South Beach Diet – Good carbs vs. Bad carbs

South beach is a kind of low carb diet plan which stresses upon the intake of good carbohydrates and total shunning of bad carbohydrates. As is well known, the famous cardiologist and founder of this plan Arthur Agatston had devised this healthy diet plan for his patients who suffered due to high cholesterol and insulin levels.

The current South Beach Diet plan that is doing the rounds among the people is a much varied version of the original plan designed by Dr. Agatston and is counted amongst the best diet plans to lose weight. This is so because the current plan emphasizes more upon the need to lose weight as a result of decrease in the level of carbohydrates and insulin. People who have followed this low carb diet have reported astounding results when it comes to weight loss. Hence, it is little surprising that the South Beach Diet is preferred by several contemporary dietitians.

One thing that confuses a lot of people is the distinction between bad carbohydrates and low carbohydrates. Dr. Agatston insists upon the consumption of good carbohydrates. It is the basis of this healthy diet plan. Now what exactly are good carbohydrates and how do they differ from bad carbohydrates?

The idea is simple and reasonable to understand: good carbohydrates, as they apply to this South Beach low carb diet plan, are those which are consumed in their most natural form with no or minimal amount of processing and modification. For example, fresh fruits are the simplest carbohydrates that can be easily broken up by the body to liberate sufficient amount of energy that lasts for a longer period of time.

Diet plans to lose weight define bad carbohydrates as those that are derived from processed and refined foods. Refined sugar and packaged foods are examples of bad carbohydrates and these are very complex in nature. They are not easily broken up by the insulin in the blood to covert to glucose for the liberation of energy. These are an absolute no for those following a healthy diet plan such as South Beach Diet plan. These bad carbohydrates lead to an increase in the blood sugar level and at the same time the body feels the need to consume more carbohydrates so as to meet its energy requirements.

A low carb diet plan is essentially envisaged to help the body break free of this vicious circle.

The importance of consistency in Diabetic Diet plan

Diabetic diet plan is not exactly counted as one of the common diet plans to lose weight, but it ultimately leads to weight loss in addition to controlling the level of blood sugar. In comparison to other healthy weight loss plans, it is lot more efficient in maintaining the health of the host. Though Diabetic diet plan works for people suffering from both type I and type II diabetes, people with type II diabetes have a greater need to follow this healthy weight loss plan to lose surplus flab. This is so because in their case, diabetes is not genetic, but caused as a result of sluggish lifestyle and food laden with carbohydrate and fats that they consume.

The Diabetic Diet plan is simple enough to follow and the most difficult part of it is to keep a check on the amount of carbohydrates that you consume. The recommended diet in a diabetic diet plan comprises complex carbohydrates, proteins and absolutely no amount of saturated or unsaturated fat. Complex carbohydrates, such as vegetables and fresh fruits take longer to break down and release energy that lasts for a longer period of time. This way, the food substances consumed as part of healthy weight loss plans do not add to blood sugar levels helping diabetic patients opt for this healthy weight loss plan.

Though it seems rigorous, but diabetic diet plan is far easier to follow than other similar diet plans to lose weight. The key to successfully following Diabetic diet plan is to be consistent in all that you consume, the proportion of nutrients you consume, how many meals you take per day, the timing of the meals as well as the regularity of exercise. The idea is to make the body used to these food sessions and exercises so that it can maintain the blood sugar level on its own without requiring intravenous doses of insulin. It is indeed aimed at maintaining the good health of the diabetic patients and, thus, can be rightly counted as one of the healthy weight loss plans.

In no other diet plans to lose weight, so much stress has been put upon consistency and regularity as in the case of diabetic diet plan. Moreover, one ought to refrain from smoking at all costs as it can lead to deterioration of the health of the patient. Most importantly, smoking would eventually neutralize the positive effects of this healthy weight loss method.

Count Your Daily Calorie Intake

Everyone who is in the course of trying to lose weight will benefit by consulting a professional nutritionist or dietitian who will be able to tell them their precise calorie requirement for each day for a healthy weight. It must be realized that the daily calorie intake limit is not the same for everyone and largely depends on whether the individual is a man or a woman, his or her age group, their current weight, height and body shape, the daily activity levels and most significantly, their weight loss objectives.

For instance, while a man having an average build and height who is fairly active may be recommended a daily diet comprising 1800 to 2000 calories for a healthy weight, a much smaller built woman who mainly sits at a desk throughout the day and has little physical activity will require much less calorie intake – something around only 1000 calories. In fact, when it comes to losing weight, knowing this vital and very personal figure is like almost winning half the battle. As knowing the daily calorie intake limit enables an individual trying to lose weight what he or she is up against and what their approach would be to attain that figure as well as a healthy weight.

This suggests that even while trying to lose weight, a person can eat almost anything throughout the day provided he or she keeps the calorie intake within the recommended limit. However, this does not mean that they can load up on cakes, chocolates and fries and not eat anything else for the entire day till they hit their calorie intake limit. In fact, they need to apply their common sense and balance their diet so that they may acquire all the essential nutrition from their food. A balanced diet is not only important to shed the extra flab, but also to maintain a healthy weight and healthy lifestyle.

It is true that no one is able to keep track of all the food items they consume throughout the day, but they can at least keep a tab on their calorie intake. By counting the daily calorie intake, one is able to adjust his or her eating schedule as well as use the remaining calorie quota effectively. By staying close to what one can consume in basic calories, it offers and individual enough liberty in his or her diet as long as they remain within the calorie level recommended for them.

Although many experts are of the view that counting calories is a redundant practice abandoned way back in the 1970s, the fact remains that in order to lose weight, one ought to burn off more calories than they take in daily. Hence, if you are an active person who does lots of work outs, you can eat a lot more and still lose weight. Unfortunately, majority of the dieters do not adhere to this fundamental weight loss rule. Hence, it is not surprising that most dieters fail to achieve the desired weight loss. Most of them actually do not know their daily calorie intake limit and so are unable to stick to the count their calorie consumption.

Atkin’s diet plan is the best healthy weight loss plan

The key to Atkin’s diet plan – Never cheat during Induction

Those of you who have decided to shed the excess flab the Atkin’s diet plan way should keep two things in mind:

• This healthy weight loss plan will work only with regular exercising. If you are under the impression that just going without food or following the regime as laid out in the plan is going to transform you altogether, then you are just wasting your time. However, adequate exercising is a must.

• The first phase of Atkin’s diet plan, one of the best diet plans to lose weight, is known as the Induction Phase and is also the most important phase. Technically, it must be followed strictly and to the last work until you have lost at least half the weight of what you intend to lose. Depending upon this, the Induction Phase can either last two weeks or two months or even an entire year.

As stated earlier, induction is the most important phase of Atkin’s diet plan and the most substantial amount of weight is lost during this phase. The above statement should be enough to indicate that induction is also the most difficult phase. It is indeed difficult for those who are used to all kinds of foods rich in carbohydrates and have now decided to follow a healthy weight loss plan.

During induction, one is not allowed to eat any food which is rich in carbohydrates. At the most, you can consume 20 gm carbohydrates in a day and that should also come from salads and green vegetables. No sugar, no coffee, no fruits… it is as well, you can say, no life. For instance one of Shakespeare quotes is apt for this healthy weight loss plan – anything achieved without much effort, we do not tend to value it.

Following induction phase of Atkin’s diet plan should not be so difficult given the number of low-carbohydrate food options we have today. Usually, most of the diet plans to lose weight are designed in such a way that people do not have go without food for a very long period of time.

All those things that you liked are not allowed. For example pasta, grains, bread, fruits and majority of the dairy products are prohibited. Not even a single bite is allowed. If you think that a single morsel of bacon will be more than sufficient to titillate your palate and satisfy it without even making its presence felt inside your body, then get rid of the thought as soon as possible. Atkin’s diet plan is very strict about these things.

The first week of this healthy weight loss plan is no doubt going to be difficult but once you get used to the regime, it won’t be much of a task. In fact, you will be astonished as the amount of energy with which you will wake up every morning during the Induction Phase of Atkin’s diet plan. No wonder it is hailed as one of the best diet plans to lose weight.