Fast Diet For Rapid Weight Loss

Weight loss is an ongoing issue that affects an untold number of people today. And as the number of diet meal plans, appetite suppressants, and other weight loss products continues to increase, along with our love for a sugary diet loaded with fats and carbohydrates, weight gain has increased as well.

Due in part to this alarming rate of increase in weight, many people are turning to the fast diet - fasting - as a way to jump start their weight loss program, or as a means to get control over their unhealthy eating habits.

Depending on the type of fast diet you choose to follow, and your health when you begin, fasting for weight loss can be undertaken for as little as 1 day or for as long as 30 days. But, as with any other diet or weight loss program, always consult with your doctor first so that he can advise you based on your current health and fitness, and any medications that you may be taking.

Once it has been determined, with the help of your doctor, that you have no underlying health issues that would adversely affect you, you are ready to begin your fasting diet. Fasting diets can be a very effective way to lose unnecessary body fat as well as an excellent way of cleansing unhealthy toxins from your body and getting rid of unhealthy eating habits.

When you burn more calories than you take in, you will lose weight naturally through a negative calorie balance. This negative balance can be brought about by either decreasing your food intake, or by increasing the number of calories you burn through exercise.

And even though fasting will certainly reduce the amount of calories you consume, giving you a healthy way to jump start your weight loss program, it is not recommended that fast diets be used for weight management.

Instead of becoming an endless journey of weight gain and weight loss that plagues so many people, weight management should be achieved through maintaining a specific weight, and the best way to do this is by changing your eating habits to a diet that you can continue to follow indefinitely with no fear of 'falling off".

If you happen to have underlying emotional eating habits, a fast diet can actually be unhealthy for you, possibly leading to eating disorders such as binge eating or anorexia, both of which are dangerous to your health.

There are three types of fast diets – a juice fast, a fruit fast, and a water diet (or water fast).  On a juice fast you drink freshly squeezed juices that include - but are not limited to - carrots, apples, fruits, and greens.

On a fruit fast, the participant is allowed to eat fruits ONLY – of any kind and in any amounts.  And a water only fast is pretty self-explanatory – you drink nothing but water while on the fast.

Most people who are fasting to lose weight begin with a water-only fast, which normally lasts 1-3 days, followed by juice fasting. The juices used for the fast are freshly squeezed at home using a juicing machine because the most beneficial ingredient in the juices are the living enzymes which die after about 24 hours. So in order to gain the most benefit from the juice, it must be fresh-squeezed.

Once you have achieved the intended goal for the juice fast, you can then begin the fruit portion of the fast which should be one half the length of time you spend on the water and juice phases combined. In other words, if you fasted drinking water and juice for a total of 10 days, then the fruit-only phase should last a total of 5 days.

It is important to use as much organic produce as you can when you are juicing. Just imagine pouring fungicides and herbicides into your body at an alarming rate as you juice 2 pounds of carrots for 16 ounces of juice!

Now that all three phases of the fast are completed, you can move on to a raw food diet of vegetables and fruit for the same length of time as the fruit phase, and you’ll continue to see rapid weight loss. You’ll also be cleansing out your lower intestines with the added fiber of the toxins that build up when you aren’t eating.

Living food is great for a living body, so be sure to include as much raw food as possible as you transition to a diet of foods that you can continue to eat and maintain your weight loss.

Fantastic health, spiritual, and weight loss benefits can be gained by following a good fast diet. Your overall health will also benefit with the right motivation and support while on the diet. Make sure, however, that you don't sabotage all the benefits you have gained from fasting by attempting to use it for long-term weight management.