According to data, approximately 80% of dieters are not successful at maintaining weight loss.
Trying to find the right diet can be overwhelming. You want to make sure you pick the right one for you, but there are so many options!
It’s hard enough to stick with a diet when you’re feeling motivated and have all the information you need.
But what if you don’t know where to start? Don’t worry. Keep reading to learn the 7 factors to consider before starting a diet plan.
1. Research The Diet
Just because a diet is popular doesn’t mean that it is the right choice for you. You should always do your research before choosing a diet. That means looking at both the pros and cons of any diet.
You may find that an unknown diet is absolutely perfect for you, and that’s why even if someone recommends a diet to you, make sure it fits with your morals and eating habits.
Each person is unique in terms of their food preferences as well as things like allergies or sensitivities they may have to certain foods.
For a diet to be healthy, it has to factor these differences into the equation so that each person’s needs are met, not just those of the masses.
Just because one person wanted to lose weight by cutting out carbs and didn’t suffer stomach pains doesn’t mean you will experience the same benefits without gut distress!
It may seem obvious but people often overlook this first point. Before you choose a diet, make sure you look up its ratings on popular review sites.
Research the Diet’s Calories Per Day
You should think about how many calories you will eat each day if you follow the diet. This is not always easy to figure out.
Some diets do not list how many calories are in their food. If this is the case for the diet you are considering, contact someone who has followed it and ask them how many calories they ate each day.
Research the Diet’s Nutritional Makeup
Not all calories are the same, and some diets include foods that have very few nutrients. If you eat these foods regularly, you might gain weight.
That’s why it is important to know which nutrients will be in the food you choose to eat every day. For example, it is easy to say no to french fries, but harder to stop eating foods like carbs or dairy.
If you’re having difficulty finding information on the types of foods allowed/not allowed on the diet, contact someone who has followed it and ask them.
2. Consider Your Day-to-Day Life
Some diets might promise that you will feel great if you follow them. But it is not always healthy to make big changes in your life.
If the diet means eating out all the time or traveling for work, you are more likely to not stick to the diet and gain back any weight you lose.
Think about your current situation and determine whether or not a restrictive diet is right for your life before giving up minutes after starting it because it became too hard to continue.
If losing weight requires too much effort, you may be better off finding a diet that doesn’t call for cutting out entire food groups or eating meals at certain times of the day.
3. Mthe ake Sure It’ll Fit Into Your Lifestyle
Just because someone lost ten pounds in two weeks doesn’t mean that it’s possible for everyone who tries the same diet to achieve the same result. So keep this in mind when choosing a plan to follow.
While it’s important to have goals if you’re looking for fast weight loss, this isn’t the best way to do it and you’ll probably end up gaining back all of the weight you lost (and then some).
4. Ask Yourself If You Can Stick To It
Creating a new lifestyle is hard and losing weight should be no exception. Hunger pangs and cravings will set in at some point during any diet but they can be combated if you know how.
Prepare yourself mentally by thinking about your diet in advance and what you’ll need to do when hunger strikes (e.g., eat fruit or vegetables) before beginning a restrictive eating plan.
Ensure that there are no foods in your household that you can easily overeat in front of the TV when stress sets in, for example.
5. Make Sure You’re Not Cutting Out Entire Food Groups
When you’re only eating 500 calories per day, it’s easy to eat too many carbs or fats without realizing it. Nuts are a good source of healthful fat while some juices, bread, and cereal are rich in carbs.
Some diets start with one extreme (eating very few carbs) like Keto. Learn about keto here. These diets then shift to another (eating very few healthy fats), but both types of food are important for your body.
So make sure you understand how much of each group is necessary daily before starting any sort of restricted diet.
6. Determine If You’re the Right Candidate
If you’ve been diagnosed with a health condition, it’s important to think about your motivation for starting a diet before beginning one. Restrictive diets come with a myriad of risks and health concerns.
That’s why it’s important to be sure that weight loss is what you want or if there are other ways to achieve this goal without going on an extreme eating plan.
7. Consider Ongoing Weight Loss
In cases where advanced medical care isn’t necessary but regular checkups are. Restrictive diets can put added stress on the body by reducing nutrient intake from healthy sources.
While losing weight quickly sounds appealing at first, it’s not healthy in the long term and may lead to health problems that don’t exist now. If you’re not sure, talk to your doctor before beginning a restrictive plan.
Need Help Starting a Diet?
It can be tough to choose a diet when there are so many diet options out there But with the right information, it’s definitely doable.
With that said, we really hope this post has helped you in starting a diet that works for you and your eating habits!
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