20BMI.com’s Healthy Diet, Weight Loss and Nutrition FAQ

Welcome to the 20BMI.com’s Weight Loss FAQ

For these and many other topics, please visit our website on healthy weight loss, diet and exercise. You should discuss your weight loss plans with your physician.

How to lose weight fast?

This is the wrong question to ask. You should first ask yourself the following question: how long did it take me to gain the weight that I so desperately want to lose now? When you know the answer to that question, the next question to ask is how reasonable is it to lose the weight that I want to lose quickly?

The body is an amazing machine, and it is perfectly tuned (even if one is overweight). The energy that is taken in via food is either used up by cells, muscles, and organs, or it is stored by the body for later use in body fat. For most of us, it took a while to gain the extra weight, and it is unreasonable to expect to shed it instantly (or as quickly as most people would like). Under the monitoring and advice of your physician, it is possible to lose a lot of weight very quickly. However, for most healthy people, the better way to lose weight would be to take some time at it, and allow the body to adjust to the new regime.

The NIH recommends a slow and steady weight loss of 1 – 2 lbs per week, with an initial weight goal of losing 10% of the present body weight.

Be wary of quick fixes that are being sold commercially, or recommended “freely” on the Internet. If they work at all, they may have serious side effects.

OK, so how to lose weight fast and healthy?

Again, in the article referenced above, the NIH recommends a caloric deficit of 500 – 1,000 calories per day, comprised of both reduction in food intake and an increase in exercise is the way to go. Please note that all people are different, and that you should discuss your plans with your healthcare provider. The general recommendation is to reduce fats and carbs – “Reducing dietary fat alone without reducing calories is not sufficient for weight loss. However, reducing dietary fat, along with reducing dietary carbohydrates, can help reduce calories.”

What is the best way to lose weight?

Like most things that relate to a human being, this is a highly individualized thing that no website can ever advise you on. There are simply too many variables – health conditions, amount of weight to lose, body composition, psychological factors that may make it easier to lose weight one way or another. For example – an internally centered person (locus of control) may have an easier time losing weight than an externally centered person that believes their weight loss success depends on external factors, such as the support of family and friends and the access to a gym.

The best way to approach this is to study it like a problem to solve. Analyze different approaches that we write about from our survey of scientific publications, speak with trusted advisors (such as your doctor, a dietician, or personal trainer) and formulate a solid plan that has many factors of success supporting it.

With your support team, build a plan with a lot of factors of success behind it, such as:

a proper and healthy diet, with correct portions,
a varied exercise program that can be stuck with, and
a support group comprised of your family and friends that will cheer you on as you succeed or help you get back on track during the inevitable slips.

The last point is important. Be sure to include fail-safes for the inevitable times that you will slip. An example would be the Holiday party or two along the way, or simply being human and wanting some chocolate every now and then. In other words, allow yourself to fail, but have a plan to resume your routine when you do.

When weight loss is approached from that perspective, successful weight loss is all but assured.

What is normal weight/ How much should I weigh?

Your doctor should provide this answer for you, however, there are general guidelines that are available on the Internet. Among the best is the US DHHS’ National Institutes for Health Weight Loss and Dieting Portal. From there, going to the National Heart Lunch and Blood Institute’s page on aiming for a Healthy Weight.

The NIH cites “normal weight as being between 18.5 and 24.9 Body Mass Index (“BMI”). They have a handy calculator and tables to help you determine how much you should weigh.

However, it is a little more complicated than just the BMI calculation. For example, obesity typically results in elevated blood pressure, a reduction of the HDL and elevation of the LDL cholesterols, and/or poor blood sugar. When obesity is unchecked, these factors will lead to serious, life threatening medical conditions. That is why it is so critical to seek professional help.

Tips for lasting diet results

Educate yourself – use this as well as other websites, read books and magazines.
Select a variety of fruits, vegetables, lean protein, whole grains, legumes and healthy fats. Check out our Nutrition for Weight Loss Section.
Prefer to eat at home where you can control the ingredients better. If you don’t know how to cook, buy a couple of cookbooks. (We make recommendations in many of our articles, or check out the Cookbook Category on Amazon.com).
General guide to grocery shopping: the less items in the ingredients’ list, the better. Additionally, the fewer things that sound like chemical experiments rather than food, the better. Trade up to green local grocers, or supermarkets that are known for “natural” foods.
Select minimally processed foods. Garden fresh is best, but steamed, grilled, baked, roasted and poached are good ways to go.
When in a restaurant, ask what is in the dish and how it was prepared. Do not assume.
Live an active lifestyle.
Calories, fat, protein and carbs count. It is critical is to eat a balanced diet. It is a folly to ignore any of the macronutrient groups.
Avoid or minimize empty calories – things like heavily sweetened foods like candy, highly processed foods.

What is a healthy portion?

Portions have gotten larger over the past period. It does not matter what your approach to dieting is, a 72oz steak + Soup + Baked Potato + Dessert is not the way to do it, even if it is free when (if?) you finish this. The NIH has put together an interesting comparison of portions over time, along with some thought provoking questions on how much it would take to burn off the extra calories.

What are diet meal plans?

Meal plans are put together by companies that target particular caloric or nutritional goals. For a fee, they take the guesswork out of following a particular calorie goal. In addition, the respectable companies employ hordes of dietitians, physicians and support staff to help you achieve your goals.

Like anything else, caveat emptor. Do your checks – do you know if anyone whom you know has been successful on the particular program you are considering? Is the program broadly regarded as effective? Has your physician recommended it?

Some choices to consider (listed alphabetically):

20BMI.com – Weight Loss, Nutrition, and Exercise