Shedding mass is not as complicated as made by fitness programs, weight management lessons, and diet plans. The approach is simple and easily manageable. You should consume a protein-rich diet if you are looking to gain muscle mass and put on more weight. However, if the plan is to take some kilos off – a low-fat vegan diet is the key.
“Eat for the body you want, not for the body you have.”
The presumed health gurus, often seen preaching about cutting back on carbohydrates, going calorie deficit, and increasing the amount of protein in your diet. Unfortunately, they do not practice what they preach. The fact that one needs to understand is that weight loss is all about reducing the fat content of your intake.
The carbohydrates and proteins weigh equal on the calorie per gram counter, but the real differentiator is the percentage of fat saturation. Food with higher protein content, especially animal products, are brimming with fats.
Carbs are Friends
The internet is full of misguiding myths about carbohydrates, and a few of them are:
Carbs make you gain weight – complex carbs are the answer to weight loss as they contain more fiber that helps in maintaining a healthy weight.
Avoid eating carbs at night – your body deals with any food intake regardless of time. You can and should consume a carbs-rich diet according to your diet plan.
Fruits are sugars – fruits are amongst nature’s magnificent blessings, and they contain carbs in the form of natural sugar. Processed food with high sugar content is the reason behind weight gain and not fruits.
There is no truth to these instead, carbs are friends, and your body deals with carbs-calories differently than fat-calories. Your body stores carbs in limited quantities and uses it for energy.
According to a study conducted by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicines, “When your body tries to turn carbohydrate into fat, it wastes 23 percent of the calories of the carbohydrate. But fat is easily converted into body fat. Only 3 percent of the calories in fat is burned in the process of conversion and storage. It is the type of food that affects body fat the most.”
In a nutshell, you should include carbohydrate-rich foods with high fiber content in your diet plan to maintain your weight effectively.
Start Exercising – It Helps
For effective results, follow the 80-20 rule. The weight management is all about 80% diet and 20% exercise. You can achieve your ideal weight by making changes to your diet alone; however, the combination of diet with exercise produces a complete healthy package.
There is a multitude of exercises from walking to running, swimming to weightlifting, and the list goes on. You should be picking the one that best suits your lifestyle and which you can continue with a disciplined pattern.
Here are a few activities for weight loss:
Walking – a good way to add activity to your lifestyle.
Running – depending upon your body structure, you can start with setting small goals.
Weight training – helps you to build strength, muscle weight, and lose weight.
Swimming – one of the most effective ways to maintain your weight.
Aerobics – a combination of several exercises for exceptional results.
Go Vegan with The Power Plate
There are innumerable benefits of switching to a vegan diet ranging from weight loss to better heart health to avoiding cancer. Going vegan may sound hard, but with the power plate concept, things get surprisingly delicious.
The power plate consists of four plant-based components: fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes. With the power plate, the options are infinite, and you can devour on a new dish every day rather than sticking with the limited meat options.
Here’s what your taste buds can treat on;
Vegetables – Broccoli, Kale, Sweet Potato, Carrots, Eggplant, Tomato, Spinach, Onion, etc.
Fruits – Mango, Papaya, Orange, Melon, Kiwi, Apple, Cherries, etc.
Legumes – Tofu, Lentils, Beans, Almonds, Chia Seeds, Quinoa, Oats, Wild Rice, etc.
Whole Grains – Rice, Oats, Spelt, Barley, Millet, Sorghum, etc.
Mouthwatering Vegan Dinner Ideas
If you have already switched to a vegan diet and need ideas to add vibrant colors to your dinner menus, here is three steps method that will help you build your personalized dinner menu:
Take a pen and paper and jot down three vegan meals that you always enjoy. The most common choices are vegetable stew, stir-fried veggies, vegan lentil soup, hummus quesadillas, Thai red curry with vegetables, and an assortment of salads.
There is no hard-fast rule about creating a vegan recipe. Think about a dish that is always on your wish-list and replace the ingredients to make it vegan. For example, replace chicken or beef burritos with bean vegetable or spaghetti squash burritos. Similarly, bid adieu to chicken sandwiches and feast on a crispy cauliflower sandwich.
Experimentation leads to remarkable results – explore cookbooks, consult online recipes, and exchange ideas within your vegan circle to come up with delicious dinner menus for self and family members.
The Final Takeaway
Don’t fall for quick weight loss programs, instead make significant changes to your lifestyle to ace the art of weight management. You should include carbohydrate-rich food with high fiber content in your diet plan. Make sure to add exercise to your daily routine for improved results. Finally, go vegan with the power plate plant-based food diet.
