If you have no time to read the rest of the article, the answer is no. The Mediterranean diet will NOT help you lose weight. In fact, no diet on this planet will help you lose weight.
What? Really?… Yup! A diet does not make people lose weight. A caloric deficit does.
What is a caloric deficit, you ask? In simple words, you expend more calories than you consume. All weight loss is dependent on a caloric deficit. It doesn’t matter if you’ve cut all your carbs as described in the Atkins diet or you’re gorging yourself on meat like a paleo diet caveman.
As long as you are consuming more calories than you’re burning, your weight will not go down. In fact, it might go up. YIKES!
Mediterranean Diet and Weight loss
The Mediterranean diet will help you to lose weight. The keyword here is “help”. It is a means to an end and not an end in itself. When you put the Mediterranean diet together with a sensible exercise plan and ensure that you’re at a caloric deficit of about 500 calories a day, then WHAM! The fat will start melting off your body.
The Mediterranean diet is an excellent diet because it is easy to follow and most importantly, it is tasty! The Atkins diet is highly restrictive, and your body will crave carbs, not to mention the mood swings you will have.
The paleo diet requires a hardcore mentality and time to adjust. Most people can’t quite fathom eating animal organs such as livers and kidneys.
The Mediterranean diet, however, conjures up images of pan-seared fish coated with tasty olive oil and polished off with a glass of red wine.
The very thought of the Mediterranean conjures up images of beaches, breezes, beautiful women with the wind in their hair. It’s all so pleasant and classy. Definitely better than being some hairy caveman eating raw organs.
So, make the Mediterranean diet work for you. Eat the foods that are part of the diet. Cook them in the manner that you are supposed to and most importantly, eat in moderation.
Find out your daily calorie requirement. You can do this at http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm
The tool will tell you what your daily caloric deficit should be for you to lose 1 percent body fat per week. All you need to do is follow the numbers.
Start exercising for about 30 to 45 minutes a day. Mix up cardio with resistance training and lead an active life.
Your metabolism will go up, and since you’re on a Mediterranean diet, you will not be eating processed or junk food. You will lose weight much faster and still not be all stressed out from eating tasteless food.
That’s about it. You can lose weight with the Mediterranean diet if you control your calories and exercise. There is no simpler way to say this.
The Mediterranean diet will lower your cholesterol levels, prevent diseases such as cancer, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, diabetes, etc. It is an extremely healthy diet.
You get the best of both worlds. A diet that is yummy and still healthy. One can’t ask for more.
