Its Not What You Eat but How Much

Most people who set out to lose weight will usually do two things to achieve their goal. They will try to eat less food and at the same time switch from so-called "bad" to "good" food "Burgers and Fries" are swapped for "Lettuce and Lentils" in an effort to get the weight down.

Lifestyle changes of this magnitude will of course have to be made in the long term, but in the initial stages of weight loss it may not be the best approach.

The first priority for people who live in affluent Western societies, where food is available in such abundance, is to cut down on the amount of food they eat rather than change the type. The sheer volume of food consumed, both "good" and "bad" is the first problem that needs to be dealt with.

Yes, we do eat the wrong food a lot of the time, but unless the amount of food eaten is dealt with we will not lose weight. A person can lose weight by eating less of their normal diet but they cannot lose weight when they over-consume, whether it be "good" or "bad" food.

It is therefore a better approach, initially, to reduce the amount of food consumed rather than make radical changes to the type. Large amounts of weight can be lost using this strategy and you will be more comfortable doing it. For all their bad press, fat and sugar are very effective at satisfying hunger and providing energy so a sudden switch to "Lettuce and Lentils" is going to leave you feeling mighty hungry and lacking in energy.

When the habit of eating less has become ingrained the shift to foods that will help you to maintain the weight loss can commence. This will mean seeking out and experimenting with foods that deliver similar hunger satisfaction and energy to the "bad" food that you used to consume. This becomes a priority when the type of food eaten is changed because the amount of energy available is going to be lessened by both the reduction in volume and change of food type..

Making changes to your overall diet in a gradual manner allows you to investigate which foods satisfy your hunger and energy requirements best. Low G.I. is an obvious way to go, but so are nuts, fresh and dried fruits, raw vegetable sticks and other food of this order. When changes are made in this way the tiredness and irritability that can result from a reduction in food consumption can be avoided.

Experimenting with food in this manner will also enable you to adjust your diet to what best suits you rather than impose a "one-size-fits-all" regime upon yourself. This in turn will result in lifestyle changes that you should be able to live with to maintain long term weight loss.

We should also keep in mind that there are no "bad" foods as such. It is the amount they are consumed in that makes them "bad" We need some fat and sugar in our diets so leave room for the occassional indulgence because your body and psyche need them. As I said earlier, it is the amount more than the type that is the cause of our problems.