Thursday, March 19, 2009

Healthy Diets, Your Best Choice to Lose Weight

By Ricardo d Argence

The basic idea behind nutrition must be understood in order to have a healthy diet. You'll hear a lot of talk about carbs, proteins, and fats, but what does it all mean? For starters, a couple kinds of carbs exist. Sugars are known as simple carbohydrates. Complex carbohydrates are storage units for glucose. Your digestive system breaks the starch down and releases the glucose into the bloodstream. All carbohydrates should not be completely avoided, as these give your body needed energy.

Proteins are necessary for any diet as they provide cells with what they require for growth and to maintain their structure. Animal and vegetable foods both contain protein. Animal sources of proteins, such as eggs, milk, and meat, contain all the essential amino acids.

Although it is hard to believe, fat is a critical part of your overall diet. The metabolism of fat into fuel is what provides your body with energy. The only way to get certain essential fat-soluble vitamins is through food. Your body has no way of producing these on its own. A couple different types of fats exist - those that are saturated and those that are unsaturated. Elevated-fat food items such as those in the dairy group, along with mayonnaise and any oils ought to be restricted.

The best way to prevent obesity is to eat right. Many illnesses and conditions are caused or complicated by obesity, including diabetes, stroke and heart disease, cancer, sleep apnea, gout, osteoarthritis, and problems with the gall bladder. This is the type of thing that can cut your life short, and cut you off from a normal lifestyle.

Although it is vital to keep at a healthy weight, it is just as vital to be aware that balanced eating won't alter your body image instantly. If you are doing this with the intention of resembling a top model, then you have the wrong motivation. The goal is to get yourself healthy and fit, and this will take time.

Don't rely on quick fixes like diet pills or starvation diet fads. These results are never permanent and can actually do more damage than good. It's not just about dieting, it's about making life changes that will improve your overall health.

Also necessary for achieving this goal is exercise. This is especially vital for great heart health. While it's a fact that muscle is heavier than fat, still it is more ideal to be well-muscled weighing more, rather than having flaccid muscles and weighing less.

When you have the necessary information, it's time to get started. Your first step is to decide on what your goal weight-loss is. You need to have a plan for how you are going to get your goal. Give yourself a reasonable timeframe. Sit down and figure out exactly how many calories you should be taking in daily, and how much exercise you'll need to stay in shape.

Be ready to experience a few highs and lows in your mood, yet don't be dissuaded simply due to gradual and not instant weight loss results. Stick to your plan, no matter what. After reaching your goal, do not return to your old ways. Keep in mind this is a change in how you live to keep you healthy, not only a diet. - 15437

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