The Best Diet Plan!

Everyone wants to know the best way to lose weight fast, and of course, with almost everything in life, different diets suit different people. However, I have found, after thorough research, the perfect diet for me, and it might very well be the perfect diet for you too. Over the years I have constantly been on all sorts of diets, trying them out and with little success from each. The important thing to learn about dieting is that you shouldn’t alternate your diets every time you come across a new one as this will slow down your metabolism as your body adjusts to each fad diet you try. Want to know the secret about dieting? Well, on this diet I lost two stone in as many months and could still eat whatever foods took my fancy. This is not a scam (thank God!) and it can be used by pretty much anyone, although please do read on to the end of this article to see the health warnings and important factors that have to be taken into account in order to lose weight efficiently and most importantly, safely!

The best diet I have come across is known as the VLC diet, or the Very Low Calorie diet. Don’t panic, because this isn’t so much of a fad diet as it might sound, it is still a diet recommended by professionals in order to lose weight. The only rule you have to follow is to eat a maximum of 1400 calories a day. It doesn’t matter what you eat, as long as it follows this rule – although obviously don’t just eat 1400 calories of chocolate a day or something! An ideal plan to follow is thi:

BREAKFAST: 150-200 calories on average

 A handful of any cereal of your choice for breakfast, ideally Bran Flakes, with a small helping of milk

LUNCH: 300-500 calories on average

A bowl of your favourite soup with two slices of bread (brown bread is best) OR a handful of pasta with your favourite pasta sauce

SNACK: 100-300 calories on average

This can be anything you like but remember to stick within the calorie range, a favourite snack of mine is yoghurt with fruit such as a banana chopped up in it

DINNER: 200-400 calories on average

Remember that your metabolism slows down around dinner time so ensure that you slightly reduce your calorie intake in order for your body to be able to digest properly. Dinner can be anything you like such as pasta, tuna salad, or even a low calorie curry!

 TIPS:

Remember to NEVER skip breakfast as this is the most important meal a day and you will NOT lose weight if you skip meals!

Also remember to stick to the calorie guidelines above, if you eat less that the maximum at one meal, then you can add those calories onto the maximum of another and so forth.

Exercise is very important to diets and will not only help you lose weight faster, but will ensure that you are as healthy as possible, although not too much exercise is advised on this diet as your body shouldn’t burn too many calories if your intake is reduced like this. 30 minutes of light exercise a day is advised, such as walking or casual cycling.

This diet is not meant for long periods of time and is supposed to be introduced gradually. When coming off the diet (the usual time for this diet is no longer than 3 months) make sure you gradually come off it so your body can slowly get used to normal eating again.

For breakfasts, use low fat milk to save on calories and for lunch use brown bread!

Try to include as much fruit and vegetables as possible as fruit can be very filling and they will save you some more calories.

Keep a diary of your progress, each day write down your weight and your calorie intake – it’s best to carry around a scrap of paper so you can jot down your calorie intake at each meal.

Do not consume all your calories in one go, your body can usually only digest up to 300-400 calories at each meal so give your body a chance to digest!

Do not eat again until 3 hours have passed since your last meal.

Remember to drink plenty of water as this will keep off hunger pangs and flush out your system (at least 3-4 pints is recommended).

Finally, remember to see a doctor before trying out any new diets!