Diet With A Difference That Works

Millions of dollars are spent annually as people attempt to eat their way to health, using hundreds of widely varying diets and supposedly new health trends. However, there are some simple nutrition errors, that can be corrected for free, which would fix up most people's diet problems.

The number one enemy for losing that surplus fat is sugar.

Larry Krug, Chief executive officer of the online nutritional-consulting firm Eatwize.com says "You have to be careful of the word 'nonfat' because that usually implies more sugar". In the majority of cases 'fat-free' signifies the product is loaded with calories, through the added sugar.

Consuming mountains of fruit juice is not the solution either. "People assume that juice is healthier than cola, so they'll go ahead and drink a heap of it. Yet your average half a cup of juice equals about 60 calories," says Laura J. Kruskall Ph.D., R.D., an assistant professor of nutrition at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Orange juice converts directly to sugar when it is drunk.

A lot of people use whole grain products in the wrong belief that they are 'eating healthy'. In fact whole grain pasta, whole wheat bread, whole grain crackers and health cereals all convert to sugar when they are eaten.

Major enemy number two, in the battle of the bulge, is consuming processed foods. They are full of harmful chemicals and loaded with sugar, which stops the liver from working to optimum.

Vegetable butter, fake margarine and substitute butter, canola oil and hydrogenated oils, artificial sweeteners, besides processed soy products, all assist in the retention of unwanted fat. Real butter, coconut oil, whole eggs, avocados, bacon, raw nuts and olive oil are all aids when it comes to burning up bad fat.

Carbohydrates are vital to good health, so consuming plenty of fruit and vegetables will help regulate the blood sugar level and aid in burning up unwanted fat.

Another wrong conception is going without food in order to lose weight. Starving the body only causes it to hang onto whatever fat it already has. It is better to eat healthy food, small and often, in order to hold blood sugar and insulin levels even.

Correct hydration is an additional key factor. This requires drinking non-caffeinated fluids before they are required, as the body often does not sense its own thirst, until after the fact. Drinking copious amounts of liquids helps burn fat and notifies your body to lose that layer of muscle-camouflaging water it likes to hold between your skin and muscles.

Susan Kundrat, M.S., R.D., of Nutrition on the Move, says "I recommend a minimum of 12 eight-ounce glasses of noncaffeinated fluids per day, plus an additional six ounces for every 15 minutes of training you engage in."

Numerous experts claim that once you start to eat healthily, you will throw your body onto auto-pilot, so that it will continuously discard that unwanted fat and help beat the bulge.