Blood Pressure And Your Diet

Poor eating habits can contribute substantially to unhealthily high blood pressure levels, especially in your thirties and forties. Often blood pressure levels normally increase as part of the aging process, but having a bad diet will magnify the problem. Your doctor may have you taking anti-hypertensive drugs, but the need to make dietary enhancements (eg. follow a healthy low-fat diet) is always at the top of a doctor's list of recommendations to minimize or prevent high blood pressure. You have probably heard the health warnings from your doctor about the threats posed by a poor diet, especially one very high in sodium (salt).

Hypertension, Blood Pressure And Diet

In under developed as well as developed nations, an estimated 20-40 percent of all grownups suffer from unhealthy levels of high blood pressure. High blood pressure puts pressure on the heart triggering atherosclerosis( Thickening of vessels). Normal blood pressure of an healthy adult at rest, is 120 (systolic) over 80 (diastolic) or less. High blood pressure levels greater than 120/80 and listed below 140/90 are at pre-hypertensive phase, while levels above 140/90 are considered hypertensive phase. Both pre-hypertensive and hypertensive subjects should create a smart diet plan, develop an exercise routine and make way of life modifications. These steps are needed to lower or prevent the start of hypertension and to help decrease the risk of heart problem.

Excess Weight Adds To High Blood Pressure

Over weight persons will be having high blood pressure. In addition, roughly 7 out of 10 overweight grownups suffer from high blood pressure. Sadly, this figure is rising as America gets older, more sedate and fatter. If you have hypertension and not obese, here are few tips to control your BP.

Choose A Healthy Diet Plan

If your goal is to minimize your blood pressure, your diet needs to be abundant in fruits, veggies, and low-fat dairy foods. You also will want to keep the diet low in saturated and trans-fats. It needs to also be low in cholesterol, high in fiber and somewhat high in protein. The American Heart Association and U.S.government both recommend the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet plan as an excellent diet plan guide to decrease high blood pressure.

Tips To Reduce Salt

It's common sense that salt intake increases blood pressure. Consuming excessive salt or sodium-rich foods results in a higher intake and retention of fluids. This causes greater levels of water inside body and the extra volume can over load your system, resulting in high blood pressure. The excess salt will also put extra strain on the arterioles (capillaries that dilate/constrict to control high blood pressure and blood circulation). Both of these results cause higher blood pressure. The Recommended day-to-day dose for sodium for most people is 2,400 mg. How can you reduce salt intake? Eat less processed food, and eat more fresh food. Sodium is found naturally in fresh foods like grains, fruits, vegetables, meats, nuts, and dairy products, however in much lower amounts than in processed foods (package, bottled or junk food).  

Avoid These High Sodium Foods

These foods normally have a high sodium material. In order not to go beyond the RDA, either prevent them altogether, or choose low-sodium varieties. Sauces: baking soda, barbecue sauce, ketchup, garlic salt, mustard, onion salt, Soy sauce, steak sauce, salad dressing, baking powder, mustard, onion salt, skilled salts like lemon pepper, bouillon cubes, meat tenderizer, and Monosodium glutamate (the dreaded MSG). Salted Treats: peanuts, pretzels, pork rinds, tortilla chips and corn chips. Soups: Some canned soups are amazingly high in sodium. Pickled Food: Olives, sauerkraut, herring, pickles. Pickling uses a lot of salt. Meats: smoked or processed meats (containing sodium-nitrite) such as bacon, bologna, hotdogs, ham, corned beef, lunch meat, and sausages. These foods are usually very high in sodium nitrate. Dairy: The majority of cheese spreads and processed cheeses. Beverages: Most sodas have sugar and salt. Sugar free may still have sodium. Cereals: Many instant cereals (like oatmeal) have high sodium levels. Boxed Meals: Most prepared packaged foods have a lot of sodium. Sometimes it is used as a preservative, sometimes it is high to mask the chemical taste of other preservatives.

Be Smart. Read The Packaging Labels.

Be picky and choose those foods which identified as low-sodium, very low salt, or salt-free. Examine food labels for words that suggest a high salt content, consisting of: sodium nitrite, salt proprionate, disodium phosphate, and salt sulfate, Monosodium glutamate (MSG), sodium benzoate, salt hydroxide,.

Some Easy Low Salt Tips

Do not use any extra salt when cooking or preparing meals. Cook with more herbs and spices. Do not have salt on the table while eating. It's okay to hide the salt. If you cook with salt, switch to chili, ginger and lemon juice for flavoring. If you like cured,smoked or processed meats, change to fresh meats. If you eat ready-to-serve breakfast cereal, pick low-sodium types of cereal. Rinse prior to eating. This is especially important if you eat tuna, salmon, sardines, or mackerel canned in water. If you eat soup, switch to low-sodium or fresh soups. If you prepare with whole milk or fat diet, switch to 1 percent or skimmed buttermilk. Keep in mind that eating less salt with your diet plan can have other positive effects. Your BP will remain in a more normal range.

Yes, There Are Low Carb Friendly Breads!

Dieters often complain, with good reason, that they miss some of their favorite foods. Some foods may have sugars, so those are out. Some may be loaded with unwanted carbs, so those are out. Bread is often mentioned as the one item that dieters miss. Sandwiches, biscuits, rolls-all are usually forbidden on any of the top diet plans. That's why we were thrilled to find a product called Carbquick.   This is not a carb-free product. It does greatly reduce that amount of carbohydrates that you eat and allows you to have some bread while still following your diet plan. If you are on a keto diet, this is probably not a good product for you until you are about 4 weeks into your plan. Atkins dieters can use this in a limited way after the first 2 weeks of your meal plan. For some people, breakfast will never ever be complete without toast or biscuits. You want to let the butter melt, then top off the bread with your preferred topping. Using Carbquick can allow you to still enjoy those morning rituals. One biscuit made with Carbquick will have around 3 grams of carbohydrates, a small number that is manageable after the first few weeks of a keto diet.

Zucchini Nut Roll Bread

Ingredients: grease spray. 1 cup Carbquick baking mix. 1 cup almonds. 1 cup sugar replacement. 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon. 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg. 1/2 teaspoon salt. 1/2 teaspoon baking soda. 1/2 teaspoon baking powder. 1/2 cup vegetable oil. 4 large eggs. 1 medium zucchini. 1 teaspoon vanilla extract. Preparation:.

1. Heat your oven to 350F. Grease an 8 by 4 loaf pan with a cooking spray.
2. Blend together the bake mix, almonds, sugar replacement, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, baking soda and baking powder in a large bowl. In another container, mix the oil, eggs, zucchini and vanilla extract.

Mix the zucchini mix into dry components up until they are all blended and you have a smooth batter. Bake it for about 45 minutes till its color will turn to golden brown. One note: zucchini has a lot of water. Make sure you have dried the zucchini well, pressing it between 2 towels after you have shredded it. Any excess moisture can cause the bread to be wet in the middle after baking.

Garlic Toast Bread

Components: vegetable oil spray. 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil. 2 tablespoons garlic. 2 cups Carbquick baking mix. 1 tablespoon baking powder. 1/2 teaspoon salt. 1 cup club soda. 2 large eggs. Preparation:.

1. Heat your oven to 350F. Coat the 8 by 4 pan with a cooking spray.
2. In a microwave- safe cup (with a cover), cook the olive oil and garlic. Leave it for 1 minute till the garlic turns golden brown.
3. Blend well the baking mix, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Include the club soda, eggs and tablespoon of garlic oil. Mix it until well- combined. Transfer the dough to a prepared pan, smooth the leading and bake it for about 45 minutes.

Let it cool for 20 minutes in a wire rack. Position it on an baking sheet and brush both corners with garlic oil. Bake for another 10 minutes or until the bread is golden and glistening.   To learn more about Carbquick, click the link below.

Tips For Following A Keto Diet Plan

You may have heard about a keto diet. Quite often TV and movie stars have gone on a talk show and praised the benefits of a keto diet when it comes to weight loss. Some restaurants have gone so far as to label certain dishes as keto friendly in an effort to bring dieters into their cafes. There is a lot of noise being made about keto diets.

What Is A Keto Diet?

A keto diet is not a brand name (such as Atkins) but a type of diet plan called ketogenic. A ketogenic diet will be low in carbohydrates and high in fat, similar to the type of diet plan found with Atkins or other low carb diets. The goal of the plan is to train your body to burn fat, not carbohydrates, by having your body go into a state called ketosis. Once your body is in ketosis it becomes very efficient at burning excess fat for energy. One other benefit is that your liver also starts to turn fat into ketones. Studies have shown that this improves brain function. By shifting your body away from carbohydrates a ketogenic diet reduces the blood sugar and insulin levels. Adding the benefit of the increase of ketones will help you lose weight, feel better overall and improve your general health.

Does A Keto Diet Work

Keto diets have been shown to work for both short term and long term weight loss. Some long term studies have also shown that this type of diet can help with diabetes, heart disease and blood pressure problems. The two kinds of keto diets that have been studied the most and show the best results are the standard ketogenic diet (SKD) and the high protein ketogenic diet. While other versions of keto diets have shown some promising results, they don't have long term studies to back up those claims. A standard keto diet (SKD) can help you lose weight quickly. This diet will contain 75% fat, 20% protein and 5% carbohydrates. At first glance the high fat level seems frightening but a careful plan will help you to add proper nutrients. As you lose weight your overall health will improve and you will have no problem with the increased fat intake. Starting out with a standard keto diet causes you to be a bit drastic for the first few weeks. You can eat a lot, you shouldn't have the problem of always feeling hungry. The problem that many people have is the loss of certain comfort foods. You can't eat bread, rice, potatoes or other starchy foods. There are no familiar desserts and you have to change your beverages. During the first 3 weeks you will try to keep your carb intake down to 10 carbs a day. That may sound easy but read a few food labels and you soon realize that it will take some planning. A high protein version of a keto diet follows some of the same guidelines for carbs but adds more protein. The usual breakdown is 60% fat, 35% protein and 5 % carbs.

Never Having To Count Calories

Ask any dieter that has had to count calories how that worked for them and you will generally get a negative reply. It can be almost impossible to count calories accurately, size portions always vary and some ingredients don't even have calorie counts listed. Ketogenic diets avoid that pitfall, you can usually eat as much as want of the approved foods. There are some vegetables and fruits that are acceptable to this diet, so you can keep your vitamin intake at comfortable levels. You can also eat meat and eggs often, helping you to add texture and flavor to your menu. You also can avoid that "I'm always hungry" feeling that can attack someone on a diet.

Health Benefits

Besides that obvious benefit of losing weight, the type of weight loss that comes from a keto diet can assist in improving other health conditions. People who are diabetic or pre-diabetic have reports huge drops in insulin sensitivity. No one is going to say that a ketogenic diet cures diabetes but studies have shown that it can help reduce the causes and and lower the needs for some medications. Following a smart keto diet can help to reduce the risk of heart failure and disease. Lowering the blood sugar level, reducing bad cholesterol and lowering blood pressure are all results of a good keto diet. Your heart can benefit greatly from all three results. Many doctors will recommend a keto diet to cancer patients. While it won't stop or cure cancer it does help your body fight off infections and improve heart function. Ask any teenager who has suffered from acne what seems to cause a breakout and they will tell you it's sugar. Anyone suffering from acne can see an improvement with their complexion after a few weeks on a keto diet. No need for creams, the reduction in blood sugar will help reduce acne breakouts.

What Can I Eat On A Keto Diet?

You may be surprised an the wide variety of foods that work with a keto diet. You can eat almost any type of meat, including beef. Bacon and sausage are allowed, as is chicken and turkey. These types of meat add both fat and protein, plus all of them will help you feel full. You can also eat fatty fish such as salmon and tuna. Eggs, cream and cheese are also big parts of a keto diet. The cheese needs to be unprocessed (sorry, no Velveta) but there is no limit to the amount you consume. This lets you have cheese as a snack, a great way to kill some of those urges during the day. Nuts and seeds are used in a lot of keto recipes. Almonds, walnuts and pumpkin seeds are the most popular but other nuts and seeds are fine. Keep in mind that peanuts are not nuts, they are legumes. Avocados and low carb vegetables are approved for this diet. Onions, peppers and tomatoes are great foods to add to your diet. Most fruits are not part of this diet, at least for the first month. While they are considered healthy foods they have high levels of sugar that will raise your blood sugar levels. There are many great cookbooks and other sources for planning and preparing meals for a keto diet. You may want to look at the Atkins diet. While it's not a true keto diet, it is a low carb diet and there have been great results from followers of the plan. We really like The Essential Keto Diet cookbook. It not only has over 125 recipes, it has some meal plans that can be great tools to help you get started. Another good starting place is Simply Keto, another well written and usual guide to help you start your keto diet.

The Top 5 Diets For 2020

Weight loss can be an ongoing issue for many people. When you decide it's time to lose weight, you are then faced with the problem of which diet is right for you? It can be overwhelming to try and research the different diets, most of the websites are run by companies trying to sell you their program. It's also hard to find solid diet information concerning nutrition and health benefits. Which diets are medically safe? Which diets are simply fads and probably have health consequences? We are going to take a look at the 5 most popular diets available today. There rankings came from a variety of sources, including US News and WebMD, among others. Not every diet is for ever person and you should consult your medical professional before starting a diet plan. Most plans are set up to help you lose weight wisely and permanently, you want to avoid yo-yo dieting. There are additional health benefits to consider when you plan on losing weight. Lower blood pressure, reduced risk of diabetes, lower cholesterol and better heart health all go hand in hand with losing unnecessary weight. [gallery ids="20,21,22"]

1. Mediterranean

It's hard to find a reputable source that doesn't rank a Mediterranean diet as the best for weight loss and overall health. With an emphasis on fruits, vegetables, whole grains, fish and olive oil, this diet (actually a lifestyle) is wonderfully balanced nutritionally and has a wide variety of cuisines that are part of the plan. There isn't a set Mediterranean diet, it actually represents that eating and lifestyles of countries around the Mediterranean Sea. Cuisines as diverse as Greek and Italian, French and Spanish are all types of Mediterranean diets. Studies have shown that people living in these areas and eating the foods natural to the regions have fewer heart problems, lower rates of diabetes, less obesity and less cancer and cardiovascular problem. It involves an active lifestyle and less emphasis on red meats and sugar.

Following a Mediterranean style diet means an emphasis on fruits and vegetables, fish, whole grains and olive oil. It allows for an occasional glass of wine, some pasta and rice and, within moderation, some desserts. This type of menu is wonderful for controlling diabetes and is often recommended for people with heart issues. It is usually quite easy to follow, there are no points or other counting systems in place. Most of it is common sense when it comes to portions and having a wide variety of menu options to avoid boredom.

Planning Meals

Because of its popularity, there are hundreds of cookbooks specializing in Mediterranean cooking. Many offer full meals, some concentrate on fish, while others are more vegetarian in nature. Here are three that we recommend, the recipes are tasty, easy to follow and give you a great assortment to chose from. The Complete Mediterranean Cookbook is a #1 seller on Amazon. It is packed with over 500 different recipes that are all faithful to Mediterranean style cooking. Most of the recipes can be made with ingredients commonly found at home and for those with a sweet tooth, there are some nice dessert recipes. The 30 Minute Mediterranean Diet Cookbook is a great starting point if you are planning on trying this type of diet. The recipes are well written and, as the title states, meant to be prepared in 30 minutes or less. It's easy to follow and one of our favorites because it includes such a wide assortment of recipes. There are some nice pasta dishes that are definitely worth trying! Mediterranean Cookbook For Instant Pot combines the most popular diet plan with the most popular cooking appliance. There are over 60 recipes designed to be made in the Instant Pot, most using very basic ingredients found in most kitchens. The instructions are very clear and have detailed programming lists for your Instant Pot.

Mediterranean Plan Pros:

Heart healthy Nutritionally balanced Wide variety of cuisines

Mediterranean Plan Cons:

Can become expensive to stock your kitchen Requires preparing most meals at home

Best Diet Plan Rating: 4.75 out of 5

2. DASH

DASH is an acronym for dietary approaches to stop hypertension. It's heavily promoted by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute as an effective diet to stop or prevent hypertension, also known as high blood pressure. It encourages us to eat the foods we know are good for us (fruits and vegetables) while cutting down on, or even eliminating, the foods that are not so good for us (sugars, fats, red meat). It's been proven to be amazing effective at reducing high blood pressure as well as lowering cholesterol, helping to reduce or avoid diabetes and improving your overall health. It's not a complicated plan but the foods allowed are on a very specific list.

What Can I Eat When Following DASH?

Fruits, vegetables and whole grains are top of the list. DASH also caps sodium intake, starting with a daily level of around 23oo milligrams and lowering that number to 15oo milligrams per day. It eliminates sugary drinks (one of the major causes of obesity), dramatically reduces the intake of full fat dairy items and cuts back (or eliminates) red, fatty meats. It's more restrictive than a Mediterranean diet but it is overall healthier and has better long term benefits as it is easier to follow for longer periods of time. DASH doesn't operate with the theory of making major, dramatic changes all at once. It tries to introduce minor but important changes to your eating habits, maybe adding one vegetable to dinner to replace a starch. To enjoy the rewards and benefits of this diet you will need to change many of your eating habits but it can be done gradually. One of the best ideas is to work up to 2 meat-free days per week, plus adding a 15 minute walk after each meal. These aren't earth shattering changes but over a few months they will make a dramatic difference in your weight and overall health. It does what diets should do.

Planning Meals

DASH plans are fairly easy to find and follow. Meals will use more herbs and spices than salt for flavoring so you may need to stock up when you start. You also will want to replace white flour for whole wheat and use olive oil. Here are a few cookbooks we really like that are true to the DASH lifestyle: DASH Diet Cookbook: 500 Healthy And Yummy Recipes. The title says it all, 500 really good recipes with easy to follow instructions. The recipes make great use of herbs and spices to give the meals some real flavor. The DASH Diet Cookbook For Beginners is a solid place to start when you are planning to go on the DASH plan. 21 days worth of meals are laid out here, taking the guess work out of planning and trying to figure out what to make. The recipes are tasty and very easy to follow. The DASH Diet Instant Pot Cookbook is the perfect guide for following a DASH plan and using your new Instant Pot. There are over 250 recipes, all created with the Instant Pot in mind. Each one is well written and has instructions on programming your Instant Pot for best results. A DASH plan is similar to a Mediterranean diet but the differences are significant. DASH doesn't allow rice or pasta, and the meals are a bit more restrictive. DASH has proven more heart healthy but both are very good diet plans.

DASH Plan Pros:

Extremely heart healthy Nutritionally sound Lowers blood pressure (hyper-tension)

DASH Plan Cons:

Expensive to get started. You will need to buy special foods at the beginning. Can get repetitive as happens with many diets.

Best Diet Plan Rating: 4.5 out of 5

3. Flexitarian

Despite it's unusual and confusing name, flexitarianism is rapidly becoming one of the top diets to be recommended by doctors and nutritionists. It's core revolves around a vegetarian diet but it allows some additions of meat and dairy in controlled amounts. Basically it is a flexible vegetarian plan, and its results have been favorable. A flexitarian plan will be started with a plant based diet, like a vegetarian. It does allow for limited intake of meats and dairy, helping to eliminate one of the key reasons that people have for not trying vegetarianism, they enjoy meat. As the average American consumes over 220 pound of meat each year, a flexitarian diet will cut that amount but not eliminate it completely.

I Can Eat Meat?

Yes, but in limited amounts. The meal plans revolve around plant based foods (fruits and vegetables) but there are options for limited amounts of fish and meat. Most people who practice diets like this will have 5 meatless days per week, with meat being allowed on 2 days. It can be an uncomfortable change to stop eating meat all at once, studies have found that people stay on this diet longer and have better long term weight loss with a gradual elimination and reduction of meat. By reducing the amount of meat consumed you can still enjoy most of the benefits of a vegetarian diet. Weight loss is steady and the health benefits are numerous. The risk of diabetes is lowered, high blood pressure is lessened (helping to eliminate hyper tension), overall heart health is better, and the risk of cancer is lower. There is an additional benefit to this type of diet. By eating less meat, there will be less stress on the environment. The production of meat can be expensive and can have negative effects on the environment. Basically you are reducing your carbon foot print while improving your health. [gallery ids="82,83,84"]

Meal Planning For Flexitarian Diets

Because flexitarian diets are based on vegetarian plans, it can be quite easy to find easy to make, great tasting recipes. Here are a few of our favorite recipe sources if you are following a flexitarian plan: Mostly Plants is an easy to follow cookbook with over 100 recipes. As a source for flexitarian dieting it is a good place to start. The dishes concentrate on plant based meals and are easy to follow. You can add an ocasional meat dish to go with most of these recipes. Damn Delicious Meal Prep is a different kind of cookbook, but it as a great resource for a flexitarian diet plan. Written with easy to follow recipes, this book will help you quickly and easily prepare healthy meals that can be adopted well to a flexitarian plan.   The Flexitarian Diet has over 140 recipes that can be used as mix and match idea when it comes to meal planning. This cookbook does a great job of explaining why certain foods should be added to a diet and the health benefits of that food. Plus, the recipes are outstanding!

Flexitarian Plan Pros

Nutritionally good. You may have to add some vitamins to your diet. Very flexible (hence the name!). Wide variety of recipes and plans to follow.

Flexitarian Plan Cons:

Requires extra prep work and meal planning. Can be expensive as you stock your kitchen.

Best Diet Plan Rating: 4.25 out of 5

4. Weight Watchers (WW)

One of the most recognizable names in the world, Weight Watchers has morphed from a diet plan with support meetings to a complete lifestyle planning plan that not only concentrates on weight loss but also on improved health. WW launched its Freestyle program in 2017, based on a points system that bring nutrition to the front of the rating system. By helping to address overall health (instead of only weight loss), WW is helping its clients to achieve sustainable weight loss plus the added benefits of better health. The main structure of Weight Watchers stays the same. There is still a support system (meetings, counselors, videos etc) to help someone stay on the plan while changing some behavioral patterns that lead to unhealthy eating.

Lots of Ready Made Foods

Part of a diet plan is to change eating habits. You need to substitute unhealthy foods for healthier foods while still maintaining a healthy diet. While it can be expensive to eat only ready made foods, this option is great to have as a supplement when you are planning your new diet. Weight Watchers has a huge variety of all types of foods. Everything from entrees, breads, snacks and desserts are available at most local supermarkets. All will have a point listing so that you can keep track of you point total. With Freestyle, the fewer points you have, the better.

What Can I Eat.

With Freestyle you can eat just about anything. Following the mantra of Julia Child (there are no bad foods to eat, there are simply too large a portion of foods being eaten), WW doesn't restrict too many foods. It's all about portion control, cutting back on quantities of certain foods (did you really need to eat that entire pizza?) and adding some activity to your life. A well balanced Weight Watchers diet will have variety, plus plenty of fruits and vegetables. It allows you to have your favorite meat and to have a dessert. If this sounds like a fantasy diet, think again. It requires a lot of planning and work. Many people struggle with getting portion size under control, it will take some behavioral changing on your part.

Meal Planning

Another benefit of Weight Watcher's popularity and enduring image is that there are literally hundreds of resources for you to use to plan your meals. Weight Watchers posts some basic ideas on their website that are good starting points. Here are a few of our favorite Weight Watchers cookbooks:   Weight Watchers Cookbook 2019-2020 is packed with ideas and meal planning tips. There are over 600 recipes to choose from, all with point totals spelled out so that you are always aware of your point status. The recipes are tasty and very well written.   Weight Watchers Freestyle Program 2019 was written specifically for the new Freestyle points program. Not only are there over 100 recipes, this cookbook gives you an entire 30 menu planning tool. This is a great place to start your Weight Watchers diet and it is one of our all time favorite cookbooks.   No diet plan would be complete without an Instant Pot option. The Weight Watchers Instant Pot Cookbook has recipes for entrees, soups, desserts and other meal options, all with Freestyle points assigned to each food. The recipes also have detailed instructions on how to program your Instant Pot to perfectly create your meal.

Weight Watchers Plan Pros:

You can eat anything (it's all about portion control). Nutritionally solid. Amazing amount of ready made options.

Weight Watchers Plan Cons:

Ready made food can be expensive. The ability to eat any foods can lead to overeating.

Best Diet Plan Rating: 4 out of 5

5. The Mayo Clinic Diet

Long the most respected name in medicine worldwide, the Mayo Clinic has been actively involved in diet and lifestyle plans for years. While examining what foods people eat and what happens with certain diets, Mayo has long championed a diet and lifestyle pattern that focuses on an overall improvement of one's health. Weight loss is a part of that improvement but it comes from behavioral changes, not from a superfood or special restrictive diet. Like other weight loss plans Mayo uses a food pyramid to describe which foods should have more quantity in your diet. Stressing fruits, vegetables and whole grains, this diet plans concentrates on foods that have low energy density. What that means is that you can eat more of those foods, feel fuller but not add unwanted weight. The example that Mayo often uses is the calorie count of 1/4 of a Snickers bar is the same as 2 cups of broccoli. That may not be the most effective comparison but it's meant to show the increased volume in the foods you can eat, making you feel more full.

What's Different About This Plan?

Long term goals and long term change are the themes of the Mayo Clinic diet plan. While most diets try to change unhealthy eating behavior, this diet concentrates on your overall health behavior and address issues beyond what you are eating. Exercise, activity, mental health and personal outlook all come into play with a well planned, varied diet that is quite easy to follow. Quite a few studies have shown the Mayo diet to have excellent long term benefits. Weight loss is the most noticeable but there is also reduced risk of heart problems and cancer. Lower blood pressure (and reduced rates of hyper tension) are common and most participants in the long term studies felt that their overall energy levels were much higher.

What Can I Eat?

A good portion of this plan is plant based but there are allowances for some meat and the occasional dessert. The start of these diets can be intense, you jump right into a fairly strict diet but the results tend to come quickly. It's not uncommon to lose 5-8 pounds in the first two weeks and up to 12 pounds after 3 weeks. Phase 1 is called Lose It! while phase 2 is titles Live It!. Phase 2 is designed to help you continue to slowly lose weight until you have reached your weight loss goal, all while you are learning new lifestyle habits that will improve your health. There are fewer specific Mayo Clinic diet resources but there are plenty of plant based diet cookbooks and plans on the market. Here are a couple of our favorite Mayo Clinic specific books that we recommend: The Mayo Clinic Diet specializes in the lifestyle improvements that are the core of this diet plan. There are diet plans and recipes to help you with your meal planning, plus tips to help you make small but important changes in your daily activities. The New Mayo Clinic Cookbook is a joy to read and the recipes are outstanding. This is a great resource even if you aren't following a Mayo plan. The recipes are healthy but delicious. Most are quite easy to prepare and use common ingredients found in most kitchens.  

Mayo Clinic Plan Pros:

Created by the Mayo Clinic. Tested and proven. Nutritionally sound, better than most diets. Flexible. You get to create your plan.

Mayo Clinic Plan Cons:

Plenty of meal preparations, can be time consuming. Can be expensive. You need to replace some basic foods in your kitchen.

Best Diet Plan Rating: 3.9 out of 5

Atkins Friendly Beef Huevos Rancheros on Canadian Bacon

You've heard it since you were a child-breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Some may argue with that statement but it is true when you are on a diet. This Atkins-friendly breakfast treat, beef huevos rancheros on Canadian bacon, has less than 2 grams of carbohydrates and is a delicious way to start your day. You can make up a larger batch of the ground beef with spices and have some ready for another morning. This recipe calls for scrambled eggs, but you can use fried or poached. It's simply your preference, the taste doesn't change. Mint can be exchanged for the cilantro.

INGREDIENTS

• 6 ounces Ground Beef (80% Lean / 20% Fat)
• 1/2 cup Green Chili Peppers (Canned)
• 1/4 tsp Garlic Powder
• 1 tsp Chili Powder
• 1/4 tsp Cumin
• 1/4 tsp leaf Oregano
• 1/4 tsp Salt
• 1/4 tsp Black Pepper
• 4 slices Canadian Bacon
• 4 large Eggs (Whole)
• 1/2 cup shredded Cheddar Cheese
• 4 sprigs Cilantro

DIRECTIONS

The directions for this dish call for scrambled eggs, but you can also serve them fried or poached.

1. In a greased medium skillet, brown the beef over medium heat.
2. Stir in chiles, garlic powder, chili powder, cumin, oregano, salt and pepper. Cook 5- 10 minutes to blend the flavors.
3. Lay the Canadian bacon slices over the top of the beef mixture to warm. Remove pan from heat and set aside.
4. In another skillet, scramble eggs until firm. This can also be a good use of an electric griddle or skillet. Alternatively, pan fry each egg and place it on top of the beef mixture in step 5.
5. Place 1 piece of Canadian bacon on each plate, top with a quarter of the beef mixture and a quarter of the eggs. Sprinkle with cheese and chopped cilantro

Simple and delicious! Thanks to the good folks at Atkins for making this recipe available.

Tips For Effective Weight Loss

It can appear that losing weight will take forever. Having motivation when beginning a weight loss routine is easy. However, keeping the motivation high after a few weeks can be very difficult. Is there a reason why that doesn't happen for everybody? Some people lose weight and keep it off. Why is it that they are successful and how can you replicate their results?

It All Starts With A Diet Plan

Setting clearly defined goals is one of the most important steps in weight loss. Are you looking to shed lots of pounds, or do you just want to reclaim clothing that has not been worn for many years? Is it that you want to be healthier and feel fitter? You should set a weight loss goal to give yourself something to achieve. Check and document your progress on a weekly basis. You should only weigh yourself once a week and keep track of your weigh-ins. Keep a food log in the journal of everything you consume each day. When you have a record of what you are eating, you will be more mindful about choosing healthier options for your meals. Keeping track of your meals and activities is necessary for any diet or lifestyle change to work. Food decisions that are last minute are most of the time the result of being overly hungry. Do not wait until you are extremely hungry to eat. Create your menus in advance, and never be without healthy snack foods. Bring a healthy meal from home instead of going out for lunch. In addition to saving money, this will help keep calories to a minimum. You're much more likely to break your diet if you've gone a long time without eating. Eat before you're extremely hungry to avoid the trap of overeating. You should try to keep healthy snacks available and have all of your meals planned out. Instead of eating out, take your lunch with you. This will be easy both on your wallet and on your calorie count.

Weight Loss Requires Changes

The key to losing weight has never been a secret. It may be easier said than done, but all you need to do is eat healthy and begin a fitness plan and the pounds will start coming off. It is important that you exercise three times a week or more. If working out this often is difficult for you to do, then you must ensure you do exercises that you love. Meeting up with friends for a walk is a great way to socialize and get in some exercise. Enjoy your workout in nature if you can. Hiking trails and bike paths offer some great outdoor space for working out by walking, biking, inline skating or even skateboarding. Sign up for a class and learn a new high-energy style if you enjoy dancing. Throw away any unhealthy food that is found in your cupboards. Remove all unhealthy choices and you will not give into temptation. This will make it difficult to have the foods that are bad for you within easy access, which means you will not eat as much of them. Learn more about this weight loss waist trimming belt by clicking HERE.     Invite a friend to workout with you. In many cases, if there is nobody to keep us accountable, we tend to slack off and neglect what is best for us. Working out with friends helps keep you motivated to keep going, especially when you start feeling fatigued or discouraged. You and your friend can encourage one other as well as give advice when asked. Dieting can seem lonely and a bit overwhelming. Share your goals and plans with others, they can encourage you and may join you. Lifestyle change sounds daunting but it can be done and the results are worth the effort. Lost weight, better overall health and more energy are long term benefits that all can enjoy.

The Atkins Diet

About 40 years ago, Robert Atkins created a low carb diet that still carries his name today. The Atkins diet is one of the most well known, and most followed, diets that people work with. While it was considered a fad diet to begin with, it is now regularly recommended by doctors and nutritionists as a good plan to follow when you want to lose weight. [gallery ids="43,44,45"]

Atkins Versus Mediterranean Diet

While both diets pay attention to carbohydrate intake, the Atkins diet allows red meat and dairy while a Mediterranean diet concentrates more on fruits, vegetables and fish. Nutritionally a Mediterranean plan is more balanced and probably more heart-healthy, but Atkins users have had rapid and noticeable weight loss. The plans are very different in their meal planning. Low carb diets, like Atkins, are designed to change how your body gets its energy. Usually your body will burn carbs to produce energy, not fat. By starving your body of carb, your system turns to fat for energy and this is where weight loss will come from. Studies have shown that this type of diet can be more successful with long term weight loss than just counseling and behavior management. It, like most diets, works best with an exercise program started at the same time. This type of weight loss tends to be more permanent and the health benefits are more noticeable.

Health Benefits

Generally, excess weight is a negative for your body. Too much weight can lead to high blood pressure (and hyper tension), heart problems and the possible onset of diabetes. Low carb diets like Atkins have been successful in reducing hyper-tension and helping to reduce or eliminated diabetes symptoms. This diet also reduces sugar intake and benefits from this are also seen early in the diet process. Overall energy levels tend to increase as your body burns fat instead of carbohydrates. Adding an exercise program helps as well to increase energy and improve your general health. Because of some of the restrictions on certain types of food, it is recommended that you consult with your health professional and pay close attention to your vitamin intake.

What Can You Eat?

  Atkins diets start off with a lot of green vegetables, meat and dairy. This may sound wonderful but it does require some discipline in meal preparation. Most dairy is allowed (milk, cheese, butter) as well as red meat and fish. There are no starches (a key source of carbs) so you will be giving up bread, rice, pasta and potatoes.   Surprisingly, some desserts are allowed with this diet, but not the usual suspects. No cake or doughnuts, no cookies or ice cream. There are some interesting dessert options using ricotta and sugar substitute that can really help to handle any sugar cravings. Some of the cookbooks we reviewed have wonderful salad and entree recipes that will help keep boredom from setting in.  

Ready Made Foods

Following an Atkins diet can be easier than some other diet plans due to the wide variety of ready made food options that you can pick up at your local grocery store. Some of the meal selections are very good and the snack and drink options are spectacular. The protein-rich shake is thick, creamy and can be served cold. The snack bars are great treats to have on hand. Low in carbs, they help to satisfy not only any hunger pangs but also to help with those times you just have to have a sweet.

Does This Diet Work?

Yes, but like any diet it will take work and discipline. Many people like Atkins because so many of their favorite foods (steak, hamburger, cheese) are allowed. Some find the meals dull and heavy, it does take some creativity to plan meals that have flavor and variety. At the start, your body goes into a ketosis state. This can lead to some indigestion and even bad breath. This state passes soon but it can be a few days before all the symptoms disappear. Nutritionally the diet is not as sound as a Mediterranean or DASH diet but careful planning and the addition of vitamins can offset any shortcomings.