Calorie Restriction Diet Plan

As "baby boomers" approach the age of retirement, we are finding that many of us are overweight, some even obese or bordering obesity. I know because I fall into this category, though I  prefer to think I am a 'little overweight' rather than obese. This is of concern for insurers, especially Medicare. Lifespans are longer and medical concerns greater. It's not enough that we are living longer lives, we need also to be living healthier lives.

There are many diets and diet plans available to us, but I want to focus on the calorie restriction diet plan.

Simply put, this plan calls for us to eat 20 to 30 percent less than would be normally recommended to lose weight. This diet  would cut out sugars, saturated fats and most dairy foods, opting instead for foods like, fruits, vegetables and whole grains with the intent that we not only lose weight but, slow down the aging process and add even more years to our lives.

A calorie restriction diet plan would, over time, reduce the harmful cholesterol and triglycerides and increase the good HDL cholesterol levels while, improving blood glucose control.

There are some risks we should be aware of if we choose this plan, The most significant risks and side effects include, lower muscle mass, weakness and fatigue. A few other risks and side effects include malnutrition, anemia, dizziness, nausea and depression. With such risks and side effects, it would be difficult to get the proper amounts of exercise needed to make any diet  work properly.

We do need to cut back on sugars, saturated fats and high-fat dairy foods and incorporate more fruits, vegetables, proteins and low-fat dairy foods into our diets. We also need to move away from our televisions, computers and other sedentary activities and get up and exercise more.

A better plan would be to incorporate the intent of the calorie restriction diet plan, which is one pound of weight loss each week. If one pound of fat is the equivalent of 3500 calories as scientists estimate, we would need to cut 500 calories each day from our current diets.

Teamed with exercise and nutritional supplements, it is possible to use the calorie restriction diet plan and have great success in losing the excess weight resulting in healthier and happier lives. It is important that we keep in mind that  we should not implement a diet plan that causes us distress or a gnawing hunger that never seems to go away. If any plan is to work effectively, we should be able to incorporate it in a manner that encourages a successful outcome. 

Charlene Zatloukal is one of those 'baby boomers' fighting the 'battle of the bulge.' There are some fun ways to home-garden-4-you.blogspot.com/2009/07/calorie-restriction-diet-plan.html cut the calories on her Home and Garden blog.