Dr Satwant Singh Rissam
If you look around, you will find several people these days who spend time online to find diets and ways for weight loss to become healthy. Honestly, I know many people who search for answers for such personal aspects of life on the internet. During conversations with them, I realized that after reading a lot they yet had no clarity about diets and ways all because such people get over-exposed to the information on the internet and later cannot explain to themselves, what information exactly they found. It’s not surprising because many times this online weight-loss diet knowledge is completely the opposite of each other. When faced with such a situation, the trust and confidence of people touch another low as they feel that weight loss is something that happens rarely. They lose hope and then even preach to others that we should enjoy eating and be happy with our body weight, which is God’s gift, or ‘his way of life’ designed for them.
Although it’s a personal choice to maintain weight. But all those who want to lose weight need the right approach and guidance to stay on track. To raise your confidence, let me disclose that the only thing that must be looked for in healthy weight loss is a ‘nutritious diet’ that comprises vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and fat-free or low-fat dairy products because without it no weight loss can be achieved. Of course, there is also a lot of proven evidence that documents that a ‘nutritious diet’ for weight loss works only if we stay consistently on it. Often, the adult in us says something else and the child in us takes us off track in this weight management plan. So, let’s talk about a simple guide to make an informed choice by keeping note of some basic facts.
To start with, limitation needs to be made on everyday salt intake in our meals be it with fruits, vegetables, or healthy nuts. In addition to it, the nutritional value of the diet matters a lot, and this is impacted by the protein sources we have in our daily food plan. For this, if you are taking non-vegetarian foods, you can have your protein share through egg, chicken, fish, or any other type of meat (only a small portion), and for vegetarians, protein sources are beans and legumes, soy, nuts and nut butter, tofu, quinoa, grains, soy milk, spinach, mushrooms. For vegetarians as well as non-vegetarians, one of these protein sources should be taken every day along with every main course. Adding to the problem is a common thing i.e. sweetness, which we all look for after meals. But it means transportation of unhealthy options inside the body while doing weight management as the use of artificial sweeteners after every meal deviate weight loss plans.
While doing all this, let me tell you that we need not follow one diet plan for the rest of our lives. There is always the need to bring variation in a diet after 2-3 months otherwise it brings medical problems, especially nutritional deficiencies, and metabolism defects in the body. Besides, the reason behind this approach is also to shut doors for short-term weight loss plans. I watched people getting results with extreme dieting and sadly in every case weight came back in less than 3 to 4 months. Extreme dieting is impossible to follow for long and hence, weight gain. The diet that you need to follow should bring healthy results and not the ones that may later invite medical problems. Another trend has been witnessed of taking multivitamins to become healthier without even knowing the need for it. In the present day, it’s an exception to take calcium and Vitamin D supplements as vegetarian and non-vegetarian diets don’t fulfill the intake requirements for these nutrients. Otherwise, a healthy diet can supply you with necessary minerals and vitamins that you need to sustain a healthy body. In other words, it’s always important to choose something right for yourself.
Further, while doing a nutritional diet plan, it is equally important to limit your calorie intake by limiting trans fats mostly found in packed foods as well as junk food, a favorite alternative, especially for millennials. To limit calorie intake, people feel that fasting is a path they should take to cut high-calorie intake done in previous meals. But that’s basically a myth and something which harms your body again. A few hours of fasting in one day will not help if, on the remaining days, nothing has been done to help the body in a healthier manner because a sustained effort is needed to be made to keep body healthy. To do all this, a long-term commitment is needed to develop eating habits that bring change and a gradual adjustment in the body’s metabolism.
A new normal must be created with these basic health lessons which are crucial, and they become a foundation stone to practice a healthy lifestyle. After all, no diet is a perfect diet until you exercise or do some physical activity as part of this process. It would help to keep body weight away. For this, do some workouts in the gym, running, or even a brisk walk for 45 minutes every day along with your healthy eating routine. Whatever you choose, just choose not to cheat/miss a day. Moreso, due to a reasonable exception if you miss a day then don’t worry as every routine should motivate you enough to follow back and not make you feel guilty. Try to live a healthier life but if you have certain health issues or are taking medications then check with your doctor always before planning to jump onto weight loss plans. Everyone has a goal to remain healthy and it is never too late. But to achieve it, only a few people take steps that bring immense happiness and reduce the anxiety caused by clothes that suddenly feel tight.
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