Two Shakes-A-Day Diet Plan — Lose Weight And Keep It Off
It’s a very liveable plan that’s backed up by clinical research. Adjust your carb intake to lose weight faster or slower. Be sure to exercise at least three times a week and then enjoy steady weight loss without radical changes in your diet. After you review the research below that supports the Two-Shakes-A-Day Diet Plan, read the rest of this article for more weight loss tips. Compelling research shows that drinking 1-2 shakes a day can help you lose weight and keep it off.
A clinical trial published in the Journal of Nutrition tracked the body weight of 90 overweight men and women during 23 weeks of drinking two shakes a day. No other instructions on what to eat were given. They drank either whey protein (28g of protein each), soy protein (28g of protein each) or carb shakes. Each shake contained about 200 calories. They drank them around breakfast and dinner. The whey group lost 4 pounds of body weight and 5 pounds of fat mass, as well as reduced their waist circumference and fasting hunger hormone (ghrelin) levels.
The soy group lost 2 pounds of body weight and 2.4 pounds of body fat. The carbohydrate control group showed minimal changes. After 10 weeks, the MRP-exercise group experienced an average of 6 pounds of fat loss and a 2-pound increase in lean body mass. The exercise-only group lost 2.4 pounds of fat and gained 1.8 pounds of lean body mass. The control group experienced minimal changes.
Of the three groups, only the MRP-exercise group experienced a 12% reduction in cholesterol and 13.3% reduction in LDL (“bad” cholesterol). Also, the time to exhaustion during a standardized treadmill test improved by 21.2% in the MRP-exercise group compared to a 9.8% increase in the exercise-only group and a 1.4% in the control group.
For reference, during the last 8 weeks of the study, each day the MRP-exercise group consumed 131g of protein, 190g of carbohydrates, 63g of fat and an average of 1,854 calories. The foundation of your shake will be a high quality protein powder mixed into water, not juice. Add about 20-30 grams of protein per shake - the older you are, the more you may need to maintain muscle.
Which should you choose? Whey protein may have the best diet research results, with slower digesting milk proteins next, then soy or plant proteins. Whey provides good satiety, digests easily and is one of the best muscle-building proteins. It makes a good base shake ingredient and contains about 140 calories and 25g of protein per serving.
The protein in milk (casein) is slow digesting and can help you feel full longer. Many protein blends combine whey and milk proteins so you get the benefits of both. Meal replacement powders (MRP) are larger serving sizes of a protein powder that provide 250-300 calories. They contain a blend of whey and milk proteins and have added carbs, fiber and vitamins.
Many people use a half serving, which provides about 20g of protein and 10g of carbs. These sources are good for those who like to avoid dairy or have specific milk allergies. Add fiber to your shake to keep hunger away and to control blood sugar spikes. These fibers absorb water and expand in your stomach to create a sense of fullness.
Fiber also slows the normal increase in blood sugar in response to a meal, even when drinking just protein. It also helps replace the fiber you’ll be lacking as you cut back on carbohydrate-based foods that normally provide most of your fiber. Try to get 25g of fiber a day. Psyllium husk fiber is primarily a soluble fiber that absorbs about 50 times its weight in water.
This helps create a bulkier, softer stool and minimizes constipation that is common during carbohydrate restriction. A study over an 8-week period showed those who took 2 capsules of this plant fiber before breakfast, lunch and dinner lost 5.5 pounds while the placebo group gained weight. Take it before a meal or add it to your shake by pulling apart two capsules and pouring in the fiber powder.
It swells quickly so don’t save it to drink later. Just 1 tablespoon of these gluten-free seeds provide about 5g of fiber, 3g of protein and 2.5g of omega-3s. Stir in with just a spoon. No need to grind them. They swell up slower than other fibers, so you don’t need to drink it within a few minutes.
Fats help slow down the digestive process, making you feel full longer. Since protein powders are low in fat, you’ll want to add some healthy omega-3 fats like flax oil, fish oil or chia seeds. This will give your shake more “staying power”. These good fats have been shown to reduce insulin resistance, which improves fat burning in muscles and inhibits fat storage. In one study, overweight subjects took 6g of fish oil (1.9g of omega-3s) or a sunflower oil placebo for 12 weeks along with exercise.
The investigators noted the fish oil group had the greatest decrease in body fat (almost 4 pounds). Add one tablespoon to your shake, which provides about 7.6g of omega-3s (ALA) and 120 calories. It has a mild flavor that won’t ruin the taste. Add a teaspoon to your shake, which provides about 1.5g of omega-3s (EPA and DHA) and 40 calories.
Or if you prefer, take 1-3 softgels. Fish and krill oil are the preferred source for omega-3s. A reasonable dose is 1-3g of fish oil a day. Most people should eat between 0.5 to 1 gram of protein per pound of ideal body weight. Eating protein helps prevent the breakdown of muscle so your weight loss is fat, not muscle.
0 Response to "Two Shakes-A-Day Diet Plan — Lose Weight And Keep It Off"
Post a Comment