Does Your Weight Loss Plan Cause Food Cravings?

February 28, 2009

For your weight loss plan to be a weight loss success, it’s absolutely critical that you understand the difference between weight loss fad diets and safe, effective weight loss routines that produce long-lasting weight loss results.

There are all sorts of weight loss programs out there that can help you lose weight (not necessarily fat), but they are so miserable that it’s impossible to stay on them very long – even more difficult is keeping the weight loss results you achieved.

The four characteristics for successful weight loss are:

1. The weight loss plan must avoid cravings
2. The weight loss plan must avoid hunger
3. The weight loss plan must include increasing your activity level
4. It must be a weight loss plan you can live with for a lifetime

What are cravings? A craving is when your body pushes you to want a particular food ingredient. This can occur even when you are not hungry. When you finally give in and get the food, you almost always binge, that is, eat more than you would have if you did not have the cravings in the first place. For the most part, you body is probably asking for water, but out of bad habit you might turn to fatty fast foods to fill the gap.

What causes cravings? Your body needs 6 essential food ingredients to function properly. They are carbohydrates, fats, proteins, minerals, vitamins and water. If you deprive your body of any of these, it will create the sensation that will drive you to get it. The most easily identified example is when you deprive your body of water. You develop thirst. Thirst is the body’s craving for water. Don’t turn to fast food, when all your body is asking for is a big glass or two of fresh cool water. Better still, don’t turn to a fad diet that restricts you to eating one or two items only. This will only heighten your body’s need for other foods.

Weight loss plans that tell you to cut out particular foods will always lead to cravings. It is this battle in your body to give it what it needs that creates conditions of discomfort and lead to most individuals ending the weight loss programs. There is an area of the brain that controls what and how much you eat. It is also responsible for creating cravings as a way for you to provide the body what it needs.

So, what is the best way to avoid cravings? First and foremost, the best way to avoid cravings is by eating all the required food ingredients. The key is that in all of the food groups, there are “good” types and “not so good” types of foods. You need to know the good types and eat only those. For example, with carbohydrates, good types (in general) are the ones with a low glycemic index (GI). GI is a measure of how fast a food increases the production of insulin. Insulin causes fat buildup. Whole grains and vegetables have low GIs and therefore are good for weight loss.

By understanding the weight loss concept of eating all of the essential foods and dividing them into “good” and “not so good” foods, you will avoid cravings and overeating.

Simple Weight Loss Tips

February 9, 2009

Sometimes weight loss can be a whole lot easier than most people believe. Rather than trying to maintain a strict diet regime, the person trying to lose weight should just make small adjustments to their lifestyle rather than a dramatic change that will ultimately result in failure.

The simple process of drinking an additional glass of water each day, or a short walk around the block once or twice a week will ease the body into the changes that are required for weight loss.

Another wise move is to stay away from the bathroom scales for a week or two, so the weight loss process doesn’t become an all-encompassing ordeal that needs to be measured every day of the week.

By leaving the weigh-in times a little longer apart there is more chance that they will show a reduction in weight, whereas daily weigh-ins can fluctuate depending on the time of day and various other factors.

Even a small reduction in food intake can have a dramatic effect on bodyweight over a period of time. Alternatively, a change from one food to another can also have a huge effect on weight loss. A simple example of this would be to substitute a food high in carbohydrates with an equal quantity of food that is lower in carbohydrates and higher in protein. This change alone will help to reduce body fat and it will also help to eliminate hunger pangs.

Now consider the effect that a few extra glasses of water each day will have when combined with a walk around the block a couple of times a week and a change in foods from high carbohydrates to high protein. When you combine all three changes they can have a really dramatic effect on fat reduction over a period of time with little or no stress and emotional strain on the person losing the weight.

People who follow this method of weight loss are more likely to maintain such a program for a lot longer, and it is this constant change that ensures success, unlike the fad diets that people try off and on throughout their life.