For patients: Principles of proper nutrition for weight loss

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Many people tend to see flaws in themselves, especially the imperfection of their own body. We often begin to critically examine ourselves with the onset of spring, when the weather is conducive to changing our wardrobe to a lighter one. Then along with the question “what to wear?” The question arises “ how to lose weight
?”.

Both people who are clearly overweight and those who want to lose just a few kilos think about diets. It is a mistake to believe that only girls resort to dieting. Guys are no less sensitive to their shape, but they are mainly concerned about muscle mass. It is believed that the right diet can work wonders, the problem is that no one knows the secret of the “ideal diet”. It would be even more correct to say that this secret does not and cannot exist, because the diet must be individual

, and for some people, due to existing diseases, diets are contraindicated in principle. Unfortunately, not everyone thinks about this.

Before you go on a strict diet and begin to voluntarily torture yourself with restrictions, you should make sure whether your weight really exceeds the norm

. If not, then you first need to work on keeping it within normal limits, and secondly think about what you would like to improve. You usually don't need a diet to keep your weight within a healthy range. It is enough to provide yourself with a sufficient level of physical activity and take care of a properly balanced diet, but this is not the same as a diet.

What weight is considered “normal”?

Normal weight

is not an abstract concept that everyone can interpret in their own way.
There is a specific indicator “ body mass index (BMI)
” that will show whether you are really overweight, or whether it is more of a self-esteem complex. BMI is calculated simply: weight in kilograms must be divided by height in meters and the result squared. Overweight is indicated by a BMI above 25, and obesity by above 30.

Calculating body mass index allows you to objectively assess your own weight, and not follow stereotypes, taking cues from catwalk models. Often people worry about problems with excess weight, although they do not have such a problem. BMI avoids subjective assessment. In addition, the body mass index shows a tendency to be overweight or, conversely, to be thin.

. It is enough to compare the resulting indicator with the “norm”. If your indicator is close to the upper limit, it means that you have a tendency to be overweight, but this is still not a reason to go on a hunger strike.

It is important to understand several points related to BMI:

• BMI is not a constant value
  , so it needs to be calculated regularly to track dynamics. BMI is indirectly affected by calories. It seems that the easiest way to lose weight is to spend more than you consume. Alternatively, you can reduce the energy value of food while increasing physical activity, but this is a dead end.
• The desire to lower your BMI through sudden weight loss can lead to exhaustion of the body
  . Arranging “fasting days” is sometimes useful, but not for the sake of losing weight. Judge for yourself: if your new diet forces you to openly starve or increase your level of physical activity to an unrealistically high level, then your body will work for wear and tear. Perhaps you will achieve a short-term effect, but when you lose your temper or your body fails, all the lost kilograms will come back with interest,

Get support

Losing weight is not easy, and doing it alone is even harder. If you're trying to shed extra pounds and improve your overall health, remember that you don't have to go through this journey on your own. You can find like-minded people offline or online and join them.

The study showed that support, healthy competition and regular demonstration of results can help you stick to systematic exercise and take the process more seriously.

How should you eat to lose weight?

Many people mistakenly believe that there are two ways to lose weight.

:
either eat little
or
exercise a lot
, so some go on a diet, while others go to the gym.
In fact, there is only one way, and it includes adjusting the diet
and
selecting optimal physical activity
.

The diet should be balanced and varied; this can also be called a kind of diet, but not a temporary diet, but a permanent one. Compliance with the principles of proper nutrition should become part of your lifestyle; this is the only way you can not only achieve the desired results, but also maintain them.

The diet should be formed based on your physiological needs

, then you can stick to your chosen diet for a long time until conditions change. For example, diet may change with age, and in women, pregnancy may be a reason for changing it. To understand the principles of proper nutrition and assess how well your current diet corresponds to them, you need to answer several questions:

• Is your diet varied?
  A person's diet should regularly include fruits, vegetables, grains, low-fat dairy products, and protein-rich foods.
• Do you like what you eat?
  Psychology is also important, food should not only satisfy hunger, but also please, at least not disgust, otherwise you will experience discomfort during every meal.
• Can you refill your grocery cart at your local grocery store?
  You need to understand that your daily diet should be based on products that are easy to find and buy. You may be a fan of exotic foods, but if you can only replenish your supplies during foreign holidays, then this is definitely not a basic diet. Look for analogues “in the local market”.
• How many foods does your diet prohibit?
  A properly selected diet is not based on prohibitions. You should be able to eat almost anything, but in limited quantities.
• Can you afford your chosen diet?
  Unfortunately, our desires do not always correspond to our capabilities, so if you cannot afford elite products, or you do not have time to prepare complex but very healthy dishes, then you will have to abandon the compiled diet in favor of a more realistic one.
• Is your diet safe?
  As we have already noted, the diet should be balanced and contain sufficient quantities of necessary nutrients and calories, then you can lose weight not only effectively, but also safely, and subsequently maintain your weight within normal limits.
• Have you forgotten about physical activity?
  This, of course, does not directly relate to diet, but without physical activity, your aspirations to lose weight only by adjusting your diet will be doomed to failure. At least in the future.

If you were unable to give positive answers to even some of the questions asked, then the chosen type of nutrition is not suitable for you. It is worth seeking advice from a nutritionist or once again independently comparing desires and possibilities, taking into account our advice.

other methods

The main weight loss program for teenagers includes examination by specialists, proper nutrition and feasible training. This is enough for safe weight loss. There should not be any extreme or express methods in it.

Weight loss drugs that are approved for use from an early age are constantly causing controversy. Their list is small:

• Orlistat - prescribed for the treatment of obesity from 12 years of age;
• Metformin - only for weight loss caused by type II diabetes mellitus, from 10 years of age;
• Bomba is a Chinese dietary supplement for weight loss: according to the instructions, it is allowed from the age of 16, although its use at such an early age raises many doubts among experts.

Before giving your child one of these drugs, you need to understand that losing weight in adolescence with one wrong step can affect your entire future life. They have many side effects, which, when superimposed on the development of a growing organism, can take dangerous forms. Therefore, these drugs can only be taken as prescribed by a doctor. All other tablets are contraindicated.

Weight loss drugs approved for use by teenagers

Those weight loss methods that adults use are mostly prohibited for teenagers: body wraps, salon treatments, and shapewear will only harm the growing body.

In a number of countries, the problem of excess weight in adolescents is solved surgically. However, in practice it does not confirm its effectiveness at such an early age. Children have to deal with post-operative complications, and over time there are frequent relapses in weight gain. The high risk of death forces doctors and parents to abandon such radical methods of losing weight.

What should be the correct diet?

As we have already noted, the diet should be varied. The danger of mono-diets

lies precisely in their uniformity. A person receives only those vitamins and microelements that are contained in the product chosen as the main one for a mono-diet, and this is often not enough. A proper diet must include fruits and vegetables, preferably fresh ones, especially in season.

First of all, you need to control the amount of fat you consume, but you should not exclude them from your diet. Fats are also necessary in the body, as they take part in the construction of cell membranes, hormonal balance and other important processes. Saturated fats are the most dangerous

and
trans fats
. Most of them are found in sauces, as well as artificially low-fat products, such as yoghurt, milk or cottage cheese. Also suppliers of harmful fats are margarine, and along with it confectionery, sweets and fast food products.

If we talk about the method of cooking, then preference should be given to steamed

or
boiled
, but it is better to minimize the consumption of fried food, since animal fats are also often used for frying. If you still decide to cook a fried dish, then choose vegetable oils for frying.

Sugar has a strong influence on a person’s weight, and, accordingly, on the body mass index.

. If you take a close look at your daily diet, you will realize that you consume large amounts of natural sugar, which is found not only in fruits, but also in some vegetables. But if natural sugar is good for the body, then artificial sweeteners will quickly add extra pounds to you, so if you want “something sweet” in the evenings, then let it be an apple, not an apple pie.

Diet

The most difficult question about losing weight is how many times a day should you eat? The best option: five times - three main meals and two intermediate snacks in order to suppress the growing feeling of hunger. Snacks should be as light as possible - for example, eat an apple or a boiled egg.

If there is no time for snacks, then it is quite possible to limit yourself to standard breakfast, lunch and dinner, and the last meal should not be later than 19 hours. If hunger prevents you from falling asleep, you can eat a piece of ham, the white of a boiled egg or a little jelly. But kefir, which is so often recommended, is better not to drink at night - it often creates fermentation in the intestines.

Sample diet menu for a week

Monday

• Breakfast: vegetable casserole.
• Lunch: mushroom borscht, meatloaf with stewed carrots, fruit jelly.
• Dinner: carrot and cottage cheese casserole.

Tuesday

• Breakfast: boiled beet puree.
• Lunch: vegetable soup, boiled chicken with carrot puree, fruit jelly.
• Dinner: vegetarian Olivier seasoned with sour cream.

Wednesday

• Breakfast: buckwheat porridge with a little butter.
• Lunch: green cabbage soup with a boiled egg, stewed meat with a side dish of green peas, baked apples.
• Dinner: fruit salad.

Thursday

• Breakfast: baked herring, boiled potatoes
• Lunch: vegetarian borscht, stewed beet salad, boiled beef stroganoff.
• Dinner: zucchini puree, one egg omelette.

Friday

• Breakfast: scrambled eggs from one egg, vegetable salad with a small amount of sour cream or vegetable oil.
• Lunch: beetroot soup, stewed meat with raw vegetables.
• Dinner: boiled fish, stewed cabbage.

Saturday

• Breakfast. pearl barley porridge with a little butter.
• Lunch: lean borscht or soup, boiled meat, stewed beet salad.
• Dinner: vegetarian cabbage rolls.

Sunday

• Breakfast: vinaigrette with a small amount of vegetable oil.
• Lunch: vegetable soup, boiled meat with stewed cabbage.
• Dinner: boiled potatoes and steam omelette.

The daily norm of bread is no more than 150 grams.

Why is physical activity important?

Physical activity is the regulator that will make it easier for you to keep your weight within normal limits, especially if you are prone to obesity. When the level of physical activity increases, the body speeds up digestion and burns fat reserves. If we are not talking about losing weight, but about “keeping fit,” then it will be enough to devote about 3 hours a week

, but it’s better to divide this time and study less, but more often. Daily half-hour workouts will be more useful than one three-hour workout. Keep this in mind when creating your weekly plan.

If you need more tangible results, and you want to not only maintain your current shape, but also lose weight, then you will need to exercise at least 2-3 times a week

so that the body gets used to the stress.
The exercise program should also be varied, even if you decide to focus on strength training, remember the importance of cardio
.

results

A strict buckwheat diet for weight loss of 7 kg has received many enthusiastic responses. Her simple nutritional system, which includes daily consumption of steamed cereal, is easy to do at home. The results of many people who have lost weight on the buckwheat diet prove its effectiveness.

( 47 ratings, average: 3.89 out of 5)

Weight loss for extreme sports enthusiasts

People tend to want everything at once, without making any serious effort; advertising plays on this. Commercials talk about how you can lose weight without dieting or exercising, just with the help of “magic powder.” dietary supplements

gained their popularity due to their similarity to medicines.
Meanwhile, manufacturers of bioactive supplements honestly warn that their products are not a medicine
, and therefore, in the worst case, such drugs will not cause harm, however, there may be no benefit from them.

But people are willing to pay for their own laziness. Instead of going to the gym or reconsidering their diet, they are ready to part with considerable sums in the hope of a miracle. True, not all dietary supplements are really “dummy”. Some preparations contain extracts of herbs and plants. On the one hand, such drugs can have an effect on the body, on the other hand, this effect may be unpredictable, especially if a person is taking other medications at the same time as dietary supplements. Such experiments can be especially dangerous for people with dangerous chronic diseases, for example, diabetes. The active substances contained in dietary supplements can both enhance and weaken the effects of medications, and this can endanger a person’s life and health, so taking dietary supplements without first consulting a doctor is not recommended.

Track your progress

Self-control is the most important factor in successful weight loss. When we see real, tangible movement towards our goals, we tend to be more motivated to continue working. The most important thing is not to get hung up.

Don't focus solely on weight. Weighing yourself every day can cause unnecessary worry and anxiety. Focus on the circumference of your waist, hips, chest, legs and arms. Measure them at regular intervals, such as every 2 weeks or once a month. Record numbers in a notepad, application or specialized web portals. This will help you track the results and analyze which actions bring the greatest results.

Remember that weight loss is a gradual process, so don’t be discouraged if the extra pounds don’t come off as quickly as you expected. Your task is to learn how to lose weight correctly, and not in 3 days.

Let's summarize:

• The secret to losing weight lies in the symbiosis of proper nutrition and physical activity.
• A proper nutrition plan is developed individually, based on a person’s individual characteristics: gender, age, presence of chronic diseases, excess weight, etc.
• Nutrition should be balanced. It must contain fats, proteins, carbohydrates and beneficial microelements.
• Before choosing a diet, make sure that you really need it. To do this, calculate your body mass index and check whether your indicators are beyond the upper limit of normal.
• A proper diet should not only help you lose excess weight, but also not harm your health.

Associated manifestations

Trouble does not come alone - this expression exactly reflects the essence of excess weight in adolescents. In addition to extra pounds on the scale, attentive parents will notice other unhealthy manifestations:

• fast fatiguability;
• hypertension;
• headache;
• deformation of the figure (appearance of fat folds);
• profuse sweating;
• shortness of breath during exercise;
• swelling;
• depressed state, irritability;
• development of internal complexes, isolation from peers;
• in girls - menstrual irregularities.

There is no need to attribute frequent headaches and pressure surges at this age solely to puberty. It is characterized by a different clinical picture. And if 3-4 symptoms from this list are superimposed on excess weight, it’s time to take measures for urgent weight loss.