Diet, diet, diet, we have all heard those words before. But what does it mean to you exactly? Maybe it’s something that has not been employed into your life or maybe it’s something that you wish you could throw out of your life. Diets are part of many people’s lives but what we should consider is that they can sometimes be misleading when we are trying to lose weight and be healthy. Let’s take a deeper look as to what I mean by this.

For example, a friend recently pointed something out to me after I was boasting about this diet I had tried. I was going on and on about how this diet had worked for me and it was the best I had ever felt and so on. He immediately pointed out the fact that, well, maybe it wasn’t necessarily “this diet” that allowed me to lose weight. Maybe it was just the fact that in result to starting this diet, I had stopped eating so many sweets and wasn’t eating late at night. That was not necessarily mentioned anywhere in this diet structure; but that fact alone would more than likely help not only myself but several others lose weight as well.

So how can I boast about this diet working for me when it could have just been me making some different decisions about my eating habits? It clearly may not have been the diet working at all. Yes the diet could have helped me eat healthier, but who’s to say that I wouldn’t have lost that weight anyway by the couple of changes that I made on my own account and not by following this diet plan.

So what makes a diet a diet? There are so many diets out there right now including the Atkins diet, the Mediterranean diet, the HCG diet, and so on. Can we just come up with any sort of eating habit and coin it by saying; I lost weight, it’s sure to work for you. What I am suggesting is that you could make a couple of changes to your current eating habits and if it works for you, then call it the insert your name here Diet.

So the next time you go boasting about how this diet worked for you and want all these people to try it, take a real look at the situation. Maybe it wasn’t even the diet itself that helped you lose weight and feel great, maybe it was just you.

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With the right diabetic diet recipes , even if you have diabetes, it does not mean you cannot enjoy good food, it just means that there are a few limits. Being in control of your diet is imperative in reducing the effects of diabetes and can also help lower the chances of you contracting it. Sorting outdiabetic diet plan is one of the most important things you need to do if you suffer from diabetes.

Weight is generally a problem when you are a diabetic and the goal is to get that weight off and keep it off. Another important thing to remember is to eat a healthily from all four food groups and keeping to you diabetic diet.

Heart disease and strokes are two complications often associated with diabetes but the risk of these can be reduced if the sufferer sticks to a healthy diabetic diet. A diabetic diet is essentially a healthy, low-fat, balanced eating plan that helps the patient feel better and more energetic, and achieve some control over the symptoms like fatigue, thirst, blurred vision.

There is a diabetic food pyramid that shows how to eat healthily by consuming vegetables, non-fat dairy products, whole grains, fruit, low fat meat, beans, fish and poultry. If you are also subject to a low-carb diet then your diet may consist of certain vegetables like kidney beans, carrots and avocados in addition to meat, fish poultry, eggs and cheese. Saturated fats and cholesterol are a problem if you are a diabetic so you would need to cut down on foods like this and eat skinless poultry as well as fresh fruit and vegetables.

A diabetic diet consists of certain food groups but it also imperative that you weigh the foods so you intake the correct amount of calories. Also check the food labels when you shop because they contain useful information and daily intake amounts which are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Breakfast for example based a 2,000 calorie diabetic diet would consist of two slices of bread, alternatively rice cakes or even half a cup of pasta, sugar free yoghurt or cup of skimmed milk, your choice of egg and a serving of fruit. For those diabetics on a 1,800 calorie plan your breakfast might contain the following; a couple of slices of bread with a cup of skimmed milk, a tablespoon of cheese and a serving of some fresh fruit like apple, banana orange.

With your balanced diabetic diet you would be able to have an afternoon snack which could be some fruit and a couple of crackers washed down with a half cup of tea or coffee but only with artificial sweeteners. An alternative to this would be a cup of milk or yogurt in place of the tea. Diabetic diets can be just as interesting as a normal diet but you just have to know what you are allowed to eat and vary your menus to keep them interesting.

The following seven tips may seem a bit silly, but it is important to keep in mind that they are not silly at all and will actually work wonders to help you lose weight. Keep a positive and open mind when considering each one and try to understand how they can help you reach your weight loss goals. After all, it is much better to feel silly while losing weight than it is to feel silly being overweight.



1 – Shake it all Around



Every single move you make requires energy to be performed and therefore requires calories to be burned. Consider this the next time you are lounging around motionless on the sofa and start moving whatever you can think to move without having to get up. It is quite easy to stay relaxed and still burn calories. You can bounce your legs up and down, shake your feet from side to side, clench your teeth and release them over and over to work your jaw, squeeze a rubber ball, or even twiddle your thumbs! Just keep moving!



2 – Don’t Eat So Fast



You have to understand that it takes the brain several minutes to realize that your stomach is full and react accordingly. You may not feel full at all until you’ve already overstuffed yourself. Eating too fast not only causes you to overeat and gain weight but it also stretches the stomach and allows you to overeat even more the next time! Slow down, chew your food thoroughly, and enjoy your meals!



3 – Get the Least Out of Your Meals



When selecting a meal, try to find foods that contain fewer calories in relation to their actual weight. The caloric density of your food refers to how many calories are contained in every bite. Foods with a high caloric density will have a lot of calories yet do very little to satisfy your hunger. On the other hand, you could consume foods with a low caloric density that will fill you up faster while not loading you down with so many calories that you’ll have to burn later to make way for fat loss.



The first thing that should come to mind when thinking of foods with a low caloric density is lettuce, broth, and other veggies and salad snacks. The most important one, however, is water. Water has no caloric density whatsoever but can work wonders for giving you that full feeling you desire at every meal. The more water you drink the less room you have for high calorie foods! You should also consider foods that are high in fiber. Fibrous foods such as rice and other whole grains actually retain water and increase in volume, making you not only fuller but satisfied for much longer. However, not all fibrous foods are low calorie, so keep a count on those calories!



4 – Keep a Diary



Keeping a diary where you can write down everything you’ve consumed and the calories that came with it is a very helpful way to not only keep up with what you’ve eaten but get a better idea of what your daily diet actually consists of. You may notice patterns in your food diary where you’ve overeaten and be able to relate them to situation where you did not eat enough when you should have or properly space out your meals. It is a great way to notice your own habits, so you can take the steps necessary to change them. Don’t worry, just like a real diary, no one has to see what you’ve written down!



5 – Kick the Salt and Butter Habit



Introduce some new flavours to your meals and stop depending on butter and salt to make your food taste good. Not only are there hundreds of wonderful tasting herbs and spices out there many of them are very beneficial to your health. You may find some new exotic flavours that you’ve never tasted before in the process!



6 – Spice things Up a Bit



Stop eating the same old foods and add a little variety into your diet. Adding a new food to your diet every now and then is a great way to get nutrients that you may have been neglecting otherwise. Try adding a new fruit or veggie to your shopping cart every time you go to the grocery store. You can even try different grains or spices. Mix it up and make it fun!



7 – Don’t Supersize it!



Pay attention to portion sizes according to the eating plan you choose. Use a normal size plate - don't supersize it! One plan suggests that ¼ of the plate should contain protein and the rest should be fruits and vegetables. You can weigh your food, at least until you become attuned to proper portion sizes or use some of the simple guidelines like "3 oz. of protein is about the size of your palm or a deck of playing cards" or "one serving of rice is the size of a tennis ball".

Portion control is a key element in any diet intended to help you lose weight. It is bad enough when we give in and swing through the drive-thru at our local burger joint, but it’s even worse when we choose to supersize an already super fattening meal. In fact, you should consider downsizing! Get the small instead of the medium. It may not seem like enough to fill you up, but that’s only because you’ve become accustomed to the idea that the suggested portion is right for you. It’s not! Eating less and weighing less go hand in hand.


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