Diet Plans That Work - 6 Easy Things Every Diet Needs

Tired of yo-yo dieting? We all are, a lot of diets can help you lose weight, but it all keeps coming back again after a while. So before you start Atkins or some other unhealthy plan to get thin, make sure to use these tips to find a diet plan that works.

#1: short term diets can work to get things moving again if you haven't lost any weight for a while, but you should be thinking more about long term changes than short term fixes. If you go back to who you were with your eating habits, you'll go back to who you were in the mirror. Things like Atkins are NOT healthy to do long term. (eh... trust me on that).

#2: make realistic goals. The body isn't designed to shed huge amounts of weight quickly... if you're very overweight, the most pure fat you can lose in a week is about 4 pounds, and if you're only kind of overweight, that'll be more like 1 or 2 pounds. If you're losing more than that, it's either water or muscle... either way it should come back, and until it does it'll /slow/ your weight loss in the weeks that follow.

#3: is the diet too strict? Very short term diets can be alright if they have another purpose other than just weight loss (like the master cleanse system) but with any normal diet, let yourself splurge a little to keep your sanity in check.

#4: many small meals when you're hungry instead of a few large meals when you're really hungry have been shown to reduce calorie counts... any diet can be helped by eating less each meal, but having more meals.

#5 keep track, and be honest. Start a journal, and write down how you're feeling, how you're doing... all your triumphs, tragedies and calories. If things are just a one time event, it's easy to push them out of your mind... extra calories here or there can add up. Make a complete picture.

#6: accountability. Whether you get a friend to diet with you, or you use one of the many internet resources (peer trainer is the one I used, it's free and  works excellent) find some way to bring your struggles outside of your head. Know you'll have to share everything (even your splurges) with other people going through the same things you are can be a big help. It'll encourage good dieting, and give you support when you slip.

Easy, huh? If you're looking for some diet plans that have all these things and more, or you're looking for some more in depth ideas on how to use the social networking dieting journal tip, you'll probably want to read some more free in depth techniques for making squidoo.com/DietPlansThatWork Diet Plans that Work.

James Wright is a long time on and off dieter, looking to share the info he's found in his quest to get healthy now that he's finally found the combination that worked for him.