Diet Plans - How Do I Choose?

When you feel the urge or desire to lose weight, you are instantly faced with numerous diet plans that proclaim to be the answer to all of your problems. The sheer volume of information thrown at you can be completely overwhelming and, to a certain extent, off-putting as you are faced with believing that you will never be able to lose weight.

However, it is important to remember that somewhere out there is the perfect diet plan for you. A good place to start is to look at what existing plans say you have to do and also how you should live your life in order to lose weight. You will know in yourself what type of things you are capable of doing and you should in no way put yourself under too much strain with a diet. You must consider yourself both mentally, as well as physically, before starting out. If the diet promotes amazing results from the start and you do not achieve them how will you feel? You must consider this, as a number of people start diets and when they do not see instant results, give in too quickly.

If you are the type who has, in the past, enjoyed generous portions of food, then it is extremely difficult for you to be able to instantly switch to a diet where you are eating next to nothing. Yes, you will lose weight with a diet such as this, but you can also create a number of other health issues for yourself.

Another point to consider is the amount of exercise that you do before you start your diet. If you are basically a couch potato, then do not go for an overall weight loss program that means you are expected to do a lot of exercise along with completely changing your eating habits. Such a dramatic shift in your normal day is certainly not the way to go. Instead, when you are planning on losing weight, you should look at the long term aim and accept that it will take time. Losing a bit of weight gradually helps your health in the long term. Losing weight suddenly can hamper your health in the long term.

A diet should not be something that makes you feel depressed or under pressure. A diet should also not make you feel tired and lethargic. Instead, it should be the complete opposite. You should feel healthier than before, able to do more exercise and therefore be fitter and not struggle to face the day.

So, to summarize, spend some time considering your options. Do not just jump for the latest celebrity diet craze and think that because it works for them it will work for you. Instead read about it, do research into their methods and ignore the obvious hype created by their marketing machine. Pick what feels right for you and you will feel the benefits not just in one month, but in the long term.

Albert Franklin
University of Manchester
Manchester
United Kingdom