A slim-fit figure is an indicator of the health and strength of your body. However, many, trying to achieve quick weight loss, exhaust themselves with dubious diets and deprive the body of the necessary nutrients. In fact, if you stick to a balanced diet and give your muscles the necessary load, you will no longer have to think about diets and other methods of losing weight. With proper nutrition, you can lose weight and improve overall well-being without violence against yourself. In this article, we will take a closer look at how you should eat to lose weight and be healthy.
If you are determined to change your eating habits and lose weight, start with the five key principles of healthy eating. Follow these principles and you will always be on the right track.
Without a balanced and healthy diet, the body is more susceptible to disease, infection, fatigue, and poor performance.
However, for good health, it is necessary not only to replace unhealthy foods with useful ones but also to exercise regularly. It is also necessary to give the body enough sleep time to recuperate. Studies have shown that sleep-deprived people have an increased appetite compared to those who get enough sleep.
This is likely due to the effect of sleep on two important hunger hormones, ghrelin, and leptin. Therefore, it is very important for a healthy weight and well-being to get seven or more hours of sleep every day.
Exercising is also good for weight loss and health benefits. Exercise improves blood circulation and the accelerated blood flow increases the oxygen level in the body. It helps to reduce the risk of heart diseases, such as coronary artery disease and heart failure. Regular exercise in itself increases calorie expenditure, which leads to fat loss. But also calorie expenditure is increased by building muscle mass - this forces the body to spend more calories even in a calm state. As a result, we can say that healthy nutrition, regular physical activity, and good sleep are three pillars of a good figure and good health.
A balanced healthy diet should contain all the nutrients the body needs - vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, carbohydrates, protein, and healthy fats - in sufficient quantities. Therefore, the healthy diet must include:
People on a vegan diet cannot eat meat, fish, or dairy products, so they will have substitute foods that contain similar nutrients in their diets. For example, tofu and beans are plant-based sources of protein. Some people are intolerant to dairy products, but they can also eat a balanced diet by gaining essential nutrients from other foods.
It should be remembered that each person is different, and what is useful for one may not be suitable for another. For example, whole grain flour is not suitable for people with gluten intolerance. Therefore, when drawing up a diet, take into account the characteristics of your body and be sure to consult your doctor if you have health problems.
Foods to avoid on a healthy diet:
A list of foods that you can eat on a healthy diet:
The number of calories in food is the amount of energy that it contains. Our body receives energy only from food and spends the calories received for thinking, breathing, walking, and other important functions. The average person needs about 2,000 calories per day to maintain basic energy metabolism, but this figure varies with age, gender, and level of physical activity. Men generally need more calories than women. Also, people who exercise need more calories than those who don't.
The two most popular methods for calculating calories are Mifflin-St Jeor and Harris-Benedict. Both mathematical formulas allow you to calculate the number of calories that the body expends for the basic metabolism. Each formula contains two different equations, one for men and one for women. Usually, the formulas have a difference of about 100 calories in the results.
Women: [10 x weight (kg)] + [6.25 x height (cm)] - [4.92 x age (years)] -161;
Men: [10 x weight (kg)] + [6.25 x height (cm)] - [4.92 x age (years)] + 5.
Women: 655.1 + [9.563 x weight (kg)] + [1.85 x height (cm)] - [4.676 x age (years)];
Men: 66.5 + [13.75 x weight (kg)] + [5.003 x height (cm)] - [6.775 x age (years)].
Besides the number of calories consumed, their quality is also important. Foods that are high in sugar or fat but very low in nutrients are known as "empty calories." They should be avoided.
These products include:
However, it is not only the type of food that makes the dish nutritious, but also the ingredients. Homemade pizza with a whole grain base and lots of fresh vegetables on top can be a healthy choice. In contrast, cooked pizzas and other highly processed foods often contain empty calories. To maintain good health, limit your intake of empty calories and instead try to get your calories from foods rich in other nutrients.
Now that we have familiarized ourselves with the basic rules of a healthy diet, we have learned which foods are worth and should not be consumed, we can proceed to draw up the menu. In fact, you can create your menu by simply following the tips above. But you can see the options for ready-made menus below.
Do not be confused by the monotony of the dishes, because you can change the content of breakfast, lunch, and dinner at least every day. For breakfast, porridge can be oatmeal, pearl barley, buckwheat, millet, or chickpea. For lunch, pasta, potatoes, rice, buckwheat, quinoa, chickpeas can serve as a side dish. Vegetable dishes can also vary, from green salads to stewed cabbage or zucchini. When it comes to meat, chicken breast is most commonly cooked, but you can also eat lean beef, turkey, or fish.
A word of caution: yes, 1200 calories may be enough for some people, but for most adults, this is very low. For proper nutrition, you should stick to your calorie intake and not cut calories by more than 10% of the daily value.
Sometimes the process of losing weight is delayed: it seems to you that you are doing everything right, but you still do not get the cherished results. In fact, you can hinder your progress by making simple mistakes.
The number on the scale is only one measure of the weight change. In fact, the weight can fluctuate up to 1.8 kg during the day, depending on how much food and liquid you drink. If the number on the scale doesn't move, you may be losing fat mass, but your body retains a lot of water. In addition, as you exercise, the number and weight of muscles in the body increases. Therefore, the values on the scales may not only not change, but even grow.
Measuring your waist with a tape measure and photographing yourself monthly can show that you are actually losing fat, even if the number on the scale is the same as when you started losing weight.
For weight loss, it is enough to reduce the daily calorie intake by 10% and add 2-3 workouts per week for additional physical activity on the body.
Of course, nutrition plays a leading role in this matter, but training significantly speeds up the process of losing weight and really changes body composition. For a good figure and health, it is important not only the absence of excess fat but also the presence of a strong muscle frame. Proper nutrition is not a temporary diet for a month, but a restructuring of eating habits with a long-term perspective. The goal here is more than just weight loss. A balanced diet gradually heals the entire body; in the future, this approach will help save large amounts of money not spent on treatment.
However, you should not drastically change your eating habits and drive yourself into unnecessary stress. It is enough to take small steps and improve every day to start looking and feeling your best. The main thing - do not forget to enjoy the process, and let proper nutrition gradually become your companion to a healthy life.
