The Internet is chock full of gimmicky diet plans:
“Guaranteed to make you lose 50 pounds in 3 months!”
“Lose weight without having to do anything!”
“Melt away your belly fat with our super pills!”
We’ve heard it all. Fad diets have taken the Internet by storm, and they’re not always safe. For example, if you lose weight too quickly, you can face some cardiovascular problems. The best way to diet is to do it sensibly. The most important thing to do is to ensure that your body gets all the nutrients it needs. It’s difficult to choose which special diet to go on because you don’t know what would actually work and what wouldn’t. While they’re not specifically geared towards weight loss, the following dietary restrictions are tried-and-true methods for losing weight.
Gluten-free
A gluten-free diet is a diet completely free of gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley, rye, malts, and triticale. While gluten-free foods aren’t necessarily low in carbs or calories, cutting gluten out of your diet can help you lose weight anyway. Since gluten is found in most processed foods and sweets like cookies, cake, or Fruit Loops, you’ll have no choice but to give up all that. Consciously avoiding gluten gives you the chance to eat better. You’ll get to eat wholesome food like fresh fruits and vegetables, eggs, and unprocessed meat. Not only will you drastically reduce your consumption of empty calories, you’ll also ingest more fiber, lean proteins, and healthy fats.
Lactose-free
You don’t need to be lactose-intolerant to give up milk, cheese, and other dairy products. Dairy products contain a lot of saturated fat, the kind of fat that really packs on the pounds. Cutting dairy from your diet will reduce your caloric intake. What’s even better is that the alternatives to dairy products, such as almond milk, sorbet, tofu, and soy cheese, are much healthier and don’t contain as much fat and calories. However, you have to make sure you get enough calcium in your diet. Start by eating more vegetables like broccoli, kale, and spinach. Fortified fruit juices and sardines in oil are good options, too.
Vegetarian
A vegetarian diet doesn’t contain meat, but still contains animal products like milk, eggs, and cheese. Red meat is chock full of saturated fat, and it can lead to cardiovascular problems. Cutting red and white meat out of your diet makes you more inclined to eat healthier alternatives that contain fewer calories, like fish or vegetables. However, when on a vegetarian diet, be sure not to indulge on soda or other junk food if you want to lose weight.
Paleo
Our bodies are built to eat whole foods from mother nature. That’s what the Paleo diet is all about. Also known as the “caveman diet”, the Paleo diet only consists of vegetables grown from the ground, fruits from trees, eggs, and meat. If you’re on the Paleo diet, you’re cutting out “heart healthy whole grains”, sugar, and other processed foods. This diet helps many people lose weight because they can’t eat anything but the ancient whole foods humans have always been meant to eat.
What if I don’t want to be on a special diet?
You don’t need to deprive yourself of anything (except for junk food) if you want to lose weight. Your diet just needs to be as natural and unprocessed as possible. Avoid highly processed, refined, and hydrogenated vegetable oils. Eat whole grains instead of refined grains. Go for healthy fats like fish, eggs, nuts, and avocados. If you give your body all the vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants it needs, you’re on the right track.
Article written by Dora Novak who’s currently on a diet with diet pudding while frequently posting on food and diet related subjects.