I believe a healthy diet constisting of whole foods (whole grains, legumes, nuts, vegetables and fruits), coupled with portion control, is the secret to weight loss, and life long weight control.<br><br>
Stay away from overly processed foods containing white sugar, white flours, and white rice. These will cause weight gain faster than a high fat diet.<br><br>
I believe daily exercise is also key in getting, and staying, a health weight. It doesn't take much, something like a brisk walk, working with light weights, and streching, go a long way. It's so much easier to lose weight when you compliment exercise with your "diet", or lifestyle, changes.<br><br>
I was a somewhat overweight teenager (maybe 25 pounds), The weight fell off when I changed my dietary habits, and started exercising. I'll be 36 this spring, and I'm 5'6", 116 pounds. I've effortlessly maintained this weight for almost 20 years. My twin sister who has really poor eating habits, is about 20 pounds overweight. She eats less then I do, but she eats mostly overly processed foods. Refusing to eat in the morning, she eats mostly between the hours between 3pm and 11pm.<br><br>
When you eat foods nutritionally devoid of the nutrients your body craves, you put your body into starvation mode. Your metabolism slows down, and your body collects fat. Give your body the nutrients it needs to thrive, and it releases it panic, and you come into balance.<br><br>
Simple sugars also cause your body to panic because they enter your blood stream too quickly, causing major fluctations in your hormones.<br><br>
I'm presently producing a documentary comparing healthy lifestyle changes, with commercial diet gimmicks. After interviewing hundred of people, and following about 50 dieters, I can safely conclude DIETS DON'T WORK.