The Meal Replacement diet review
In very special occasions when weight
'fast fix' is required desperate people will do
every possible thing to get rid off excessive pounds. Most of them probably will use
some 'magic' pills, extreme diet programs or even
food substitutes as well known slim fast shakes.
Yes its true, when needed even "slim fast" could take to consideration. No matter how hard it is
to replace real food with snack, chocolate bar or strawberry shake when
the duty calls we are there to starve ourselves but achieve better
looks needed.
The theory behind the diet
The diet, as we all know, is limiting or
restricting some high calorie value foods and utilizing of stored fats as energy
source for daily activities, in long term provides weight lose.
Meal replacement diet with 1,200-1,400 calorie
intake daily provides easy way to take control on the food consumed and
promotes fast weight loss.
Is it difficult to follow the diet?
No, in fact it's quite easy. Get a most
popular meal replacement as 'Slim fast and follow instructions.
The general idea is replacing breakfast and lunch
with food replacement as favored taste shake, soup and bar, and having
healthy 600 calorie meal at dinner. 2-3 snacks with 100 calorie intake
are allowed during the diet. Dinking of 6-8 glasses of water is
essential to wash out toxins.
For a dieter who's suffering from a lack
of time slim fast ready meals are available too. To assist in long term
weight loss maintaining slim fast supplies even written information
with guidelines regarding to right eating habits, safe and healthy
weight loss and living active life style.
What is the Estimated weight loss rate?
The weight loss during the diet regimen is
determined by total calorie intake during the day and your activities.
One with extreme activities could lose more than others with lower
level of activities.
An average dieter is estimate to lose about 1-2
pounds of excessive weight during the week.
How safe and healthy meal replacements are?
There are clear directives which are manifested by
law, about ingredients and meal replacement content.
By the guidelines
meal replacement should contain 200-400 calories with no less than 25%
protein and 23 essential vitamins and minerals in content.
By the healthy eating regulations, it's recommended that adult have
about 18gr fiber daily when the meal replacements provide about 5-6gr
fiber for meal.
Snacks, fruits and vegetables are included in the diet
plan, are completing the required amount.
Meal replacements are not the only nutrition
sources opposing to the popular belief. They are differences between
very low calorie diets which provide only 800 calorie intake per day
and couldn't be recommended as healthy and safe weight loss
promoters.
Meal replacement diet Pro's
The biggest benefit of the diet is fast weight loss
in short time period. The old belief that meal replacements
can't be useful for long term weight loss are widely
researched and there are some claims that they certainly can assist to
maintain long term weight loss.
The meal replacements are convenient in usage; you
don't have to worry about the food and calorie counting as
already done.
Diet Con's
Long term trials for research purpose are provided
in the UK,USA and Germany.
Most of the studies were provided with meal
replacement products free of charge.
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Known fact is that people would stick the diet if
they buy the products themselves with their own money.
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Most studies used meal replacements as part of a
comprehensive research program which includes support and dietary
advice from health professionals. There is almost no information about
dieters which bought and used meal replacement products in diets on
their own.
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Finally, in most studies only overweight or obese
individuals were involved - few of the studies was made on
normal weight individuals with a Body Mass Index of 20-24.9, willing
lose a small amount of weight.
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Another crucial problem with meal replacement diets
is that they do not invest in education of the dieter to healthy eating
habits. It's certain that replacing a high-calorie breakfasts
and lunches with a shake, soup or bar will result in weight loss. More
certain is that returning to poor eating habits when you stop taking
the products, you will gain the weight back again.
Nutrition experts recognize that to make meal
replacement products are effective in long term weight loss,
it's essential to provide required education and advice
support on healthy eating habits when meal replacement products are no
longer used.
Dieters who are concerned only with
"quick-fix" weight loss; education about healthy
eating habits isn't always a priority.
Who do Meal replacements suit?
As British Dietetic Association recommends meal
replacement diets are considered dieters with a simple approach to
weight loss and don't want to think about planning or
preparing individual meals - calorie and portion controlled meals make
it easier to follow the diet.
Dietitians in Obesity Management UK approve that
diet the will be useful for people with lack of time or have difficulty
with preparing meals and calorie control or understanding on portion
sizes.
Who does the meal replacements do not suit?
Many people find the diet boring after a while
because of the limited flavors. In general, if you enjoy variety of
foods in your diet and like to cook, you will not enjoy surviving on meal
replacements. The meal replacements aren't for you if you
hate strawberry, chocolate and vanilla milkshakes.
And when it comes to money, it has to be outlined
that this diet is quite expensive - most meal replacement
products are quite pricey. Those with low budget can afford much more
if they'll buy fresh fruit and vegetables. Individuals
suffering from lactose intolerance, most of the products
won't be suitable as they are based on skimmed milk.
Are the products suitable for people with diabetes?
According the studies using meal replacements is
safe for overweight or obese individuals with type 2 diabetes. However,
it's best to preliminary consult with doctor, before any
weight loss plan, including one based on meal replacements, as
medication might need to be adjusted as a result.
Side effects of the diet
There are no publications about adverse side
effects of using meal replacements. Some time ago when meal
replacements were considered as 'quick-fix' weight
loss supplements it led to a yo-yo dieting. Most of the dieters piled
the weight back at once they returned to their eating habits.
Today, dieters can maintain long-term weight, if
they consult with professional support and stick to a healthy, balanced
diet even when they stop consuming the products.
Expert's opinion
Although meal replacement products are available
for quite some time, until now most health and nutrition professionals
didn't recommend them for safe weight loss. But
now, thanks to the results of the studies, several major health
organizations recommend the meal replacements as a suitable option for
weight loss. The National Obesity Forum, The British Dietetic
Association and Dietitians in Obesity Management UK claim that meal
replacements are alternative to other conventional dietary treatments
and may benefit some people.
However, they also recommend investing more in
education about healthy eating habits combined with some physical
activities, as the safest way to long term weight loss.
Conclusions
To summarize it all, we can claim with confidence
that meal replacements are safe and may assist in achieving
"quick-fix" weight loss. Results of researches are
approving the safety of meal replacements and weight loss ration was
achieved by motivational and professional support provided to the
dieter during the restrictive diet regimen. Although, more research is
required to determine suitability of the meal replacement diets to
dieters who are looking for a small "fix" in their
weight.
Usage of meal replacements is probably safe and
unlikely to cause any harm for short term diet but there is more
research to do about how successful these replacements are in long-term weight
maintenance.
It is crucial to understand the basics of
healthy eating habits and stick to guidelines to prevent weight gain
after weight loss goal is achieved.
Anyway, during the whole diet
process dieter must follow well balanced diet plan to avoid
complications which might be caused by a lack of necessary vitamins or
minerals.
Awareness to eating habits, well balanced diet plan
and some physical activities might assure successful weight loss and
long term weight maintaining too.
And
a word of caution: If you still urge to try meal replacements diet, there is not particular reason why
you should avoid it.
My suggestion to all dieters is: You should use
meal replacement diet plan in order to "quick-fix" your weight
and when desired weight is achieved switch to a longer-term
healthier eating plan according the guidelines described above to enjoy
eating "proper" food and live healthier lifestyle!
More about Meal Replacement Diet:
weightlossresources.co.uk/diet/meal_replacement.htm
healthcareltd.co.uk/html/meal.html
annecollins.com/diets/liquid-diets.htm
nationalobesityforum.org.uk/content/view/187/169/
steadyhealth.com/thiking_of_doing_a_meal_replacement_diet_t77682.html
disabled-world.com/artman/publish/shakes.shtml
gnc.com/sm-diet-and-energy-energy-formulas-meal-replacements--fi-2108253.html
dietdirect.com/protein-diet-meal-replacements-63.html
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