What is the best weight loss plan?

Keto for weight loss, Paleo for energy, low carb, low fat, intermittent fasting, eat every two hours…how do I choose a weight loss plan?

It’s no wonder we are so confused.  For every low carb diet, there is a low fat diet to take it’s place.  The thing is, there is no one perfect diet.  Now, I’m definitely not a doctor, so I can’t prescribe a diet for you.  However, I am a serial dieter that has come to a big realization…

The perfect diet is the one you’ll stick to for life.

This seems like a no-brainer.  Yet, so many of us (myself included) jump blindly into a weight loss plan because a celebrity or a friend had success with it.  It seems like I have tried diet plan to lose weight.  When it comes down to it, only the changes I permanently adopted led to any long term weight loss.

Weight Loss Advice

Losing weight is difficult.  It requires a change in habit.  Changing a habit is hard.  The key is, pick your hard.  This means, whatever weight loss plan you follow, it has to be something you can honestly see yourself doing for life.  Otherwise,  you will fall into your old patterns and the weight will creep back on.  Having said that, let’s look into some of the diet options and the commitments you would have to make in order to successfully lose weight on these diet plans.

Keto Diet for Weight Loss

The Keto Diet is a popular way to loose weight.  If it works for you, great!

Here’s what you have to agree to do in order to be successful on Keto: eat less than 30 grams of carbs a day.

Can you give up breads and pastas? If so, this diet may work for you.  The advantage to the Keto Diet is that it puts your body in ketosis, reducing your appetite and making you better able to burn fat as fuel.  You’ll be less hungry, making it easier to control your calorie intake.  For someone who doesn’t want to track calories, this may be a great option.

Intermittent Fasting for Weight Loss

There are different ways to do intermittent fasting.  Some restrict their eating to a certain time each day, others fast completely for a certain amount of days a week.

To be successful with intermittent fasting, you must: be okay with being hungry.

For some, it’s a psychological stress to go without food for an extended period of time, plus it can feel rather uncomfortable.  The times I tried intermittent fasting, I felt too weak for my runs, which wasn’t going to work for me.

Who is intermittent fasting is good for? Someone who doesn’t want to measure or count calories.

It’s also good for those with many social obligations.  You can plan your fasting days around dinner out with friends and not have to worry about restricting calories on your eating days. It can also be good for someone who is short on time.  Not eating frees up a lot of mental energy and food prep time.

Counting Calories/Macros for Weight Loss

All diets rely on calorie restriction.  To lose weight, you have to burn more calories than you consume.  Our phones make it easier to track calories nowadays.  Apps like MyFitnessPal and LoseIt give us pocket calorie counters.

To be successful with counting calories, you must be okay with…counting calories.

This means you need to count every day, every meal.  You also will need to measure all of your food to make sure you have the correct calorie counts.  Counting calories is good for someone who wants the freedom to eat what they want in moderation.  No foods are off limits, which allows for some flexibility.

What is the best overall plan for weight loss?

As, you can see, it’s complicated.  I truly believe there isn’t one plan that will work for everyone.  There may not even be all parts of a plan that work for you.  Maybe you want to eat low carb most days, but have a carb heavy dinner the night before a run.  Maybe you want to track your calories every day, except Saturday night when you know you always go out with friends.  What I have learned from my years of dieting, is that there might not be a plan that fits perfectly for your lifestyle and your goals.  Whatever you decide, consistency is the key.  If you choose not to track on Saturday night, make sure that doesn’t creep it’s way into Sunday.  And make sure you weigh yourself regularly.   If what you are doing isn’t working, maybe you need to tweak things again.  This is why it is so important to take an objective look once in a while.  You know your body best.

Follow me on my weight loss journey.  I’ve got running goals and I’m ready to do the hard things in order to achieve them!