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Lindsay Lohan Extreme Dieting Why Soooooo Thin???

There are thousands of different diets all over the internet and some of them are so confused with others that no wonder why you can get so lost and eventually end up in total despair and frustration.

Not to talk about what can happen if you decide to follow some diet and instead of losing weight, you get the opposite result – gain weight. That’s reality – some diets may work for you, others can end like a complete disaster for you.

There is no dieter who wants to achieve the negative effect of dieting. But the truth is that if you don’t know what exactly you are doing, you are most likely to fail your diet and give up in the end. Well, here’s why we are here to help you make the right choice for a diet plan.

First steps in dieting

The very first thing any diet should do for you is to prevent you from further weight gain. Next is to set your future weight loss goals. Set realistic goals! Do small steps to reach your goals and to achieve your target weight.

Don’t expect fast results – anything you do in a rush for rapid results may end uglier that you thought (that means lose weight gradually to succeed).

You should remember – there is no easy and fast way to lose weight and you should deal with that. Dieting is hard, takes time, often separates you from your family, as far as it comes to counting the calories, the carbohydrates and fats in your meals.

Can’t resist the temptations?

It gets even worse if you can’t resist the sweet and delicious temptations all around you after the first or the second week on your diet. Probably while you’ve been doing the shopping for your diet you happen to pass by the sweet, delicious and so unhealthy foods, that make you crave for them like never before.

The solutions

I know it’s hard from my personal experience, but there is a solution, and that is why I want to share it with you here in this article:

Believe it or not I lost weight not by following some strict don’t-eat-this-don’t-eat-that diet, but by eating only delicious, healthy and great looking meals with less calories and never really felt starving to death.

It’s simple not to get hungry if you eat about 5 times a day very delicious meals and lose weight safely at the same time. The only problem here is that you either have to prepare those delicious meals yourself, or you can order them from a specialized diet food delivery service that will cook them for you.

Which one is better?

In the first case when you prepare your meals yourself, you spend a lot of time shopping and cooking. What’s more you may forget some of the products or even get bored with all that cooking healthy meals and eating them afterwards. I myself find the shopping and cooking a little bit exhausting, not to mention that I may lose my appetite while I am doing all this stuff. If in any part of your diet anything like that happens, then don’t expect any positive results. You won’t save money, you will lose time.

However, if you choose a Diet Food Delivery Service to supply you with healthy and delicious foods and meals at the beginning of every week – well, that’s another story. All you need to do is heat the meals in the microwave and enjoy their great taste by following the diet plan, cause every service of that kind has a diet plan you should stick to.

Well, of course these services are not cheap, but if you are really serious of getting rid of all extra pounds, it’ll nice to think of this diet food delivery service thing as for a small investment for your good health and happier life. You do want to prevent you from getting high blood pressure, heart attack or else?

Here are the Diet Food Delivery Services We Recommend:

Diet To Go Diet Food

Diet To Your Door / BISTRO MD

And the Protein Diet Plans and Meal Replacements that work and we also very heartily recommend:

Medifast Diet and the 5 & 1 Plan

Diet Direct and the WonderSlim Starter Kits

Don’t be surprised that we also recommend those two diet plans. We are doing this cause they are good and can help you in a way you might not imagine.

With these types of diets you take more proteins, lower carbohydrates and absolute no fat. So you lose weight successfully and keep it off for good.

While on the protein diet you replace one or more meals with fat free shakes, puddings, soups and bars, which is why they are called meal replacements.

Protein diet – when should you start it?

When you are on a low budget, cause these types of diet are cheaper than diet food delivery services.

Another reason could be if you really really like protein diet shakes, bars and puddings, then you will definitely enjoy the meal replacement diet plan very much.

In conclusion

No matter what type of diet you choose, you must be serious about it and your weight loss. Stay focused on your goals! Use wisely the diet plan, information, recipes and motivation articles from the diet service or diet plan you choose.

Dr.Robert Atkins addressed his own weight condition from a diet he read in the Journal of the American Medical Association.  Realizing the benefits of the diet he  followed Atkins later popularized the idea as The Atkins Diet in a series of books, starting with Dr. Atkins’ Diet Revolution in 1972. The Atkins Diet or just ‘Atkins’ is a well known low carbohydrate diet.

How Atkins Diet Works

The Atkins Diet states we can change our metabolism and lose weight easily simply by eating foods high in protein and fat and limiting foods high in carbohydrate. Consuming a high level of carbohydrates causes overproduction of insulin, leading to increased hunger and weight gain. The diet encourages the consumption of foods rich in protein.

The Four Stages of the Atkins Diet

Induction

The Induction phase is the first, and most restrictive, phase of the Atkins Nutritional Approach. It is intended to cause the body to quickly enter a state of ketosis. Carbohydrate intake is limited to 20 net grams per day.

Ongoing Weight Loss

The Ongoing Weight Loss (OWL) phase of Atkins consists of an increase in carbohydrate intake, but remaining at levels where weight loss occurs. The target daily carbohydrate intake increases each week by 5 net grams.

Pre-Maintenance

Carbohydrate intake is increased again this time by 10 net carbs a week from the ladder groupings, and the key goal in this phase is to find the “Critical Carbohydrate Level for Maintenance”, this is the maximum number of carbohydrates you can eat each day without gaining weight.

Lifetime Maintenance

This phase is intended to carry on the habits acquired in the previous phases, and avoid the common end-of-diet mindset that can return people to their previous habits and previous weight. Whole, unprocessed food choices are emphasized, with the option to drop back to an earlier phase if you begin to gain weight.

Each stage becomes progressively less restrictive and gradually increases carbohydrates allowed.

What Food is Allowed in Atkins Diet

The allowed foods include a liberal amount of all meats, fish, shellfish, fowl, and eggs; up to 4 ounces (113 g) of soft or semi-soft cheese; salad vegetables; other low carbohydrate vegetables; and butter and vegetable oils.

Sample Menu Plan from the Atkins Diet

Breakfast:

Italian sausage frittata

Cup of Herbal Tea

Lunch

Tuna salad with mixed leafy greens topped with bacon bits

Dinner:

Bacon cheeseburger with broccoli and cauliflower

Fresh fruit kebobs

Snacks:

High-protein, low-sugar snack bar

What Food is Not Allowed in Atkins Diet

No bread, alcohol, or carbonated beverages, not even diet soda. Beverages are limited to water, and consumption of caffeine is not allowed. It May be difficult to eliminate breads and cereals, especially in families with children who love these types of foods.

Misconceptions about the Atkins Diet

Many people incorrectly believe that the Atkins Diet promotes eating unlimited amounts of fatty meats and cheeses. This is a key point of clarification that Dr. Atkins addressed in the more recent revisions of his book. Although the Atkins Diet does not impose limits on certain foods, or caloric restriction in general, Dr. Atkins points out in his book that this plan is “not a license to gorge.

Another common misconception arises from confusion between the Induction Phase and rest of the diet. The first two weeks of the Atkins Diet are strict, with only 20g of carbohydrates permitted per day. Atkins states that a dieter can safely stay at the Induction Phase for several months if the person has a lot of weight to lose. Once the weight-loss goal is reached, carbohydrate levels are raised gradually, though still significantly below USDA norms, and still within or slightly above the definition of ketosis.

Known Health Benefits of the Atkins Diet

There are over 50 studies that highlight the positive weight loss results and other health benefits associated with following the Atkins Diet. These benefits include weight loss, improvement in risk factors for heart disease, hypertension and diabetes, inflammation, benefits in treating epilepsy and decreasing obesity in children and adolescents.

Study out of University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center and Washington University School of Medicine randomly assigned participants to a low-carbohydrate, high-protein, high-fat diet or a low-calorie, high-carbohydrate, low-fat diet.  The low-carbohydrate diet produced a greater weight loss and was associated with a greater improvement in some risk factors for coronary heart disease.

Study out of Stanford University Medical School compared four weight-loss diets representing a spectrum of low to high carbohydrate intake for effects on weight loss and related metabolic variables. Participants assigned to follow the Atkins diet, which had the lowest carbohydrate intake, lost more than twice the weight and experienced favorable overall metabolic effects at 12 months than those assigned to follow the Zone, Ornish, or LEARN diets.

Additional Suggested Health Benefits of the Atkins Diet

Many people like being able to eat as much protein and fat as they wish, because these foods are often restricted in more traditional diet plans.

For people who have tried a low-fat, high-carbohydrate weight loss plan without success, increasing protein in their diet often results in decreased food cravings and more rapid weight loss.

The diet is relatively easy to follow; there are no complicated meal plans.

Potential Risks of the Atkins Diet

Eating unlimited amounts of fat, especially saturated fat found in meat products, can lead to increased risk of heart disease. Extensive research on healthy populations tells us to eat more fruits,vegetables and whole grains. Restricting these foods in the name of weight loss may lead to long-term health problems.

Additionally any diet that limits carbohydrate causes the body to rely on fat or muscle for energy. When our body breaks down stored fat to supply energy, a byproduct called ketones is formed. Ketones suppress appetite, but they also cause fatigue, nausea, and a potentially dangerous fluid loss. Anyone with diabetes, heart, or kidney problems should check with their physician before following a low-carb diet.

Unpleasant side effects include constipation (caused by the low-fiber diet) and bad breath.

Impact of the Atkins Diet on Diet Culture

Since the Atkins Diet made headlines n the late ’90s, there has been an explosion of low carbohydrate versions of traditionally high carbohydrate products, such as bread, pasta and even candy. Thiewed as the “grand daddy” and cause of the explosion of low carrb diets popularity in the nineties to early 2000.

What the Experts are Saying about the  Atkins Diet

Atkins Diet supporters claim it offers faster weight loss and a relatively user-friendly eating plan. Sceptics, including dietitians and nutritionists, maintain that Atkins Diet weight loss is both short-term and possibly a health risk, even though the weight loss itself may have the beneficial effect of lowering cholesterol.

Dr. Foster, one of the researchers involved in studying the Atkins Diet, acknowledged the possible health dangers of the Atkins diet and stated a longer five-year study was planned:

“This larger study of 360 participants will help us more fully assess the benefits and risks of low-carbohydrate diets on bone mass, kidney function, arterial function and exercise tolerance,” he said. “I’m very, very concerned that people will get the message from these studies that the Atkins diet is safe and effective, but I don’t believe we know that yet.”

Brigid McKevith, a nutrition scientist at the British Nutrition Foundation (BNF), said:

“We welcome the fact that the Atkins diet is being studied scientifically and that randomised controlled studies have been carried out, because it’s very popular with the public. [however] There are several potential problems with the Atkins diet. These include long term bone health, as with a very high protein intake the excretions of calcium increase, so there could be implications for the health of bones,” she explained.

“There could be difficulties for people who have an underlying problem with their kidneys or liver, because it would be putting more strain on those organs, and problems in terms of heart disease too, as it’s a diet very low in fruits and vegetables. Also, it’s very low in fiber, so in terms of digestive health, it’s not in keeping with our fibre and complex carbohydrate recommendations.”

Belinda Linden, head of medical information at the British Heart Foundation, holds similar views.

“The new studies do not indicate a dramatic weight loss for excessively obese people,” she said. “Previous studies have shown that weight loss from the Atkins Diet may involve muscle loss rather than body fat. Another potential problem is that it is so far unclear from studies whether weight loss is sustained over a longer period than six months. One of the studies shows no significant difference at 12 months.” She added that: “With minimal fruit and vegetables included in the diet, it holds serious implications for coronary heart disease and cancer. Diets need to be varied to protect against these conditions – and this one isn’t. This diet requires further long term and larger studies before its effectiveness can be confirmed.”

Volumetrics author Barbara Rolls, PhD, who holds the Guthrie Chair in Nutrition at Penn State University, offers a very simple explanation as to why people lose weight on Atkins diet:

“They’re cutting calories, even if they don’t realize it. No one has shown, in any studies, that anything magical is going on with Atkins other than calorie restriction. The diet is very prescriptive, very restrictive, and limits half of the foods we normally eat. In the end it’s not fat, it’s not protein, it’s not carbs – it’s calories. You can lose weight on anything that helps you to eat less, but that doesn’t mean it’s good for you.”

Neal Barnard, MD, president of the Physicians Commission for Responsible Medicine, a non-profit research group based in Washington, says:

“Low-carb diets have been linked to increased frequency of colon cancer, formation of kidney stones, kidney disease, and even osteoporosis… The reason for the health worries is in large part due to red meat. People who eat meat every day have three times greater risk of developing colon cancer. And then there is the problem of the kidneys. They aren’t designed to work on an oil slick of fat.”

Susan Barr, registered dietitian in New York City, says:

“There have been reports in the medical literature that say that this low-carb diet may not be as bad as we thought. That makes people interested again in this diet, but until there is more research on what stresses the diet places on the body, there is no way to know what it might be doing besides providing short-term weight loss.”

The Bottom Line

The Atkins Diet is an optimally balanced lifetime eating plan with the flexibility to meet each individual’s unique physical condition addressing factors such as age, gender, level of physical activity, and metabolic rate.

This diet may seem like the tastiest way to lose weight, but don’t be misled by claims of effortless weight loss and unlimited amounts of food. Nothing is that simple!

The vast majority of people start dieting in order to lose weight. Losing weight can be accomplished in a number of ways. A diet is simply a specific method for accomplishing that task.

When one decides that they need to lose weight, the first thing that must be considered is the reason for wanting to lose weight. Is the weight loss going to be directed at a way to gain better health or is it more of a vanity reason? The reason for dieting is as important as the method used to lose the weight.

If attaining a more healthy lifestyle and striving for better health is the reason, it should not be of any concern how long the dieting takes to achieve the weight loss goal, if in fact there is a goal. If good health is the main objective, length of time should not be an issue because the diet should simply be a part of a life-style change in which the dieting change would be a long-term part of the life-style anyway.

If, on the other hand, vanity is the reason and the dieting person is hell bent on losing a significant amount of weight in a short period of time in order to fit into an object of clothing or simply to look great at the class reunion in a month, the method chosen for dieting will be completely different and, most likely, quite unhealthy.

Long term lifestyle type diets are usually of the type that occur in small increments of weight loss and continue as exercise is slowly increased and more healthy food, in smaller portions is consumed. These are usually quite simple diets that don’t cause a significant amount of suffering as long as the dieting person is committed to the long-term goals.

The vanity type diet is usually a quick but very self-denying diet in which the dieting person eats very little or eats foods that do not tempt the pallet as far as taste or attractiveness go. Often, very large amounts of water are incorporated into these diets and most people do not drink enough water to begin with. When they are confronted with the need to increase their water intake significantly, they hesitate or they are not very compliant. Water, when one is not thirsty, simply does not taste very good.

The vanity diet also usually requires a substantial increase in activity in the form of exercise and most people have a strong aversion to that form of activity.

There are also diets that are not in either the lifestyle change nor the vanity dieting lists but are really a forced lifestyle change that is completely necessary for the dieting person to continue to live. Once such diet is the diabetic diet. If one ignores their diabetes and continues to eat large amounts of carbohydrates, as most Americans do, they will eventually suffer serious health deterioration. So, the necessary-for-life diets are not the ones we are really concerned with in this article.

There are a number of different diets available for each of the non-necessity diets. The basic lifestyle change diet has already been described though some of the latter day fad diets are also appropriate for long-term dieting if the person doing the dieting is indeed dedicated to the lifestyle change. Some specific fad diets that would work for this person are the Atkins or low-carb diet, The Zone diet or the South Beach diet.

The extreme vanity diet person can also use the low carb diet for fast weight loss or they can try starvation or if they really want to lose weight fast and suffer a bit more but at least retain some type of decent health, they can attempt the Lemonade Diet.

The lemonade diet is highly effective but is more a fast than a diet and a special mixture of water, cayenne pepper, lemon juice and syrup are required. One must be highly dedicated to losing weight for this diet to work as no food is allowed for a period of at least ten days and the Lemonade dieter will feel worse before they feel like a million dollars. The diet is extremely effective for losing ten pounds or more in ten days though. The added benefit of this diet is that it does a thorough job of cleaning the colon.

Each one of the above mentioned diets should be highly suspect and not just accepted for it’s reputation or the current fad. One who is considering dieting should, at the very least, buy the book that is written about the diet in order to learn how the diet works with the body and effects the different body systems. Each of the authors has a lot of information included in their book about these concerns.

The main point of this article is to point out to anyone who is considering dieting that they should be very careful and choose a diet that meets their goals and health concerns. Don’t blindly go into any diet without knowing how it’s supposed to effect you, what you’re supposed to eat while on the diet, how much weight you are expected to lose in a specific period of time and what are the benefits and health concerns that attach to that diet.

In fact, it is a very good idea to discuss any diet plans with your health care professional prior to starting or even considering one of the above diets.