Dieting Tips for Those Making Lifestyle Changes

(MS) - Dieters often make three mistakes: they deprive themselves of the foods they love, chip away their meals until there are too few calories and, not to mention, they're on a "diet" in the first place.

Take such moves in overhauling your eating patterns and you're bound to fail because your brain will sabotage your diet, says Mary Boggiano, a University of Alabama at Birmingham psychologist who studies abnormal eating patterns.

"A lot of Americans want a quick fix so they are lured by crash diets," Boggiano says. These diets are often too low in calories, cut out favorite foods and are monotonous in favoring only certain type of foods, such as all-carb or protein diets.

However, the brain responds to extreme, low-calorie diets by triggering the metabolic appetite - the body's need for more energy and calories - that can leave you hungry and vulnerable to overeating, Boggiano says. In turn, when dieters deprive themselves of the foods they enjoy or rely on bland foods, their hedonic appetite - the brain's craving for yummy tasting foods - kicks in. Hedonic appetites can especially be triggered when a person is stressed and seeks out a reward food, such as potato chips or chocolate.

Eventually, dieters succumb to fighting the two appetites and end up unable to stay on their diet, which results in old eating habits.

So if going on a "diet" is wrong, what can you do? Instead, consider it a lifestyle change, not a short-term diet, nutritionists say. And along with some physical activity to boost your metabolism, satisfy a healthy mixture of metabolic and hedonic appetites to meet a 1,200- or 1,500-calorie diet.

Experts also offer the following tips:

· Eat balanced meals: Boggiano recommends three meals a day, and no skipping breakfast. Research has shown eating breakfast and low-fat meals are two common characteristics of people who keep weight off long-term. Meet national dietary guidelines of fruits and vegetables, dairy, carbohydrates and protein.

For an individual meal plan of what foods you need for your age, activity level and gender, refer to the United States Department of Agriculture MyPyramid Plan at www.mypyramid.gov.

· Go low fat and count calories: Maintain a low-fat diet, which can help you feel more full, and limit how much saturated fat, trans fat and cholesterol you eat. To reduce trans fat, cut back on foods containing partially hydrogenated vegetable oils, such as commercially baked and fried foods. The 2006 American Heart Association Diet and Lifestyle Recommendations call for a goal of less than 7 percent of saturated fat and trans fatty acids of less than 1 percent of total calories.

Boggiano says that adults who eat no less than 1,200 calories a day should be able to maintain steady weight loss of up to two pounds a week. If you have trouble keeping track, some nutritionists recommend maintaining a food journal to record what you eat and the calories and fat content.

· Watch portion size: Dinner plates have gotten larger and meals have gone super-size. For example, a suitable portion size at a fast-food restaurant is actually a children's meal. For quick portion-size judgments, remember that three ounces of meat or protein is about the size of the palm of your hand, one ounce of cheese is about the equivalent of your thumb size; and one cup of milk, yogurt and fresh vegetables is about the size of a tennis ball, according to the American Diabetes Association.

· Drink healthy: What you drink - such as soft drinks, alcohol and whole milk - can also be adding calories to your diet. On the flip side, drinking water may actually help you lose weight and feel more energetic throughout the day. That's because research has shown that being dehydrated makes you feel hungry and may cause you to overeat.

Can't stand water? Try flavored water, without any added sugar, or unsweetened fruit juice, vegetable juices and fat-free milk instead of whole milk, which can save you about 80 calories or eight grams of fat.

Making such lifestyle changes can be easier said than done. That's why Boggiano recommends taking it "one meal at a time."

Eat a healthy breakfast and then focus on a healthy lunch and dinner. "Then you've had a really healthy day," Boggiano says. "Next thing you know you're eating healthy weekly, monthly and yearly."