You Should Know How Your Diet is Supposed to Work

The vast majority of people start dieting in order to lose weight. Losing weight can be accomplished in a number of ways. A diet is simply a specific method for accomplishing that task.

When one decides that they need to lose weight, the first thing that must be considered is the reason for wanting to lose weight. Is the weight loss going to be directed at a way to gain better health or is it more of a vanity reason? The reason for dieting is as important as the method used to lose the weight.

If attaining a more healthy lifestyle and striving for better health is the reason, it should not be of any concern how long the dieting takes to achieve the weight loss goal, if in fact there is a goal. If good health is the main objective, length of time should not be an issue because the diet should simply be a part of a life-style change in which the dieting change would be a long-term part of the life-style anyway.

If, on the other hand, vanity is the reason and the dieting person is hell bent on losing a significant amount of weight in a short period of time in order to fit into an object of clothing or simply to look great at the class reunion in a month, the method chosen for dieting will be completely different and, most likely, quite unhealthy.

Long term lifestyle type diets are usually of the type that occur in small increments of weight loss and continue as exercise is slowly increased and more healthy food, in smaller portions is consumed. These are usually quite simple diets that don't cause a significant amount of suffering as long as the dieting person is committed to the long-term goals.

The vanity type diet is usually a quick but very self-denying diet in which the dieting person eats very little or eats foods that do not tempt the pallet as far as taste or attractiveness go. Often, very large amounts of water are incorporated into these diets and most people do not drink enough water to begin with. When they are confronted with the need to increase their water intake significantly, they hesitate or they are not very compliant. Water, when one is not thirsty, simply does not taste very good.

The vanity diet also usually requires a substantial increase in activity in the form of exercise and most people have a strong aversion to that form of activity.

There are also diets that are not in either the lifestyle change nor the vanity dieting lists but are really a forced lifestyle change that is completely necessary for the dieting person to continue to live. Once such diet is the diabetic diet. If one ignores their diabetes and continues to eat large amounts of carbohydrates, as most Americans do, they will eventually suffer serious health deterioration. So, the necessary-for-life diets are not the ones we are really concerned with in this article.

There are a number of different diets available for each of the non-necessity diets. The basic lifestyle change diet has already been described though some of the latter day fad diets are also appropriate for long-term dieting if the person doing the dieting is indeed dedicated to the lifestyle change. Some specific fad diets that would work for this person are the Atkins or low-carb diet, The Zone diet or the South Beach diet.

The extreme vanity diet person can also use the low carb diet for fast weight loss or they can try starvation or if they really want to lose weight fast and suffer a bit more but at least retain some type of decent health, they can attempt the Lemonade Diet.

The lemonade diet is highly effective but is more a fast than a diet and a special mixture of water, cayenne pepper, lemon juice and syrup are required. One must be highly dedicated to losing weight for this diet to work as no food is allowed for a period of at least ten days and the Lemonade dieter will feel worse before they feel like a million dollars. The diet is extremely effective for losing ten pounds or more in ten days though. The added benefit of this diet is that it does a thorough job of cleaning the colon.

Each one of the above mentioned diets should be highly suspect and not just accepted for it's reputation or the current fad. One who is considering dieting should, at the very least, buy the book that is written about the diet in order to learn how the diet works with the body and effects the different body systems. Each of the authors has a lot of information included in their book about these concerns.

The main point of this article is to point out to anyone who is considering dieting that they should be very careful and choose a diet that meets their goals and health concerns. Don't blindly go into any diet without knowing how it's supposed to effect you, what you're supposed to eat while on the diet, how much weight you are expected to lose in a specific period of time and what are the benefits and health concerns that attach to that diet.

In fact, it is a very good idea to discuss any diet plans with your health care professional prior to starting or even considering one of the above diets.

Gary Vaughn is a Masters level RN and has studied and written about nutrition and dieting for quite some time. He has been published both professionally and online. He is the owner of Repair My Weight Loss, an information rich website about popular diets, diet myths, diet solutions and diet reality. The website can be found at http://www.repairmyweightloss.com

Diet Programs - Which One Should I Choose?

Diet programs you will find that there are so many programs on the market today that it is easy to become confused, lost and bewildered. Your friends or family may suggest certain diets or regimes that have worked for them, but be aware they may not work for you. But which one should I choose?

In this world where we are obsessed with our weight and our looks, we are constantly reminded in the media, in the press, and on the television in fact everywhere we go. That our body mass and body weight is too much and that if we were slimmer we would be happier with ourselves and possibly more successful. It all has an impact on our confidence, our personality and our lifestyle, but what are the right diet programs for you.

Surfing the Internet you can see there are so many Diet programs and regimes. For example there is the Atkins diet, the Cambridge diet, there are diet pills, and balanced diets, three-day diets, detox diets, soup diets, cabbage diets, diet recipes, cholesterol diets, juice diets, grapefruit diets, pregnancy diets, dessert diets, convenient diets, and even diet Coke. Hey, there is just too much to choose from. But which one do I select and which one do I choose? You can spend hours and days searching for the ideal diet plan only to find out it is not the right one for you. Ninety five percent of all people that start a diet will restart with different diet looking for the "right one " for them. So obviously the first diet did not work long term. It is a phase, it is something people are prepared to have a go at and see if they get any results, and if it does not work they move on.

Every dieter needs to educate him or herself first and foremost about what a Diet programs are how what one will work for them. You need to set your parameters and get your guidelines organized.

1) You need to say to yourself first, how much weight does I want to lose.

2) In what time span do I want to lose this weight?

3) Where do I want to lose the weight from?

4) Will it affect my lifestyle and will it affect my relationships with people sharing with me the experience of a diet plan.

Once you sorted out your guidelines of what you are looking for, you need to sort out what types of plans are out there.

There are starvation diets; which if you reduce drastically your intake of food over a short period of time you will lose weight but will put back on as soon as you stop that diet plan. Usually on a starvation diet; you are not working at the fat content. You are actually working on the water retention within the muscles. So you loose muscle bulk and strength which shows up on the scales as a lose in weight. But this is not fat lose only water weight.

Other Diet programs tell you to reduce your calorie intake. Sounds straightforward? Everyone thinks calories are the answer, but by reducing your calorie intake, your body will adapt so the effects would be if you reduced you calorie intake by a thousand calories a week, your body will get used to having a thousand calories less and once burned those any excess calories are self defeating. You are not burning the calories you thought you might have had. Your body is adapting to fewer calories. Result, you don't lose weight. But reach a weight plateau from which you will not be able to any further.

More plans include the Atkins diet or the Ornish diet created by a heart surgeon and cardiologist. The Atkins diet was introduced to reduce weight rapidly in obese people or overweight people before heart surgery. Yes it works. But again, the plan would mean eating certain meats or certain food groups and cutting out others. Interesting enough, you can eat plenty of one kind of food like meat, but you won't be able to find the extra supplements and vitamins of a normal balanced diet and will have to take supplements instead to boast your vitamins.

Cabbage soup diet does work. Dieters mainly stick to a water based diet of soups and fruit to reduce weight. The side effects may be headaches as your body detoxifies taking out the toxins and wastes that has been left in your body and had not been able to flush out. The water based diet takes out those toxins making you feel healthier increasing the awareness of your taste buds once you finish your diet. Your food cravings will reduce, but it does have side effects such as headaches. It is not recommended for any period of time more than seven days. It is only for a quick fix route to losing weight especially for those occasions such as your first date or a wedding occasion.

If you would like to know more on diet plans or dieting, click on the links below for some successful advice.

Elaine Olden is a well known author on Dieting and Nutrition, for more information click on:

Dieting [http://www.real-marketing-ideas.com/dieting.html]

Slimming techniques [http://www.real-marketing-ideas.com/cut_sugar.html]

Cutting the Carbs [http://www.real-marketing-ideas.com/cut_carbs.html]