7 Healthy and Natural Diet Ways

Healthy - Many people think that a healthy diet to lose weight is to reduce portions and types of food. However, a proper diet is not just about how many portions you eat.

So, what are some tips for a healthy diet to help you lose weight?

How to eat a healthy diet to lose weight

A healthy diet is actually not as easy as it sounds. The wrong diet strategy can actually backfire for people who want to lose weight.

Dieting to reduce weight needs to be done in the right way.

1. Calculate calorie needs

Before designing a food menu, the most appropriate way to start a healthy diet is to identify your daily calorie needs.

Each person has different calorie needs based on various factors, such as age and health condition.

For example, obese people will have different calorie needs than healthy people who want to lose weight.

According to the Mayo Clinic website, by getting the right amount of calories from food and drink, the body gets the energy it needs.

As a result, body functions will run normally, from thinking, pumping blood, to breathing.

So, before planning a diet to lose or maintain weight, first identify your calorie needs so that your body continues to function well.

2. Manage food portions

Apart from calorie needs, another healthy diet method that needs to be considered is managing food portions.

When on a diet, it doesn't mean you have to avoid various types of food.

The reason is, all types of food are still needed by the body, it's just that you need to manage each portion well.

Ideally, quoting from the Indonesian Ministry of Health website, you can divide the plate into 4 parts consisting of:

• side dishes,
• staple foods or carbohydrates,
• green and colorful vegetables, and
• fruits.
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In essence, you need to adjust your meal portions to the principles of balanced nutrition.

Don't forget to avoid fatty or high-sugar foods at dinner, so your weight doesn't increase drastically.

3. Make a regular eating schedule

Many people believe that skipping meals can reduce weight quickly. In fact, this is not true.

Skipping breakfast or other meals actually makes the body feel hungry quickly, blood sugar rises and falls drastically, and stress.

If you want to reduce meal portions, you can divide 3 large meals into 6 meals throughout the day with small portions.

The key is, you still need to avoid foods high in fat and high in calories.

Apart from that, make sure not to skip breakfast with foods high in protein and fiber.

This aims to make the body feel full longer until lunch time arrives.

4. Eat slowly

Eating slowly turns out to be a healthy diet method that is often underestimated. In fact, this method can make you feel full faster.

According to Harvard Medical School, experts report that a full stomach is part of a person's satisfaction with eating after eating.

This satiety factor is also triggered by brain activity. The brain processes a series of satiety and satisfaction signals from hormones released during the digestive process.

That's why eating too quickly often feels less filling.

When you eat too quickly, the body does not have enough time to send signals of fullness and satisfaction to the brain.

As a result, you may continue to eat because your stomach is not yet satisfied.

Read More: Benefits Of Dragon Fruit For Diet

5. Eat until you don't feel hungry 

If you want your weight loss program to be successful, try to eat until you don't feel hungry.

These healthy diet tips aim to prevent the body from having excess energy which will later be stored as fat.

Accumulating fat can result in weight gain again.

Therefore, start to be more sensitive to the sensation of hunger and eat when these physical cues appear.

Try to eat a large portion in the morning and reduce the portion gradually until dinner.

At first it may feel difficult. However, this way of losing weight is much safer when you can adjust to it over time.

6. Exercise regularly

Not only adjusting your diet, a healthy diet method that you shouldn't miss is exercising regularly.

When your body uses energy to actively move, this will help burn calories from the food you consume.

The important key to regular exercise as a healthy diet method lies not only in intensity, but also in your consistency.

Do exercise for at least 30 minutes a day 3 – 5 times a week, depending on your capacity and needs.

If you have difficulty finding the right time to exercise, take advantage of daily activities such as cleaning the house and walking more.

7. Adopt a healthy lifestyle

The healthy diet method above will be useless if it is not accompanied by lifestyle changes to become healthier.

The reason is, your daily habits also have an important role in determining whether your healthy diet program will be successful.

These habits include sleep patterns, alcohol consumption, and stress management.

Avoid the habit of staying up late and make sure you get enough sleep for 7 – 9 hours per day.

Stop the habit of drinking alcohol and divert your attention by doing other activities when the urge to drink arises.

Also try to manage stress because your mental health plays an important role in facilitating your healthy diet program.