If you’ve made the decision that you’re going to put in some time and effort to work on getting down to your ‘dream’ body weight goal, the first step that you need to be considering is what type of diet program you’re going to utilize.
Let’s take a look at the main things that you need to be considering when selecting a diet plan that’s right for you.
Do You Prefer Strict Diets For Rapid Weight Loss Or Moderate Diets For Slower Weight Loss?
The very first thing that you need to take into account is whether you want to go on a very strict diet that will promise a fast rate of fat loss or whether you want a more moderate diet that will produce slow and steady weight loss results.
Do You Battle Hunger?
Second, you also need to ask yourself whether hunger is often an issue for you. If you’re someone who faces hunger on a daily basis, a lower carb diet is likely the way to go. These diets by nature tend to keep hunger levels much lower, so if this helps you stick to the game plan, you’re going to see far superior results.
Hunger is something that does often throw many dieters off course, so something that you must not be overlooking.
How Flexible Do You Want Your Diet To Be?
Also stop and consider how much flexibility you need. Are you going to want to eat different foods each and every day and have the option of eating out frequently (within reason) or do you want a meal by meal plan that’s all laid out for you?
Different diets will have different set-ups so it’s vital that you think about which set-up you prefer. If you’re someone who needs flexibility, don’t put yourself on a very rigid plan. This is just asking to fail.
What’s Your Activity Level?
Finally, the last thing that you need to consider is what your activity level is like. If you’re someone who is quite active throughout the day, you’re going to need more calories than someone who isn’t.
High levels of activity and low calorie diets don’t mix so well, so you need to be realistic with your energy needs.
So there you have the main things to think about as you get your diet set-up and figured out. By asking yourself these key questions, you can increase the chances that you do see successful results on your fat loss diet plan.
If you’ve been on a weight loss diet for quite some time and have finally had the results that you’re looking for, now it’s time to move into a period of weight maintenance, where you will do everything that you can to ensure that you maintain your body weight.
Let’s give you a few quick pointers on how to go from a weight loss diet to a maintenance diet so that you can avoid this.
Don’t Increase Calories And Decrease Activity At The Same Time
The very first thing that you need to take note of is that you should never both increase your daily calorie intake as well as reduce your physical activity at the same time.
Some people make the mistake of doing this and all it’s going to do is set you up for the risk of fat gain. Decide which you want to do first. Either add more calories to your diet plan or reduce back on how much exercise you’re doing.
Once you see the results you get from making one adjustment, then you can adjust things on the other end of the spectrum.
Bring Your Carbs Up To At Least 100 Grams
The next thing that you should note is that you must be consuming at least 100 grams of carbs per day. If you were not doing this on your fat loss diet plan, now’s the time to bring the carbs up so you are. This is important in order to up-regulate the thyroid gland and make sure that your metabolism is running as efficiently as possible.
Determine Your Strategy
Finally, the last thing that you must do is determine the weight maintenance strategy that you will use. Some people will prefer to eat a moderately lower calorie intake during the week and then give themselves more freedom to eat whatever they like on the weekends. For those who enjoy eating and socializing, this can work very well.
Others will prefer to add more food in to each day and keep the entire week rather stable. If you find that you often get hungry when dieting, this is likely going to be the option that you choose.
So there you have the most important things to keep in mind regarding moving from a weight loss diet to a weight maintenance one. As long as you can still maintain some degree of planning as you go about this diet, you shouldn’t find yourself facing weight re-gain.