A Mediterranean Diet - How to Lose Weight Safely
by: Roy Barker
Copyright 2005 Roy Barker
If you are looking for a way to lose fifteen pounds in two weeks, a high
protein diet, a low carb diet, a fruit diet, a no fat diet, a blood type
diet, a juice fast, a diet named after a place in Miami, a grapefruit
diet, a cactus diet, a coffee and cigarette diet, a diet that includes
sweets, a diet based on your body type, a diet based on an ancient
religion or a diet based on your hair color, then this article is NOT for
you.
Fad and crash diets, such as the ones described above are not only
unhealthy but they also cause rebound weight gain. Also most diets, even
though diet gurus write them, cause an initial weight loss but the
ultimate result is that you gain all of the weight back the minute you go
off the plan. If you don't gain it back within a couple of diets, you are
likely to gain it all back plus a bit more within a year.
Crash diets dehydrate you, low calorie diets put your body into
starvation mode so you plateau so you can't lose one more pound and high
protein diets stress your kidneys and clog your arteries.
So how does one lose weight?
There is only one answer to this question.
You need to expend more calories than you are taking in. Restricting
certain foods, eating so-called fat burning foods, or dehydrating
yourself with special pills or teas does not do it. It is simple math.
The only way is to eat a little less and exercise a little more. Here is
the equation below:
Eating Less + Exercising More = Weight Loss.
This is not a magical formula, it is just logic. It is also not a fast
way to lose weight. As I have mentioned before, this is not an article
about how to lose ten pounds in three days or 30 pounds in a month. It is
about safe, healthy weight loss.
In order to lose weight quickly and safely and without putting yourself
at risk for such health hazards as dehydration, kidney failure,
malnutrition, exhaustion, nervous dysfunction, tooth loss, dull hair,
wrinkles, cellulite, sudden heart failure or stroke and lose the weight
so that it stays off, you should lose no more than approximately two
pounds a week!
Although that might not sound like a large amount of weight to lose it
actually is! If you lose 2 pounds a week that means you can achieve a
weight loss of ten pounds a month! If you only have twenty pounds to lose
then your weight loss is not only quite rapid, but you have the extra
guarantee that it will stay off because you have followed a sensible
exercise plan that did not involve starving, exhausting or depriving
yourself. If you are willing to drop your impatience and desire for
immediate gratification and stick to an exercise plan and healthy eating
habits, then a Mediterranean Diet is for you. Remember being slim is only
good if you are able to enjoy it!
Do You Need to Lose Weight?
Fascination with Fat
If you want to lose weight, you first need to assess whether you need to
actually lose weight or are simply a fashion victim. Unfortunately this
society is fascinated with fat - who has it and who doesn't. As we are
persuaded by so many images in the media that persuade us to believe that
you can never be too thin, many of us are bad judges of our actual body
weight.
If you are under the age of eighteen and reading this book, the first
thing you need to do is consult with your parent about your plans to lose
weight. Have her make an appointment with a physician so that he can
indicate to you whether or not you are a candidate for weight loss.
If you are an adult, it is possible that you may not be overweight and
are just trying to be, as Bridget Jones put it in Bridget Jones Diary "a
stick insect with eyelashes." It is also very possible that you know you
need to lose weight but have no idea where to start.
If you are obese and you know it, then you have to check with a physician
first to see how your health is before you embark on any exercise program
or plan. The same is also true if you have any kind of medical condition
but especially a thyroid condition or heart condition. Some physicians
may not recommend a weight loss program for those who are over 40 as due
to genetics and hormonal changes some people naturally just round out or
gain weight in a way that simply cannot be changed. If your doctor tells
you your spreading hips are due to menopause or genetics, believe him! It
is not clever to fool with Mother Nature.
About the author:
Publisher & author: Roy Barker. Roy has an indepth and long established
background with the vitamins, minerals and health industry and has
researched and experimented with many diets over a thirty year period.
More related information detailing the Mediterranean Diet can be found at
http://www.safe-and-easy-weightloss.com
