By Louis Jeffries
Eat Healthy.
A Healthy diet is the secret to weight loss success. To many people the term "Vegetarian" implies someone who eats healthy. We envision all the types of far out, unheard of and little known healthy food that the normal person just would not eat. For a few vegetarians this is true. For most they eat like everyone else just avoiding meat. Meat alone does not cause us to gain weight unless we over do it. In fact the number one culprit in weight gain is sugar. Sugar as plain table sugar and sugar in all of its artificial forms are the number one cause of weight gain. Sugar is a simple carbohydrate that equals energy or just added weight. Because sugar is the number one food additive and the processed foods and flours are either simple sugar or converted to simple sugar once we eat it, we gain weight because of the excess of sugar in our systems. To lose weight we must first reduce these simple sugars. If possible we should completely avoid them and eat a healthy diet of fruit and vegetables, whole grains, seeds, nuts and beans. This Healthy diet is the key to weight loss.
Eat Vegetables.
This may seem obvious but it is important that we eat at least 4-5 servings of vegetables a day. Many vegetarians give up meat yet they eat everything but vegetables as their main source of nutrition. Vegetables should be number one, hence the name vegetarian. Fruit and vegetables should provide 60% to 70% of our caloric consumption. Since fruit is mainly for energy they contain more natural sugar than vegetables and that could cause weight gain or in the very least hinder our weight loss progress. We need fruit. We need vegetables and we need more vegetables.
Eat Fruit.
3-4 servings of fruit a day is recommended by the USDA and any less and we are depriving ourselves of needed nutrition and energy. If we eat too much more fruit we will begin to gain weight as many fruits are full of natural sugar. Too much sugar, whether natural or not, causes weight gain.
Eat Whole Grains.
Avoid processed foods. Avoid the unnatural processed cereal, rice, bread and pasta. Instead choose whole grain cereals, breads, rice and pasta. Processed foods process out the nutrition and add starch, sugar and preservatives. These are all equal a formula for weight gain and poor health. Whole grains like rice, wheat, oats barley etc. provide the natural nutrition God intended.
Eat Seeds, Nuts and Beans.
Seeds, nuts and beans all provide protein and other nutrition we miss when we do not eat meat. Really, seeds, nuts and beans provide more nutrition with less fat than meat. These help us get the nutrition we need avoiding the excess fat.
Drink Plenty of Water.
Not only is water good for all the organs in our body but water helps us to lose weight. A body that functions properly needs 8 to 10 glasses of water daily. Water helps increase our metabolism. Increased metabolism burns more calories. Water also helps our digestive system. Therefore we eliminate the toxic waste that can build up in our system. When you do not drink enough water you body retains water and thereby increasing your weight. Our bodies are two thirds water, even down to the cellular level. As such water is the key to all of our bodily functions. Yet many diets do little more than to reduce water weight which the body will begin to retain for survival mode and thus the weight will return.
Regular Exercise.
Regardless of what you eat if you do not exercise regularly losing weight is difficult. One way we lose weight by burning more calories than we consume. Exercise helps us to burn calories. When we give up meat we generally consume fewer calories if we eat properly. Like water if we do not have enough physical activity the body will retain fat. Our bodies react to our sedentary state and stores fat for the time that is needed. That time is when you exercise. Since we are programmed either to burn fat or store fat, regular exercise is the only way to ensure we are not in the "store fat mode".
Rest, Fresh Air and Sunlight.
Though mostly important for optimal health we need to rejuvenate our bodies to be most effective at weight loss. That is why sleep, fresh air and sunlight are so important to your weight loss program.
Louis Jeffries is an accomplished healthy diet, fitness and weight loss professional. Louis publishes to encourage people to eat healthy, get and stay fit, and lose weight that we may have all of the great things God intended when he created us. For more free tips and advice go to his site at http://healthyweightloss4babyboomers.com Subscribe to Louis' Site and Get a Free Copy of His eBook "Healthy Weight Loss Program" upon publication
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