c0$m0$ eniGm@tic mir@ge: *Crash the Crash Diet with Honey ;) *

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Crash diet and its meaning:

Crash diet means trying to lose weight in a very short span of time by eating very less food. While trying to reduce the intake of calories, the important nutrients are left out from the diet. This leads to weight loss in an unhealthy manner. To reduce weight in healthy way, it is important to cut the calories in a gradual and phased manner. To lose weight one must burn more calories than one eats. So workout is very important for a healthy weight loss.

Calorie requirement:

A woman requires almost 2000 kcal/day on an average to maintain a healthy weight. The figure for a man is around 2500 kcal/day. This requirement may vary to some extent depending on age, physical activity or related activities.

BMI:

BMI refers to Body mass index. Body Mass Index (BMI) is a person's weight in kilograms divided by the square of height in meters. BMI gives an idea of whether you’re underweight, overweight or an ideal weight for your height.

If your BMI is:

Under 18.5 - you are underweight and possibly malnourished.

18.5 to 24.9 - you have a healthy weight range for young and middle-aged adults.

25.0 to 29.9 - you are overweight.

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Losing weight in a healthy way:

Losing weight is one thing and losing weight in a healthy way is another. Practising Crash diet may lead to a speedy weight loss but it impacts the health in a bad way. It may lead to weakness and long-term poor health. Depending on what part of a healthy balanced diet one is missing in the crash diet, it may slow down the metabolism, prevent one from getting important nutrients and vitamins that body needs to work properly or may make one feel energy deficient.

People who crash diet by missing out food or greatly cutting down on their daily calories tend to put weight back on quicker than those who follow a healthy, long-term diet plan. To lose weight in a healthy manner, eating right is more important than eating lesser.

One may use the substitution method in his diet rather than cutting the important nutrients from food straightway. Swapping of certain food materials with healthier options and cutting the Junk food intake is a healthier way to lose weight along with appropriate amount of workout.

Do’s and Don’ts in the Diet:

Avoid processed foods and Ready to eat foods. Swap the white bread with the whole grain based breads. Include more healthy carbs in the diet like oatmeal, sweat potatoes. Swap the milk based coffee and tea kind of beverages with green tea. Green tea contains anti-oxidants and helps in burning the fats. Swap the regular milk with skimmed/ semi-skimmed milk.

Increase the intake of fresh fruits and salads in the diet. Include more green leafy vegetables in the diet. Swap the intake of soft-drinks with fresh juices with no added sugar. Fruits like Avocado are source of healthier fats, while blueberries, oranges and pears are rich in fiber. Fruits with a lot of water like water melon are also beneficial in weight loss.

While it’s important to reduce fat consumption, it cannot be left out from a balanced diet. So, know the type of fat which does you less harm. Prefer unsaturated fats over Saturated and Trans fats. Saturated fat comes mainly from animal sources of food, such as red meat, poultry and full-fat dairy products. Trans fats are made from oils through a food processing method called partial hydrogenation. Saturated fat raises total blood cholesterol levels and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels while Trans fats increase the unhealthy LDL Cholesterol. Unsaturated fats which include plant based oils and omega-3 fatty acids, however, improve blood cholesterol levels, which can decrease the risk of heart disease.

Use natural sugar substitutes for sweetness like Coconut Sugar or Honey. Fruit juices can be used to add sweetness to cakes, tea or coffee. Honey has less calories and sweeter than honey. Moreover, Honey has a special enzyme to honey which makes the liquid easy to digest. It is also a source of anti-oxidants. A Spoon of honey taken with warm water in the morning is traditionally known to be useful in weight management.

On a concluding note,

Enjoy the process of losing weight by not starving yourself and suffering from the nutritional compromises of a crash diet.

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Here I am sharing a simple recipe which uses Honey as substitute for sugar:

Ingredients

# 1/3 cup honey

# 1/4 cup orange juice

# 1/4 cup canola oil

# 1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice, plus the juice 1 lemon

# 1 1/2 teaspoons poppy seeds

# 1/4 teaspoon salt

# 1/4 teaspoon prepared mustard

# 1 apple, cored and diced

# 1 banana, sliced

# 1 avocado, peeled and sliced

# 1 (11-ounce) can mandarin oranges, drained

# 1/4 cup raisins

# 1/4 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

Method

For the dressing, combine the honey, orange juice, oil, 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice, poppy seeds, salt, and mustard in a jar with a tight lid; cover and shake well. Toss the apple, banana, and avocado with juice from 1 lemon to prevent the fruit from turning brown. Combine the fruit, raisins, and nuts in a glass bowl. Add the dressing and stir gently.