Let’s talk DIET!!!!

This word is very common these days. In nutrition, diet is the summation of food consumed by a person. A healthy diet and good health can progress and maintain your life positively. There are many types of diets available one can choose any diet to promote weight loss or weight gain. When you change dietary intake, the energy balance also changes, leading to an increase or decrease in the amount of fat stored by the body. The terms “healthy diet” and “diet for weight management” (dieting) are often related, as both promote healthy weight management. Now you must be thinking, is dieting a penalty for bad eating practices? Is it a conflict you fight till you reach your goal? We know that obesity and overweight are the fifth cause of death worldwide. Weight maintenance has more to do with genetics, behaviour, and environment. But majorly, diet is crucial in influencing the stability of body weight.

Why do I need to diet? Let’s see the reasons. Everyone may have different goals like-

• Fat loss
• Muscle gain
• Enhancing athletic performance
• Maintain health and agility in general
• Flexibility
• Strength gain

click to investigate

Once you know the reason and goals, you can design your diet accordingly. There are many types of diets one must have heard about, but what suits you best, you have to decide. Some popular diets are the Low Carb Diet, the Ketogenic Diet, the Paleo Diet, the Zone Diet and others. But it’s always important to remember that no two people are alike. The ‘one size fits all’ concept for diet preparation does not hold ground.

Designing a comprehensive diet plan:

Know your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) and your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE): This is the primary and most crucial factor. It forms the basis of any structured diet program. The BMR can be derived using skin callipers and calculation methods, as many apps can do that for you online. The most commonly accessible equipment is the Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis (BIA), which can be found at most gyms and healthcare centres. Once your BMR is known, your TDEE can be calculated based on how active you are (the app will do this for you as well)

Calorie intake is calculated based on your goal, like gaining lean muscle mass or losing weight. Once you know your BMR and TDEE, your your diet plan needs to include more calories than your daily expenditure in case of gaining muscle mass. If your goal is fat loss, then you need to consume fewer calories as compared to your daily expenditure.

Make a diet chart including all the required macro and micronutrients: The body must get the right proportions of carbohydrates, fats and proteins to support the basic metabolic processes and direct you to your goals. Research shows you need to have a minimum of 0.8 grams of protein per kg of lean body mass (fat-free mass) in your daily diet. This demand goes up if you are an athlete, unwell, pregnant, or an elderly individual. If you are an endurance athlete or participate actively in sports, your carbohydrate intake needs to be higher than if you are more of a resistance training athlete. Fats are essential for our hormones as well as they are required to transport fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, & K) to the cells. Micronutrients are the combination of vitamins and minerals that have a significant role in the body’s functioning. Fibre is another essential part of our diet and promotes gut health.

Get the nutrient timing right:

The right timing of nutrient intake is of great importance in optimizing nutrient potential. For example, taking carbs around a session of workout is advantageous in providing energy for the workout session. A low-carb breakfast can have positive effects on maintaining our blood sugar levels throughout the day. Time and mood significantly impact our food intake.

Hydration! Yes, that’s too important. Our body weight is defined dramatically by water. It ranges from 75% in infants to 55% in the elderly.
A diet should not be a nightmare; rather, it should be a lifestyle change that you enjoy. Healthy food should be given top priority; high fibre diets (greens and beans) are beneficial when cutting fat, as they have a greater satiety quotient. If you are gaining and are on a high surplus, you may find it hard to complete your daily dietary requirements. In this case, low-satiety foods are the saviour like Rice, nuts, and even protein powders.

Preparation and execution of diet –

You may have the best diet program, but it is likely to fail if you do not plan its execution and prepare accordingly. Check on what is locally and readily available. Plan and budget your diet program. See how much time you can set aside to execute the diet program. It is helpful to allocate your daily portions over weekends, so you don’t spend much time on working days. I have seen people excited for a few days, but later they find time crises to manage if you have family kids around. So important is well-advanced planning. If your occupation requires you to travel frequently, plan in advance. This can be done by looking up the menu of the place you are staying and eating mindfully. It is also helpful if you pack your meal for the journey; I always do so and find it more convenient.

This is a path to better you, to a better healthy world. The only key is consistency; the most successful diet strategy is sustainability. So choose wisely. Your health, your choice! The happier you are with what you eat, the more likely, you will not divert from your diet! Eat Healthily!

References:

Carels RA, Konrad K, Young KM, Darby LA, Coit C, Clayton AM, et al. Taking control of your personal eating and exercise environment: A weight maintenance program. Eat Behav. 2008; 9:228–37.
Healthy Eating –How do you get started on healthy eating?Webmd.com. 2009-10-12. Retrieved 2011-12-11
Lucy (2010-07-20) “Validity of claims made in weight management research: a narrative review of dietetic articles” Nutrition Journal. 9 (1): 30. doi:10.1186/1475-2891-9-30. ISSN 1475-2891

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