How to diet effectively?

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Source: I OWN this article; it is solely based on my personal experiences.
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I am no knowledable person to write on this topic, however, I felt that I should pass on some knowledge that I have gained through my personal experience. “To diet or not to diet?” is a dilemma faced by many health freaks. Dieting is often misinterpreted as cutting down on your food. But in reality it isn’t so! Let me explain what I just said in the form of a dialogue between two friends:

A: I am gaining a lot of weight. I need to do something. Any ideas/tips?
B: I have seen your eating habits. I suggest you stop eating rice and cut down on your rotis.
A: I tend to have heavy meals at night.
B: In that case I suggest that you skip breakfast.
A: Anything else you think I should do?
B: Well just try this out for a month and see the difference.
A: Thanks buddy!

In the above dialogue ‘B’ pretended to be a dietician just because his friend asked him for advice. All of us like to give advice, don’t we? ‘A’ should not follow what his friend advised him to do – he should use his common sense and visit a dietician or a nutritionist. Dieting is not just about cutting your food – it is all about eating the right proportion of food combined with regular exercise.

So what exactly is dieting?
Dieting is healthy intake of food as per your weight combined with a regular exercise. The basic aim is to reduce your weight and maintain it. There is this funda about your BMI (body-mass-index) – I won’t get into this funda because I have no knowledge on that.

How does one diet effectively?
Following are some basic Dos and Don’ts on dieting.

Don’ts
1) Never skip your breakfast even though you have had a heavy meal the previous night.
2) Never eat more than your capacity.
3) Avoid fattening food like mayonnaise, cheese, deep fried stuff and red meat if possible.
4) Avoid over-eating or under-eating.

Do’s:
1) Exercise regularly – at least thrice a week. If that is not possible then go for jogs or brisk walks.
2) Have fresh fruit juices everyday.
3) Maintain a balanced diet.

The exact ratio for toning down your body is 30% exercise and 70% dieting. Again, by dieting I do not mean cutting down on your food but a proper and balanced diet.

I wish to start dieting from today – what should I do?
Welcome to the world of physical fitness and dieting – contact your nearest nutritionist or dietician and get the ball rolling. Please note that you need a lot of patience and perseverance to reduce weight – these two qualities are extremely essential and will pay off in the long run.

I can recommend you my own dietician – Dr. Pallavi Patankar. She is good and will definitely see to it that you reduce your weight and live a healthy life. If you wish to get her details feel free to contact me on akshayem@gmail.com.

Here’s wishing you a healthy and happy life ahead!