My Not-So-Secret Diet

Let me begin by saying that I am no way professionally qualified to advise on nutrition. I am just your ordinary foodie who has been observing diet plans to see which one is most effective in weight loss. Please consult a health professional before undertaking any major nutritional change.

Now that that's off my chest - in this post I am tackling the most talked about topic in history - whether your granny mentions it (albeit whilst eating everything that's bad for you and trying to get you to it too,) whether it comes up in conversation with your friends or whether you are nagging your husband about it - you're somehow talking about it - weight loss. Hundreds of thousands of women before me, and hundreds and thousands of women after me have tried and will continue to try to lose weight. I've sussed out different types of diets and have listed below 3 diets that supposedly do work (2 of these diets were tried by friends of mine but I have not personally tried it out, and the third diet is the tried and tested method that I use.)

The Bread Diet

Yes, you are reading right. The bread diet is based on the premise that eating great amounts of bread everyday will reduce cravings and help you to lose weight. Upon hearing about this diet, I laughed and laughed. Only to discover that my friend was serious. Not only was she serious, she ate 12 slices of bread a day and had lost a LOT of weight. The theory behind this is that complex carbohydrates act to increase serotonin levels which in return leads to a decreased appetite and reduction in sweet-cravings. The diet stipulates that women are allowed to eat as much as 12 slices of low calorie bread a day (every two hours preferably) with light sandwich fillings such as vegetables and light spreads such as hummus, peanut butter, mustard etc. In conjunction with this, you may also eat meat, protein or fish meals 3 times a week (although I'm sure that you will be fine with just the loaf-a-day,) as well as a large amount of vegetables and some fruit. Strangely enough, my friend did lose quite a bit of weight on this diet, but she soon got tired of eating an obscene amount of bread everyday and it was just not practical to keep up. This diet would never work for me, as I hate bread (Im a pass-the-rice-and-potatoes kinda girl.) but if it tickles your fancy, do some research on "The Life Diet."

The Water Diet

Don't worry, I am not going to tell you to live on air and water in order to become skinny. This diet is based on consuming around 2.5 litres of water each day. When you wake up in the morning, immediately drink half a litre of water to get your metabolism started. Just before breakfast, drink another half a litre of water, and the same after breakfast. Every two hours or so following this, drink 250ml of water stopping only just before you go to bed. No need for portion control, no need to cut out anything that you love to eat, just drink water. Oceans of it, it seems. I know a friend who swears by this diet and I have been warned not to be fooled by the simplicity of it, IT WORKS. I didn't try; first of all, I am a skeptic. Secondly, I am enjoying spending most of my life outside of the ladies room. If you are neither of these things, then take a look at this article - http://www.stevenaitchison.co.uk/blog/how-to-lose-10-pounds-in-ten-days/

The Holy Grail of diets - The 100 carb diet

This is the diet that I (and countless others) swear by, have lost many a kilo with and the best part is - it allows you to eat everything. The 100 carb diet is based on weight loss occurring by eating less than 100 grams of carbohydrates everyday. Calculating the amount of carbohydrates in each meal has never been easier - download Calorie Counter by Fat Secret on to your phone or tablet and punch in whatever you have eaten or are planning to it into it in order to determine how many grams of carbs are in each item of food. Eating between 150 - 100 carbohydrates ensures effortless weight maintenance, whilst eating under 100 carbs is for weight loss. Do not eat under 50 carbs a day, as this can be dangerous to health. Refer to graph below for more information.

There are "good carbs" and "bad carbs" so although 1 packet of Lays lightly salted chips amounts to 18 carbs a serving, please do not eat 7 packets of Lays and nothing else to make up your carbs. Make up your carbs with good, wholesome and healthy food and if you're under your carb intake then you can have a little treat. You can eat a whole chicken for dinner if you wish - how hard can it be? Believe me when I say that I eat EVERYTHING - I have not cut out rice, pasta or potatoes from my diet neither do I deprive myself of the occassional chocolate brownie or donut. 

It really is!!!

 I am a foodie and this diet was made for me just because it allows me to eat everything I want, in moderation and portion control. Believe me when I say I have lost a lot of weight simply by counting 100 carbs a day (I don't exercise - terrible, but true) - the weight loss is slow and steady and most importantly, it stays off. 

Diet credit (100 carb diet) - my cousin Maseeha Jeewa discovered this diet and I, together with countless other people silently thank her every day for letting us in on it!

If you have any questions or would like to would like any more information feel free to drop me an e-mail. 

Positive vibes & The Mandatory xoxo
Hali