Healthy & Easy Diet Plan

Eating healthy is the most important part of an effective weight-loss plan. Although portion control is important, focus first on making healthy food choices. If you add healthy foods (such as fruits, vegetables and low-fat products) and cut out bad foods (such as high-fat foods and sugary beverages) you will see rapid results and enjoy a healthier life.

Determine Your Caloric Intake

• To lose weight, the calories you eat must be less than the calories you burn. Physical activity burns calories, so increasing the amount of exercise you do will speed up your weight loss. The U.S. Department of Agriculture offers an online dietary assessment tool that can help you determine how many calories you are consuming and how many you should be consuming if you want to lose weight.

A Healthy Eating Plan

• Cutting fats from your diet will decrease the amount of calories you consume faster than cutting carbohydrates or protein. According to Sheri Barke, a registered dietitian, writing for UCLA, a gram of fat "has more than twice the calories than either carbohydrate or protein." She adds that dieters should avoid high-fat foods, such as margarine, butter, salad dressings, red meat, fried foods and whole-fat dairy products. Most of these foods have low-fat alternatives.

  Do not cut all the fat from your diet. A little heart-healthy, unsaturated fat can trigger a feeling of fullness and decrease hunger pangs. Barke recommends adding a small amount of nuts, olive oil or a little peanut butter to your daily diet.

  Fiber also triggers feelings of fullness, so be sure to eat plenty of fruits, vegetables and whole grains. The Harvard School of Public Health's Nutrition Source has some suggestions for adding fiber to your diet. Buy whole fruits instead of fruit juice, which has less fiber and more calories. When buying bread, cereal and crackers, check the packages to see if "whole grain" is listed as the first ingredient, and make sure they have at least 3 g of fiber per serving. Also, eat beans and whole-wheat pasta. Both are high in fiber and full of nutrients.

  Harvard offers some more eating tips. Limit milk and dairy to just one serving a day. If you need the extra calcium, try eating leafy vegetables, broccoli, beans or tofu. Take a daily multivitamin to ensure that your body is getting all the nutrients it needs, but be aware that vitamins are no substitute for eating a healthy, balanced diet. And keep your alcohol consumption to moderate levels: up to 2 drinks a day for men, one for women. One drink is 12 oz. of beer, 5 oz. of wine or 1 1/2 oz. of hard liquor.