The body needs fat. We are told to consume between 25 and 30% of our calories from dietary fat to support a variety of biological functions including the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins, the maintenance of healthy hair and skin, and the creation of various hormones. The interesting thing is that our body can actually produce fat from various compounds within the body except for ‘essential fatty acids’, which must be consumed. A few tablespoons of freshly ground linseeds each day should do the trick.
Cut to a low fat diet, which seems like the most obvious way to lose weight – and it is, but not the way you first suspect. Many people embark on a weight loss diet of very low fat foods – cutting out fries, chicken skins and full fat dairy to shed the pounds. Food manufacturers certainly come to the party with low fat versions of practically every rich and fatty food.
With so much low fat food being consumed, you’d think we’d all be fitting into our skinny jeans. Unfortunately, a calorie is a calorie and any attempt at weight loss must consider this as the bottom line. You could eat a 1000 calorie a day diet containing only fat and still lose weight. You could also eat a variety of low fat foods and your calorie intake can be just as high as before you embarked on the low fat diet. And now matter whether you de-skin your chicken, broil your fish and cut the white layer of fat from your steaks, the artery clogging, cholesterol raising animal fat is IN THE FLESH. There’s no getting around that.
The simple truth is that if you create a low fat diet plan of whole foods including fruits, vegetables, grains and legumes; and if you keep your consumption of nuts, seeds, avocados and plant oils down to 1-2 serves per day, you’re sure to lose weight in the easiest possible way. Let me explain why. A plant-based diet is a fibre-rich and nutrient dense low fat diet plan. Your calorie intake will be naturally low and you will not feel hungry. Fruit for breakfast, followed by oatmeal; a mixed bean salad for lunch; a quinoa and sweet potato pilaf for dinner with as many fresh vegetables as you desire is not a diet of deprivation, and these are all low fat foods. Best of all, this fat loss diet is one you can stick to for the long term – the only real way to make a permanent shift in your body size.
For more fast weight loss tips you will want to read my articles about fasting weight loss and The Abs Diet.
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