Thanks to the wealth of information available online and other sources, more and more people are realizing the importance of maintaining a healthy diet routine. Unlike a few years back, where fast food and junk were the order of the day, and obesity was skyrocketing in places like the US, today's generation is more conscious about their nutritional choices. But this doesn't make successfully sticking to a healthy diet any easier, or does it? Whether you just need to maintain a healthy weight or are seeking to lose some pounds, making your diet work for you is usually an uphill task for many. This is especially the case considering how the modern-day economy forces us to live busy lives juggling between work, study, parenting, household tasks, and social life.
With a few tips, however, you adopt your diet routine of choice long enough to achieve and maintain the desired results. On this note, here are some tips on how to make any diet work for you.
Consider Nutritional Supplements
One of the major challenges people face when trying to stick to a diet is that you may not always get the nutrients you need from the groceries in your kitchen or fridge. It can be so annoying to get home exhausted from work in the evening, only to realize that you ran out of fish, nuts, avocados, or eggs for your keto diet. Well, this is just one of the many reasons to have vitamin and nutrient supplements stacked somewhere in your kitchen cabinet. If you're trying to lose weight using a ketogenic diet, keto shakes and supplements can be a great resource in your weight loss journey. Stocking up supplements and shakes with the relevant ingredients will ensure that you never miss out on the essential nutrients you need to suppress appetite, get your body into ketosis, and keep burning fat. Rather than just doing the work, they help ensure your diet works for you.
When cheating within a diet plan, consider supplements for cheat meal days to help your body utilize carbs and sugars as energy. A reward-based cheat meal or cheat day strategy could be adequate if you can execute a well-planned diet and maintain a reduced calorie intake.
Keep a Food Diary
Indeed, gaining weight is rarely a problem, but losing it takes extra caution and discipline. While sticking to a diet requires willpower and commitment, these alone are never enough. Many are the times you have been eating "healthy" and religiously working out, but you end up not losing even a single pound! The truth is, calories come in both food and drink form.
Another trick you can use to ensure your diet works for your needs is to have realistic expectations, aim at success, and have a strict diet plan you can stick to. Most importantly, write down literally everything you put into your stomach while on your diet, along with its calorific value and ingredients where possible. After a month of eating 'healthy,' go through your food diary and see how that glass of wine after dinner is your main destruction. If you're trying to lose weight, the bites you take every day to taste the salt in baby's food could be the source of those extra calories you no longer need!
Pick Foods with a High Degree of Satiety
Satiety is the nature of feeling full, which suppresses or reduces your appetite. Many people who are in the weight loss program tend to go the Keto way because it triggers the reduction of hunger hormones. Some healthy animal proteins tend to have a higher degree of satiety and can keep you full for longer. This is because they are easily absorbed into the bloodstream, keeping your blood sugar levels high for longer. You can also go for healthy sources of carbs like boiled potatoes and oatmeal, alongside apples, bananas, and oranges.
As much as possible, avoid processed foods. The sugars in them often contain the same calories you want to burn and have your ideal weight.
Gradually Adjust Your Habits
A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Many people lose interest along the way because the diets they are supposed to adjust to are not what they are used to. Old habits die hard, but the gradual transition is a milestone in dieting. If you take two cans of coke in a day, try taking one and a half with a mindset of reducing it to nil over time.
With this mindset and gradual change, you will have made a huge difference in your health as well. On the same note, handling one thing at a time will help you create better dietary habits. It may be hard to ditch taking a bar of chocolate, but there is something you can easily let go without feeling its impact.
Decide Your Meal Frequency
We all have preferences for the period between meals. Some prefer three heavy meals over the day, while others prefer six light meals. Well, it is generally better to consume more light meals in smaller portions, but this doesn't rule out the possibility of overeating. Whatever works best for you, you are your captain!
No feeling is better than finally starting to see the results of sticking to a healthy diet. It is not usually a bed of roses, but it is doable with commitment, planning, and consistency. With the above tips in mind, it can be easier to adopt a new diet routine, stick to it, and see it working for you.
WRITTEN BY
Daria Brown