New Year, New Diet Regime?
How attainable is your resolution? Ideally, we begin by designing a sustainable solution for personal improvement, and make some positive changes to improve our wellbeing.
Regimes
Keto vs. Carbs? It’s hard to know which direction to take. Which advice do you follow? First, we must recognize that we cannot believe everything that Dr. Google says, what is written in books, or what your neighbour is swearing works best for her. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. If you must purchase protein powders, meal replacements or supplement, somebody is benefitting financially, but is it really necessary for your success when real food would be the best option?
The bottom line is you should get your advice from a health professional.
With fad diets you can lose weight and see positive results in the short-term but ask yourself how sustainable the diet is. Often the fad diet leads to
Research
The ketogenic (Keto), Paleo, Atkins, and Whole 30 diets often restrict carbs to less than 50g/day. Research recently published by the Lancet found that restricting carb levels and replacing calories with animal protein and fat sources could lead to premature death (up to 4 years). These diets should be avoided due to increased risk of heart disease, stroke and cancer.
We should limit unhealthy, highly processed carbohydrates such as cakes, cookies, and simple sugars (juice, sugary drinks, sugar, honey, syrup, candy). Eat complex carbs and whole foods that are low in glycemic index such as sweet potatoes, beans, whole grains, fruit and vegetables.
Research shows that those that eat more plant-based foods, including fibre-rich carbohydrate foods live the longest and healthiest and have more success with weight control through good nutrition.
Resolutions
Why does my New Year’s Resolution to lose weight fizzle out before the end of January? At the beginning of the year, we are enthusiastic. We are excited about setting new goals. When you think about it, being healthy is a life-long journey. We work towards being our healthiest selves everyday. Some days it is our biggest struggle. If you have lost 20, 30, or 40 lbs. your body wants to return back to the heaviest it has been. Biologically that is the way we are wired. This can be frustrating.
Results
Remaining health-conscious can wear you down. Remember it does NOT always have to be perfect. Keep an eye on the big picture, the life-long picture. Do your best and make healthy choices most days. Developing a healthy eating pattern is the main goal. Choose something from each of the food groups every meal (a grain, fruit or vegetable, a protein). Do NOT skip meals. Be mindful of your portion sizes. Most importantly, deprivation does not work.
