Calories in, calories out. While weight loss plans might suggest that the formula is something much more complicated, the reality is that how much you eat is vastly more important than what you eat, and in what combinations. Eat fewer calories than you burn (through regular, daily activities as well as exercise) and you will lose weight. This truly isnt rocket science.
While most dieters are at least partly guilty of falling for a variety of diet plans (the grapefruit plan, food combining plans, and low carb diets, for example), science is discovering what our bodies have known for a long time. That is, its not what you eat, or how you combine that food, or what time you eat, but rather how much you eat. Your weight loss success is completely dependent on how many calories you eat (or cut).
Counting calories seems easy enough, and you might think that you dont need to follow any plan, that you can simply count calories. You can, but many of us might still thrive knowing that we are following particular guidelines set by a diet plan. You can save time if you follow a plan because you dont have to do the menu planning yourself. The final benefit is that following a plan ensures that you get the right nutrients, since menu plans you get from some third party sources are often formulated by dieticians with your health (as well as weight loss) in mind.
But many of us can create our own diets, based on the nutritional guidance we get from books or magazines. We might consult a dietitian, and create our own diet based on our eating preferences and needs. But there are some important considerations to make.
Its important when you count calories that you make each bite count. That is, each bite should include important nutrients. Because calories are restricted, there are fewer opportunities to get good nutrients in with the reduced calorie intake. The solution, then, is to ensure that each bite, that each meal, contains essential nutrients. Make sure theres a good balance of vital vitamins, minerals, protein, calcium and fiber.
Diet experts say that people should count calories, but should also do this formally. That is, studies have shown time and again that people lose more weight when they count calories and record them. Whether that is through an electronic device (a calorie counter, or your iPhone, for instance) or by writing everything down in a notebook, the idea is that recording and counting calories reminds you of what you have eaten and what you can still eat each day. It also makes you accountable for the food you eat.
The new thinking these days is that there are two essential components to successful weight loss ” counting calories and writing down what you eat. While these things cant take the place of basic determination, desire and discipline, they can do much toward keeping you on the straight and narrow path toward your weight loss goals.
