Sunday, February 1, 2009

Low Carbohydrate Dieting

By Loralie Rodgers

Limiting carbohydrates from ones diet has been a successful way to lose weight. Most people who struggle to lose weight have done so all their life. They try many gimicks some safe and some not so safe. Some people only have a few pounds to lose, some have up to 100 or more pounds to lose. Some people do if for medical reasons.

Ninety percent of the popluation in North America would like to lose weight. Most are on the search for the quickest and easies way to trim that excess weight. Some many only want to lose 5 pounds, others want to lose 20, 50, 100, 200 pounds and even more. Low carb diets seem to be becoming the "fashionable" way to lose weight in recent years. Many are getting stressed over losing their excess weight which in turn is making it harder and harder to achieve their weight loss goals. Other have medicle reasons to lose excess fat, and sometimes end up using dangerous methods such as diet pills, medical procedures, and restricting food intake.

Sabotaging oneself in a diet is very common. Some diets like the low carb diet can be hard at times to follow. Often when we are invited out for dinner or or a celebration we often eat more than what is allowed. When this happens we have to remind ourselves that we slipped and fell, we just have to get back up and start over. Too many times people give up. We also have to remember we didn't become overweight overnight, it took some time, once we realize that then it makes the time on the program easier, but if we curse ourselves for slipping up we fall off and often say whats the point. Get over it and carry on for the next day.

The low carb diet is a fairly easy diet to follow. The trick is to avoid all white foods. Meaning no breads, pasta, rice, grains and definitly no sugars. Meal planning is simple, once you know what a carbohydrate food is, then it makes meal planning simpler. Higher protein foods make a huge difference to your weight loss goals too, especially if you are working out and/or doing a lot of activities and sports.

Like most restrictive fad diets some people who do a low carb diet do it for so long then fall off the wagon. Because of the high fat calorie content from meat this form of dieting has come under fire due to the fact some people have lost weight, but cholesterol has become elevated. Since the nature of this diet is high protein high fat it is recommended to seek medical advise prior to starting this plan. Also because of the restrictions on this plan people do well at the beginning then tend to trail off and chose foods not part of the plan.

North America is country of convenience. We have all of our foods ready made for us. The problem most of those foods are very high in carbohydrates. Rice, pasta, potatoes are cheap foods and hence the main staple of all convenience foods, and of course the main staple in most households. Alcowhol is another high carbohydrate "food". Fast food places, burgers, and buns and fries, pasta with sauces. Most people become overweight simply because of convenience, with the busy life a quick trip to the drive thru to bring home dinner. To look it another way, by knowing what we can eat, there are lots of options with the low carb phenomenon. Who doesn't like beef, just skip the bun and fries, and have a nice green salad. There are many protein sources available, finding what you enjoy or what works the best for you. Low carb diets do work, but its not for everyone.

If you want a good kick start on losing excess fat you should do a good body cleanse. Want to keep it off, do a weekly cleanse. This, included with a lower calorie lower carbohydrate diet will help in achieving your weight loss goals. - 15343

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