How to eat for successful weight loss and better health.
Losing weight and eating healthier are among the most popular New Year’s resolutions, but many of us wonder: What’s the best diet for weight loss? Talk to friends, and it’s likely that they have different approaches to dieting. Here, Tia Hagins, RD, Community Nutritionist at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH) Somerset, explains the pros and cons of popular diets and offers advice on how to eat for a healthier, thinner you.
Mediterranean diet
This heart-healthy diet focuses on vegetables, fruits, whole grains and healthy fats, such as olive oil. People who adhere to it consume plenty of seafood, beans, poultry and eggs and limit red meat. They also eat whole wheat breads, cereals and pastas and substitute olive oil for butter. Dairy intake is moderate (just two to three servings per day).
Pros: “You can eat a variety of foods, and it’s filling,” says Hagins. Plus, it’s a healthy way of eating: The Mediterranean diet helps to lower the risk of heart disease, diabetes and cancer.
Cons: If you have a sweet tooth, it can be challenging to stick with this way of eating because you have to cut out butter and solid fats. If you want to try the Mediterranean diet, make gradual changes. “If you’re used to drinking whole milk, try 2 percent milk first,” says Hagins. “Once you’re used to it, mix it with 1 percent milk. Eventually, you’ll get used to the lower fat variety.”
Ketogenic (Keto) diet
This diet emphasizes foods high in fat and protein. Carb intake is restricted to less than 20 grams per day (one slice of bread is equivalent to about 15 grams of carbs). The premise is that your body will burn fat, rather than carbohydrates, for energy. Fat contains more calories than carbohydrates. “This diet may help you lose body fat as well as weight,” says Hagins.
Pros: “The keto diet regulates appetite so that you feel full for longer,” says Hagins. “It leads to weight loss.”
Cons: While the keto diet may be safe for healthy adults who want to lose weight quickly, it’s not sustainable because it’s so restrictive, says Hagins. “You have to limit your carb and dairy intake drastically,” she says. What’s more, people shouldn’t be on this diet without being monitored by their physician, says Hagins. “The body can go into ketosis—in which you use fat for energy instead of carbohydrates—and it can affect the kidneys,” she explains. “People with cardiovascular disease, diabetes and kidney disease shouldn’t follow this diet.”
Weight Watchers Freestyle
This diet emphasizes low-fat foods and lean protein, as well as healthy lifestyle changes. “You can eat what you want,” says Hagins. Foods are assigned points, and you are given a certain number for each day based on your weight-loss goal. More than 200 foods—including beans, eggs and fish—have no points. Dieters are encouraged to track their food choices and follow them online.
“Tracking food choices is a proven strategy for weight loss,” says Hagins.
Pros: It works. “This is one of the most well-researched diets,” says Hagins. The emphasis on nutritious, low-calorie foods like vegetables, fruits and whole grains can help lower blood pressure and reduce your risk for heart disease. In addition, Weight Watchers encourages physical activity and social support through meetings. No foods are forbidden, and you don’t need to buy prepackaged foods.
Cons: Membership isn’t free, and if you overeat a food with zero points, then you might consume too many calories.
7 key lifestyle changes
Diets often lead to weight loss and gain (known as yo-yo dieting), which is unhealthy because it can strain your heart. “To lose weight and keep it off over the long term, you need to make lifestyle changes,” says Tia Hagins, RD, Community Nutritionist at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH) Somerset. Consider the following strategies for healthy weight loss:
- Eat three meals per day with lean protein, fruits, vegetables, whole grains and dairy products. Visit www.choosemyplate.gov for a personalized diet based on your age, sex, height, weight and activity level.
- Include a lean source of protein at every meal to keep hunger in check.
- Choose low-fat foods and limit added fats. Consume 1 percent or fat-free milk and dairy products. If you must add fats to foods, keep portion size in mind: 1 teaspoon of olive oil and 1 tablespoon of salad dressing, for instance.
- Decrease or eliminate drinks that contain sugar. Aim to drink 64 ounces of water daily instead.
- Avoid eating large amounts of food late in the day. Ideally, 30 percent of calories should come from breakfast, lunch and dinner each, and 10 percent should come from snacks.
- Don’t skip meals because you’ll overeat later.
- Avoid eating after 8 p.m.
Healthy snacking
The following snacks are low in fat and calories:
- 5 whole grain crackers and 1 ounce of low-fat cheese (135 calories, 4 grams of fat)
- 2 four-inch rice cakes with 2 teaspoons peanut butter (125 calories, 6 grams of fat)
- 3 cups low-fat popcorn and 2 tablespoons parmesan cheese (135 calories, 3-5 grams of fat)
- ¾ cup low-fat, plain yogurt, ½ cup fruit (150 calories, 0-2 grams of fat)
- 1 apple and 1 ounce non-fat string cheese (125 calories, 3-5 grams of fat)
To schedule an appointment with a registered dietitian who can provide nutritional counseling to improve eating habits, call 908.704.3765