Weight Loss Guides

When you're starting a diet or exercise plan, weight loss guides and ideas can provide a useful tool to help you along the way. As well as the diet information, you also need to look at working out - so why not check out GymEquipment.co.uk for the best deals on a wide range of home exercise gear.

Weight loss guides can help you ensure that your diet or your exercise programme is safe, and also provide you with goals to aim for, and ways to measure your progress.

Many weight loss guides and ideas are geared towards specific diets or programmes, but here are five general weight loss pointers to help ensure you've chosen a safe and healthy diet to follow:

1. Does the diet include all food groups?
You need to include grains, fruits, vegetables and dairy in your diet to ensure you're not missing out on essential vitamins and minerals. Lack of variety also makes it harder to stick to a diet long term.

2. Does the diet restrict calories too severely?
Nutritionists estimate that women need a minimum of 1,900 calories daily, and men need a minimum of 2,550. A minimum of 2,000 calories a day is the safest option for a healthy body.

3. Does the diet include your favourite foods?
If the diet you've chosen bans foods with a high sugar content you might find it hard to stick to during special occasions. Better to allow yourself small amounts of your favourite food, so you can keep to your diet in the long term.

4. Does the diet advise exercise?
Diets that promise quick weight loss without exercise are misleading, as research has demonstrated that exercise is crucial both to losing weight and to maintaining weight loss.

5. Does the plan fit your lifestyle and budget?

Many slimming programmes use their own brand of foods, which can become costly. You're less likely to stick to a diet if you can't afford it, so research the cost implications first.