Lose Weight Fast and Safely: Weight Loss Plan

Fast and Safe Weight Loss Plan

This Weight Loss Plan is a flexible diet that lists the basic ingredients available to you for each meal. The more variety you can achieve in the preparation of the food, the better. Remember that boredom is a big factor in the failure of many weight loss programs!

When you wake up:

Start your day each day with a cup of boiled water with a slice of fresh Lemon in it. Lemon helps with the production of bile – which breaks down fat in the food supply. Put the Lemon in the cup and pour the boiling water over it. Leave to cool and draw for about three minutes and sip slowly.

Breakfast

This is an important meal! Wake up your metabolism and use the following foods to prepare your breakfast.

• One cup of high fiber plain cereal or oats (no sugar or flavoring like chocolate! No muesli!)
• Use fruit juice or skim milk with the cereal.
• Whole apple cut into slices or wedges or a Grapefruit
• Cup of herbal tea or juice. (Fennel tea is very good for weight loss and will also help to settle the stomach)

Note: One slice of whole-wheat or rye bread/toast with low fat cottage cheese (or a hard boiled egg) can be substituted for the cereal three times a week. Don’t leave out the apple or the herbal tea!

Midmorning

• Cup of herbal tea
• 2 small whole wheat or rye crackers (you can use a 0% fat spread like vegemite on them)
• 1 apple cut into wedges or slices

Main Meal

You should preferably have your main meal at midday, not at night. This gives your body a chance to digest it and to use up the calories instead of storing them. If this is impossible, make sure that you eat at least three hours before going to bed.

Use the following foods in a variety of ways to prepare your food. For example you may grill, steam or bake (not fry) the fish/meat/chicken whole or you may cut it into small pieces and stir-fry it in a low-fat oil with the vegetables or the pasta.

• One medium portion of fish/chicken or lean meat (red meat not more than twice a week)
• One small portion of starch (brown rice, pasta, potatoes – boiled, steamed or baked)
• (avoid lamb or mutton and remove the skin from chicken before cooking)

One big portion of raw salad containing:

• a green leaf vegetable (lettuce/cabbage/spinach),
• an Orange vegetable or fruit (Orange/carrot/tangerine),
• a green vegetable or fruit (cucumber, green Pepper/celery/parsley)
• a red vegetable or fruit (red Pepper, tomato) and
• a white vegetable or fruit (apple, pear, cucumber). Add sprouts like lentil, alfalfa, barley or a few Sunflower seeds if you like.

You can substitute the salad three times a week with cooked vegetables from the above groups so long as they are steamed, baked or lightly boiled – or cooked in Lemon juice or plain yogurt. Try and include all the colors – green, red, Orange, yellow and white!

If you are a vegetarian, you can increase the salad and add almonds, low fat cottage cheese and Sunflower seeds or use soybeans, tofu, egg or other protein source.

Mid-afternoon snack

Same as for the mid-morning snack. These snacks are important – don’t skip them!

Second meal (lunch or supper)

• 1 red apple
• 1 green apple
• 1 banana
• 1 Orange
• 1 other fruit, e.g. strawberry, melon, peach, pear, etc)
• 1-cup plain low fat yogurt
• 1 glass fruit juice/herbal tea.

Either combine the above into a fruit salad and use the yogurt as a dressing or cut the fruit up into attractive wedges/slices and arrange on your plate. You can then eat the yogurt separately.

Before bed

• Cup of Chamomile tea (good for the stomach and also soothing and relaxing) or a cup of warm low fat milk;
• One banana or one sweet plain biscuit
• (this snack will also help you to sleep)

NOTES:

• Drink at least 8 glasses of water a day – non-negotiable! Begin each meal with a glass of water.
• No sugar allowed! Use artificial sweeteners if you absolutely must – but rather try to become accustomed to going without sugar. This eating plan provides lots of natural sugars.
• Good herbal Teas to drink are Mint tea, Chinese Green Tea, Fennel tea or Chamomile (sleepy tea) – all good for digestion!
• You can cook or flavor with Lemon juice, Herbs, Garlic or Ginger to your heart’s content. You can also use Oriental Spices like tumeric, chilli, masala, etc – but no MSG! Moderate amounts of salt are OK, but don’t overdo it!
• Try to have your main meal at midday, so that you have a chance to digest it.
• If you are tempted to deviate from the eating plan, get up and DO something! Go for a walk, visit a friend, write an email, put on some music and dance – do anything! But, most importantly, get away from the food that is tempting you!
• No calorie-counting, food weighing or worrying please! ‘Big’ means large, ‘medium’ means a little smaller than your norm and ’small’ means just a little. Don’t fuss – it stresses you out and makes you head for the chocolate!
• It is a good idea to keep a daily record of your meals – it helps to commit yourself and to be able to identify where things go wrong.
• Try your best not to ‘cheat’ or ‘lapse’, but if you do – don’t despair! Don’t give up in misery and guilt. Accept that you are human, give yourself a ‘pep talk’ and start afresh!
• In addition to the meals in the Eating Plan, the following foods are ‘free’ and can be eaten as much as you like: apple, raw Carrot, Celery sticks, raw mushrooms, cucumber.

Above all, keep listening to your body!

Good luck and be well!

Related: Lose Weight – Healthy Way

Source: Natural Holistic Health

By: Michele Carelse is a Registered Clinical Psychologist and Licensed Counselor with more than 15 years experience running her own private practice.