Weight Loss Strategies

If you are wanting to lose weight, you should never skip meals, especially breakfast, and you should watch out for "hidden" calories that you either add to your food or that you drink, such as soda or juice.

Another key strategy to losing weight is making yourself feel full. Try drinking a glass of water just before you begin eating. By doing so, the water is occupying space in your stomach. You will feel full faster. Most importantly, eat foods high in fiber.

Foods that are high in fiber (such as fruits, whole grains, and vegetables) contain bulk with considerably fewer calories-to-volume-of-food. Fiber is a substance that your body does not use as a calorie source. Yet, it occupies space in your stomach which in turn makes you feel full faster.

Most fruits and vegetables are excellent choices when you are looking for a food low in calories. Watch out for avocados and coconuts. Both are high in fat, thus high in calories. Including a rich amount of fruits and vegetables in your diet not only makes sense for a weight loss plan but for any diet plan. To promote good health, you should always incorporate a variety of fruits and vegetables.

Should a weight loss plan be fat-free? No. A sensible weight loss plan will include fat, 15 to 30% of the calories from fat. Your body does need fat, so it is not a good idea to omit it from your diet. It is also not a good idea to eat too much fat, more than 30% of calories. Serious health problems can occur as a result of eating a diet rich in fat.

When a product states that it is fat-free or that it is lower in calories than the original version, be sure to read the label. Always check the number of calories and know the serving size. Many fat-free versions of some of your favorite foods are not necessarily lower in calories.

Final comment, there are no "magic" foods. Eating grape fruit religiously, while it is a healthy food choice, do not expect this practice to burn any extra calories. Slurping down cabbage soup, sorry to say, will not produce any wonderful results either. Simply put, use your head when you hear or read some quack's new revolutionary diet plan. Nope, combining foods a certain way is not going to make you drop the pounds either - Sorry, Suzanne Somers!