Never start a diet one week before your period. The hormonal imbalances will drive you nuts, will make you frustrated, and the water retained in your body will make appear as if you haven't shed a pound. Actually, you will look as if you took pounds. So spare yourself!
The best moment to start a diet is two days after your period has started, when your cravings subdue and your body starts eliminating the retained water.
It's better not only from a psychological point of view, but also from a physiological one.
Mindell's theory was that we crave food because we lack certain nutritional elements. The other reasons include stress and hormonal factors.
What makes cravings a lot worse? Sugar and salt. Remeber I have told you before about the foods that increase your appetite - like some cereals in the morning and foods high in sugar and bad carbs? Well, keep that in mind.
Dieting is very bad for your body, especially if you are on a restrictive diet that cuts down proteins or carbs completely.
Caffeine is also a poor choice. And artificial sweetners found in Coke, or Pepsi, or Sprite, or any light drink or food are no better. I will write later on why they are so bad.
Have green tea or lemon tea if your stomach can stand it. Mine, for example, cannot handle lemon tea or any other fruit tea. I am ok, however, with tea coming from flowers, like chamomile or jasmine. Or from leaves.
Eat a few times a day and never miss breakfast! The more energy you consume before your first meal, the bigger the craving gets, the bigger the mistake when you buy your meal or the candy bar.
Also, never reduce your calories below 1,000. Honestly, 1,200-1,400 can be a very safe level is you exercise a little bit.
Eat more fiber and less processed food. Take out the white flour and replace it with whole grains and rye or oats. Try to have potatoes instead of bread, or basmati rice.
The key to keeping your weight under control and stopping the cravings is eating all day through, small portions. And try not to get bored and eat without paying attention, like popcorns when watching a movie.
There are two foods - let's say - that should be avoided at any cost: refined white sugar and white flour.
According to Phyllis A. Balch, author of "Prescription for Dietary Wellness, "One in twenty of the world's adult population now has some form of diabetes, a disease associated with obesity, poor eating habits and a sedentary lifestyle. More than half of American adults are overweight. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention relates that the incidence of Type 2 diabetes has risen by 33 percent in the past decade and three out of every 50 American adults currently have this diet-related condition. Complications related to diabetes are the sixth-leading cause of death in the United States."
According to Bruce Fife ND, "Diabetes is all about sugar".
If you must have sugar, then have at least brown sugar. However, the best sugar you can have is found in fruits and is called fructose. Nowadays, many products - especially the diet ones - replaced sugar with fructose. Look at the label before you buy. However, keep in mind that high levels of fructose can be as bad for the body as sugar. Even worse. If you have large quantities of fructose, you will get fat quite fast. The best thing is to normally reduce sweets of any kind. And stop eating the high-fructose corn-syrup (HFCS)!
According to a review by Alan R. Gaby, "HFCS is now used extensively in carbonated beverages and other sweetened drinks, baked goods, candies, canned fruits, jams, jellies, and dairy products. Processed-food manufacturers often prefer HFCS to sucrose because it is inexpensive to produce and mixes well in many foods." Be careful what you buy. And be careful how much you have of any kind of sugar.
Sugar will provide the body the energy it needs NOW, mostly. Fructose, on the other hand, being processed by the liver, will supply energy for a longer amount of time. Some people can be allergic to fructose, so you might want to find out that first. If you never had problems with fruits, you might be fine.
On the other hand, honey is another natural sweetner, containing anti-oxidants. It has been used for a very long time for medical purposes of any kind. It contains fructose.
Reference:
Fraser, J., July, 2005, Sugar, high-fructose corn syrup and type II diabetes, from http://www.newstarget.com/009333.html, retrieved March 2, 2007;
Gaby, A.R., December, 2005, Dietary Fructose - Adverse Effects of Dietary Fructose, in Alternative Medicine Review, Volume 10, Number 4, from http://www.thorne.com/altmedrev/.fulltext/10/4/294.pdf, retrieved March 2, 2007.
Yes! Finally! My attempts so far have been ruined by Dr Pepper. It's frustrating to eat less, take pills, and put on weight. Or maybe it was just the water that started being retained before my period.
So, girls, did you know that the body retains up to 1 liter of water before and during your period? Keep that in mind next time you are complaining that you cannot lose weight. Personally, I retain even more sometimes.
Anyway, I started this new way of eating. My friend lost 20 pounds almost following it in the US, and if she could do it there, I can do it here!
The basic principles are the ones I have mentioned already. 5-6 meals a day and two or three more substantial. Never eat until you are full, just until you are not hungry anymore. Take out sugar so your insulin is not high and stopping you from losing weight. My daily intake varies from 1,200 calories to 1,500 calories. I don't think that going under this is helpful or healthy.
In the morning I'm having a Diet Cereal Bar and half a glass of yogurt. Two-three hours later I have lunch (for example today I had three small pieces of chicken nuggets and 3 large spoons of eggplants and yogurt salad). Then I had one Diet (with fructose instead of sugar) fruit cheesy yogurt. Then I had dinner - other 3 pieces of nuggets, one egg, and lots of lettuce - and then one more fruity cheesy yogurt. I could have added more, but I feel ok. I am not hungry. I could use some fruits though.
Yesterday I had about 150 grams of chicken (4.5 oz.), 2 spoons Chinese vegetable mix, 3 diet fruit yogurts (300 calories in total), one cereal bar (90 calories), half of glass of yogurt, 2 spoons of eggplant and yogurt salad, and some diet shrimp stuff (90 calories).
Basically, the yogurt will help you lose weight faster because of the linoleic acid and the calcium - go back and read my previous post on the subject. The cereals are healthy, high in fiber, and carbs. And I had my proteins also, plus some vegetables and fruits.
When I reach 55 kilos, I have a feeling I will get stuck, so then I will start exercising. I won't exercise too much now - except for walking - because I want to keep an Ace up my sleeve for the bad days to follow.
Anyway, in two days I lost 400 grams or 1 pound. I think it's going good.
I'm also using the anti-cellulite cream and taking Scottish showers at least every two days.
Losing weight and staying healthy is easy, when you care. Forget famishing yourself: there are other ways.
Since I was 15 I've been obsessed with healthy diets, losing weight, sports, and everything included. I read books after books and I collected articles on staying fit and healthy. Even now, 12 years later, I am still reading everything I find on the subject.
I will share with you, step by step, everything I know. Free advice.
About Me
Name: Andreea Home: Bucharest, Romania About Me: Post graduate student, happily married, who has found the perfect job in a perfect company. :) See my complete profile
