But this does not mean that turning vegetarian overnight will make you slimmer. There are a number of vegetarian food items which include higher amount of calories like nuts, peanut butter, salad dressings, sweets etc. which can make you fatter. Not only that, vegetarians must make sure that their diet provides all the necessary nutrients, especially proteins.

Advantages of vegetarian diet

Experts say that calories from plant based foods are being used more as fuel for the body than stored as fat. One reason for this is the fact that vegetarian food increases insulin sensitivity. As a result, nutrients enter the cells more rapidly to be converted as heat, rather than to be stored as fat. Vegetarian food is also low in saturated fat.

The number of obese among vegetarians is comparatively lesser. Vegetarianism also keeps obesity-related health problems like heart diseases, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes at bay.

Nutrients-rich vegetarian food

It is not fair to compromise health for weight loss. So plan your vegetarian diet in such a way that you are not deprived of any essential nutrients. You can get enough proteins from nuts, seeds, legumes and soy products like tofu and tempeh. Whole grains and rice can keep you satisfied for longer duration. Eat lots of fruits and vegetables that can provide you enough vitamins and minerals. If you are not using dairy products, you can have soy-based alternatives for milk, yoghurt and cheese fortified with calcium, vitamin D and riboflavin. You can also take daily multi-vitamin and mineral supplements to fill nutritional gaps, if there is any.

Things to avoid

While sticking on to vegetarian diet, it is important to avoid items which contain high calories like cheese, butter, salad dressing and fried food. Snacks, crackers and candy are also in the ‘to avoid’ list. Not only do they add unwanted calories but also has zero nutritional value.

Can everybody follow a vegetarian diet?

Some experts do not agree with the argument that anybody can follow a vegetarian diet. It is advisable for children, teenagers, pregnant and breast-feeding mothers to consult the doctor to make sure that they do not miss the much needed nutrients like proteins and minerals while following vegetarian diet.

For better results

You must plan what you are going to eat and must avoid last minute choices, which will not always be the right choice. You can add variety to your daily menu by including different fruits and vegetables, instead of following a monotonous diet every day.

Main contributing factor to this syndrome is probably caused by a fundamental malfunctioning in the body’s system that works on storing and burning energy. Other factors could also be genetics, unhealthy lifestyle , in-appropriate diet especially those high in refined carbohydrates and low in fiber, smoking, high intake on saturated fats, and progressive weight gain.

Metabolic Syndrome appears to have exponentially increase the risk of various health problems, notably heart related disease, diabetes, and possibly certain type of cancer too. It’s important to note that you don’t need to be obese to suffer from this Syndrome ! Many people think that obesity is the most crucial and deciding factor in this metabolic syndrome. This is not true and it’s dangerous to carry on without any treatment for the syndrome as your risk of subsequently developing more serious illness increases as time flows.

In general, if you have three or more of the following listed then you do probably have it, and you should start now to reverse your risk with appropriate diet and exercise :-

• Waist Measure : more than 40 inches for males ; above 35 inches for females
• Blood pressure: greater than 130/85
• Serum triglycerides : greater than 15o mg/di
• High fasting glucose ( or blood sugar ), of at least Ho mg/d1 of blood
• HDLs : less than 4o mg for males and less than 5o mg for females

In general, the following steps should be taken if you have sign of suffering from metabolic syndrome :-

1. Work on to start losing those excess weight.
2. Increase physical activity ; Example, more exercise.
3. Watch your blood pressure level. Take steps to reduce it if it goes high.
4. Adopt healthy diet plan consisting more on vegetables and fruits.
5. Watch your cholesterol level. Consider to take medication to control it if the level doesn’t goes right.
6. Avoid a very low-fat diet ! Yes, low fats dietary is alright, but ‘very low-fat’ diet is not ! Any diet that has less than 20 percent of calories from fat could exacerbate metabolic syndrome. Usually, eating very little fat means an increase in carbohydrate consumption can cause both triglycerides and blood glucose to rise, worsening metabolic syndrome.

Discuss with your local health care provider to see if you should pursue further medication or more appropriate diet, exercise, and stress control.

However, you need to know that it isn’t healthy to force yourself to lose a pound by exercising as much as you can. Many doctors will recommend you to lose two pounds per week maximum. This recommendation will help you to get the body you dreamed of in a much safer way because you let your body to adjust to your diet plan and exercises.

So, what should you do to lose two pounds per week and doing it safely ?

Jogging !

• Train your body to do at least an hour jogging for five days a week. Slow jogging for an hour should burn about 350 calories in your body. By doing this for five consecutive days, you could lose about half-pound. Combine this with a healthy diet plan, and you could easily slash out one pound of fat from your body.
• One thing you need to remember never put in more calories than you burn. That’s why you need to control your food intake by having a healthy diet plan and implement it to your daily routine. The easiest way to do this is by preventing yourself from eating too much after your running session. If you’re hungry, it’s normal. Eat a large salad or several fruits are much better than the pasta dish you have.
• If you’re like many people who can’t run for an hour in their first time, start with a smaller time-frame, like 10-15 minutes a day, and slowly increase it. It will help your body to adapt to this new exercise without exhaust yourself.

Cook your own food

• While it’s easier to just go out and grab some fries and hamburgers, it’s much better for you to cook your own food. By doing this, you could control how many calories you put in your body by taking a smaller portion. Also, it will prevent you from having a calorie-fest that will end up by having more calories than you burn.
• However, it doesn’t mean you can’t eat out at all. If you’re on the social party, you’ll likely have to eat in there. Just discipline yourself by choosing which one better for your diet plan than eating all foods that available in there. For example, choosing salad than hamburgers is one of the smart moves towards your weight loss goal.

Those are two things that you could do to lose weight at least one pound a week. The first one is jogging, and second is by cooking your own food. It’s probably hard to do at first if you never do this before, so make it as a habit that you should do everyday.

Keep motivating yourself and stick to the plan for couple of months and you’ll see the results you want ! You’ll be having the fine smile when you achieve your desire weight level !