This is the first article in a three part series on using the DEW method of weight loss. Each article will focus on one letter in "DEW". Today we will discuss the "D" which stands for diet. I started out with the "D" word, can you believe it? Of course you can, as any weight loss program has to take this into consideration. Here is the simple fact - you can not eat 5000 calories a day (or each meal for some of us) and expect to maintain or even loss weight. Unless, of course, you have a very physical job or run marathons every other day, then you might need the 5000 calories a day to fuel your body. A couple of common sense items is all for this area. You need to control the number of calories you take into your body. There are plenty of diet books and websites that will help you decide what is right for you, but somewhere around 2000/day seems to be the norm. It is different for men and women. Here is the key - whatever you decide is right for you spread them through out the day. If you try to "diet" and eat little or nothing for breakfast and lunch and then eat all you calories at dinner (followed by a late night snack - come on I do it too so let's be honest). This pattern causes your body to go into survival mode due to the starvation the first half of the day and store most of the calories as fat when it finally does get feed to get it through the next morning. So find a way to spread your calories out over the day, small amounts ever couple of hours to keep the hunger away and feed your body as it needs it, not all at once. So I packed my desk at work with low calorie items (pretzels, granola, almonds, etc.) and between meals (10 am & 2 pm) I would snack a little to keep my metabolism up. And I had a snack again at night, it is important if you do this you give your body time to process those calories. Right before bed it not the right time. Try to make your final snack 2 - 3 hours before going to bed if possible. There are plenty of diets out there and even more information on "what" to eat. I will leave that for you to decide what works best for you. Again, my point is that when and how you eat is maybe more important than what you eat. This three part series is an expanded version of my original article The D.E.W method - how I lost 13 lbs. I hope this information has been helpful to you and check out part 2 when we discuss the "E" which stands for exercise. A final reminder, before starting any diet or exercise program consult with your physician to determine what is right for you. Good luck and good health. |
