of us will gain weight if we do not eat properly and get some kind of regular exercise. A combination of low calorie foods, low fat foods and low carb foods along with an exercise routine will help you lose weight and get healthy.

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