Is weight loss one of your goals? If so, you're not alone. There’s a lot of weight loss information out there; however, several natural methods have actually been proven to work.
Setting Realistic Goals and Expectations
It's important to set a realistic weight goal and timeline to achieve it. Ask yourself what weight has felt comfortable for you before. Then ask yourself if you can achieve that target without feeling overly deprived. Aim to lose 1 to 2 pounds (0.5 to 1 kilogram) a week over the long term. Losing 5% of your current weight may be a good goal to start with. If you weigh 180 pounds (82 kilograms), that's 9 pounds (4 kilograms). Even this amount of weight loss can lower your risk of some long-term health conditions.
Dietary Strategies for Natural Weight Loss
Embracing Whole, Single-Ingredient Foods
One of the best things you can do to become healthier is to base your diet on whole, single-ingredient foods. By doing this, you eliminate the vast majority of added sugar, added fat, and processed food. Most whole foods are naturally very filling, making it a lot easier to keep within typical calorie limits. Eating whole foods also provides your body with the many essential nutrients that it needs to function properly. Weight loss often follows as a natural side effect of eating whole foods. Find a meal pattern that includes healthy foods that you enjoy eating. Both the Mediterranean diet and DASH meal plan include whole grains, vegetables, fruits, lean protein, and some dairy products.The Mediterranean diet involves high intake of fruits and vegetables, poultry, and fish and dairy products, and little to no consumption of red meat. The effectiveness of the Mediterranean diet for weight loss and preventing cardiovascular disease is supported by sufficient evidence.The DASH plan includes many vegetables, fruits, and grains with an emphasis on whole grains. Low-fat or non-fat dairy foods, pulses, nuts, seeds, lean meats, poultry, and seafood are also allowed.
Limiting Processed Foods and Added Sugars
Processed foods are usually high in added sugars, added fats, and calories. What’s more, processed foods are engineered to make you eat as much as possible. They’re much more likely to cause addictive-like eating than unprocessed foods. Eating a lot of added sugar is linked with some of the world’s leading diseases, including heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and cancer.
The Power of Protein
When it comes to weight loss, protein is the king of nutrients. A high-protein diet can also make you feel more full and reduce your appetite. In fact, some studies show that people eat fewer calories per day on a high-protein diet. Dietary guidelines for adults recommend protein intake of 46-56 g or 0.8 g/kg of ideal body weight per day. Thus, if dietary protein consumption exceeds 0.8 g/kg/day, it is considered a high-protein diet. Usually, a high-protein diet refers to an increased protein intake to 30% of the total daily calories or 1-1.2 g/kg of the ideal body weight per day.
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The Role of Fiber
Fiber-rich foods may help with weight loss. Foods that contain water-soluble fiber may be especially helpful, since this type of fiber can help increase the feeling of fullness. Fiber may delay stomach emptying and promote the release of satiety hormones. This can help you eat less without having to think about it. Many types of fiber can feed the friendly gut bacteria. Healthy gut bacteria have been linked with a reduced risk of obesity.
Smart Snacking
Stock up on nutritious foods and snacks. Studies have shown that the food you keep at home greatly affects weight and eating behavior. By always having nutrient-dense food available, you reduce the chances of you or other family members eating less nutritious items. There are also many nutritious snacks that are easy to prepare and take with you on the go. These include yogurt, whole fruit, nuts, carrots, and hard-boiled eggs.
Hydration is Key
There’s actually truth to the claim that drinking water can help with weight loss. Water is particularly helpful for weight loss when it replaces other beverages that are high in calories and sugar. Try starting the day off with a glass of water or drink a glass before you eat your meals. To determine how much water to drink per day, divide your weight in half.
The Benefits of Green Tea and Coffee
Coffee is loaded with antioxidants and other beneficial compounds. Furthermore, black coffee is very weight loss friendly, since it can make you feel full but contains almost no calories. Drinking green tea is linked with many benefits, such as increased fat burning and weight management. Matcha tea is a variety of powdered green tea that may have even more powerful health benefits than regular green tea.
Considering Probiotics
Studies have shown that people who are overweight and people who have obesity tend to have different gut bacteria than those who do not, which may influence weight.
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Metabolism-Boosting Foods
Incorporating metabolism-boosting foods into your diet is a simple, natural way to support your weight loss journey and improve overall health.
- Fish (salmon, tuna, sardines and mackerel): Rich in omega-3 fatty acids and protein. The American Heart Association recommends people should eat fatty fish at least two times per week.
- Legumes (black beans, chickpeas and kidney beans): High-protein. Add legumes in an easy and affordable way by putting canned beans on your shopping list. If you’re keeping tabs on salt intake, look for the low-sodium labels.
- Hot peppers (chili peppers and jalapeños): Contain the chemical capsaicin, which increases your body’s internal temperature which temporarily helps you burn more calories.
- Broccoli: A member of the cruciferous vegetable family. Eat broccoli steamed or roasted.
- Lentils: A type of legume and are packed with iron, magnesium and potassium. They are a great plant protein and fiber source with 8 grams of each. Adult women should get more than twice the amount of iron as men.
- Berries (blueberries and strawberries): Low in calories and high in fiber.
Portion Control and Mindful Eating
Managing portions of all foods allows you to include foods you enjoy in moderation.Using smaller plates may help you eat less, as it changes how you see portion sizes.Mindful eating is a method used to increase awareness while eating. It helps you make conscious food choices and develop awareness of your hunger and satiety cues. It then helps you eat well in response to those cues.
Meal Planning and Preparation
Meal planning and food preparation help ensure you have healthy meals and snacks available.
The Importance of Physical Activity
Set a goal of at least 150 minutes of aerobic activity per week. Aerobic exercises increase your breathing and heart rate, such as a brisk walk, bike ride or swimming. Add in strength exercises two or more days per week. Strength training can increase your metabolism which helps you burn more calories. You can set yourself up for more activity by wearing comfortable clothes and shoes. This may help you move more throughout the day.
Cardio and Resistance Training
Doing cardio - whether it’s jogging, running, cycling, power walking, or hiking - is a great way to burn calories and improve both mental and physical health. Cardio has been shown to improve risk factors for heart disease. Even lower intensity cardio can help reduce body weight. Cardio seems to be particularly effective at reducing the fat that builds up around your organs and causes metabolic disease. Besides these healthy eating tips, one of the best ways to speed up your metabolism is with weight or muscle strengthening. Lean muscle mass increases your metabolism. Muscle is metabolically active, which means people with lean, muscular bodies need more energy to function than people with a higher percentage of body fat.
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Additional Strategies for Success
Tracking Progress
Keeping track of food intake and physical activity is a proven tool for managing weight. Tracking helps to increase awareness of our eating and physical activity behaviors.
Getting Enough Sleep
Getting enough sleep is incredibly important for weight loss, as well as to prevent future weight gain. Studies have shown that sleep deprivation is linked to increased food intake, particularly in foods that are high in carbohydrates and fats.
Overcoming Food Addiction
Food addiction involves overpowering cravings and changes in your brain chemistry that make it harder to resist eating certain foods. This is a major cause of overeating for many people, and affects a significant percentage of the population. In fact, it is estimated that almost 20% of people fulfilled the criteria for food addiction. Some foods are much more likely to cause symptoms of addiction than others. This includes highly processed junk foods that are high in sugar, fat, or both.
Community Resources
Establishing healthy habits are very difficult when healthy choices are limited. Consider looking up your local community resources, such as food pantries, farmers markets, parks and recreation, and trails. Resources for food assistance in everyday situations, as well as before, during, and after emergencies and disasters.
Support Systems
Identify family members or friends who will support your weight loss efforts. Coworkers or neighbors with similar goals might share healthy recipes and plan group physical activities. It may help to join a weight-loss program or visit a health care professional, such as a nutrition or weight-loss specialist. You can also ask your health care provider for resources to support a healthy weight. Weight management programs offer support for your weight management journey.
A Positive Mindset
A positive mindset is key to success in weight loss and diabetes. If you’re feeling depressed or overwhelmed, you’re not alone. The benefits of healthy eating can go a long way. No shame. No blame.
Dietary Strategies: A Closer Look
Low-Calorie Diets
An energy deficit is the most important factor in weight loss.A low-calorie diet with a low fat or carbohydrate content has been recommended; however, in some cases, a very-low-calorie diet is required for a short period. A low-calorie diet involves consumption of 1,000-1,500 calories per day; deficits of 500-750 calories per day have been used for weight loss and are recommended by many obesity societies and guidelines. Low-calorie diets typically restrict fats or carbohydrates, neither of which has been determined to be more important for weight loss if only a calorie deficit occurs. The 2018 the Diet Intervention Examining The Factors Interacting with Treatment Success (DIETFITS) study found no significant differences in weight loss between low-fat and low-carbohydrate diets. However, meal planning and preparation take effort, and weight-loss maintenance requires a sustained low-calorie diet.
Very-Low-Calorie Diets (VLCD)
Traditionally, a very-low-calorie diet (VLCD), which provides <800 kcal a day, is not recommended for routine weight management and should only be used in limited circumstances along with medical monitoring according to obesity guidelines. However, a recent review suggested that a VLCD used in combination with behavioral programs can provide greater long-term weight loss than behavioral programs alone, and that it is tolerable and has few adverse effects. Additionally, a VLCD with meal replacement is effective for achieving diabetes remission in individuals with obesity lasting for at least 2 years.Another form of the VLCD-the very-low-calorie ketogenic diet (VLCKD)-has been proposed as a promising option for significant weight loss in a short duration of time and stability for 2 years. The VLCKD consists of very-low-calorie (<700-800 kcal/day) and low-carbohydrate (<30-50 g/day) intake along with adequate protein consumption (equivalent to 0.8-1.2 g/day/kg of ideal body weight) for a short period, followed by a gradual switch to a low-calorie diet.Most VLCDs use meal replacements, such as formulas, soups, shakes, and bars instead of regular meals. This helps ensure that you get all of the nutrients you need each day. A VLCD is only recommended for adults who have obesity and need to lose weight for health reasons. These diets are often used before weight-loss surgery. You should only use a VLCD with the help of your provider. Most experts do not recommend using a VLCD for more than 12 weeks.
Low-Carbohydrate Diets
Low-carbohydrate (low-carb) diets have been widely used not only for weight reduction, but also to manage T2DM; many randomized controlled trials have been conducted. A low-carb diet is defined as a carbohydrate intake below the lower boundary of the macronutrient distribution range for healthy adults (45%-65% of total daily energy) and encompasses a range of carbohydrate intake from 50-130 g/day or 10%-45% total energy from carbohydrates. With carbohydrate intake <10% (or <20-50 g/day), nutritional ketosis can occur; this type of diet is called a ketogenic diet. In one study, ketogenic diet showed mixed effects on LDL-C level and was not superior to other dietary interventions for weight loss. Ketogenic diet can suppress hunger during calorie restriction and may have some therapeutic effects on T2DM, polycystic ovary syndrome, and cardiovascular and neurological diseases.
Intermittent Fasting and Time-Restricted Eating
Recently, fasting has received interest not only from medical experts, but also from members of the general public with an interest in health. Intermittent fasting involves regular periods with no or very limited calorie intake. Intermittent fasting focuses on the time window of eating instead of calorie calculations or macronutrient composition, helping people to restrict food intake without having to count calories and to avoid late-night snacking. Recently, much interest has focused on “when to eat.”Time-restricted eating limits the number of hours per day that you can eat. A popular strategy is the 16:8. For this diet, you have to eat all of your meals during an 8 hour period, for example, 10 am to 6 pm. The rest of the time you cannot eat anything. Fasting is an ancient form of caloric restriction. It has become more popular recently. This is partly because some animal and human studies have shown benefits to fasting for people with diabetes and obesity. There are many different fasting regimens and it is unclear which may be the best. One of the most popular is the 5:2 system. This involves 2 days a week of fasting or VLCD and 5 days a week of eating your normal diet.
Other Dietary Approaches
- Paleolithic (Paleo) Diet: This diet follows the nutritional patterns of early humans who lived in the Paleolithic era, which began more than 2 million years ago and continued until about 10,000 years ago, when humans started to cultivate plants and domesticate animals. This diet advises consuming lean meat, fish, vegetables, fruits, and nuts while avoiding grains, dairy products, processed foods, and added sugar and salt.
- Low-Glycemic Index (GI) Diet: A low-GI diet emphasizes exchanging high-GI foods for low-GI alternatives. Nothing is strictly forbidden with the low-GI diet, but high-GI foods such as white bread, bagels, cereals, mashed potatoes, pasta, and noodles should be replaced by low-GI foods.
- New Nordic Diet: This diet is based on unprocessed whole grains, high-fiber vegetables, fish, low-fat dairy foods, lean meat of all types (beef, pork, lamb), beans and lentils, fruit, dense breads, tofu, and skinless poultry.
- Vegetarian Diet: This diet excludes meat, fish, and poultry, but there are many variations of the diet, including lactovegetarians and lacto-ovo-vegetarians.
- Portfolio Diet: The Portfolio diet is a vegan plan that emphasizes a “portfolio” of foods or food components that lower cholesterol.
Cautions and Considerations
Rapid Weight Loss
Rapid weight loss diet is a type of diet in which you lose more than 2 pounds (lb) or 1 kilogram (kg) a week over several weeks. To lose weight this quickly you must eat very few calories. Slow and steady weight loss is the only way to avoid yo-yo dieting, where you lose a great deal of weight, only to regain it within a few months or years. Losing excess weight by eating a healthy diet and increasing physical activity can help prevent future health problems. Obesity increases the risk of illness and death due to diabetes, stroke, coronary artery disease, kidney and gallbladder disorders, and cancer. Rapid weight loss may not be safe for some people to do on their own. Losing more than 1 or 2 lb (0.5 to 1 kg) a week is not safe for most people. It can cause you to lose muscle, water, and bone density. Rapid weight loss can also cause some side effects including: Gallstones, Gout, Fatigue, Constipation, Diarrhea, Nausea. People who lose weight quickly are also more likely to gain back the weight quickly.
Long-Term Sustainability
Dieting is one of those things that almost always fails in the long term. In fact, people who “diet” tend to gain more weight over time. Instead of focusing only on losing weight, make it a primary goal to nourish your body with nutritious food and daily movement. Maintenance of a low-calorie intake should be continued throughout an individual’s lifespan. Thus, the best diet for weight management is one that can be maintained in the long term.
The Importance of Professional Guidance
Be wary of programs that promise quick fixes. Long-term weight management is a journey that takes time. You should only follow one of these diets with the help of your provider. Everyone is different. What works for someone else might not be right for you. Evaluate your progress regularly by revisiting your goals. Decide which parts of your plan are working well and which parts need to be changed. Reward yourself for your achievements! Recognize when you're meeting your goals and be proud of your progress. Use non-food rewards, such as a bouquet of fresh flowers, a sports outing with friends, or a relaxing bath.