Free Online Calorie Counter - Plan, Analyze, and Track Your Diet

Maintaining a healthy weight, for one's life, involves understanding how the body reacts to the foods eaten. Each one of us responds differently to food: 

our bodies are not identical. Franz can feel energetic and focused eating a meal plan of thirty percent protein, forty five percent healthy carbs, and twenty five percent healthy fats. Hilga is not the 

same as Franz. She needs a more carbs and fats than I do to achieve similar results. So how can a free online calorie counter help you to know what foods are best for you?

Obviously, calories are important in the makeup of an appropriate meal. When I consult with 

folks on how to approach healthy eating and meal plans, calories are discussed at the start, but once an appropriate value is determined, they don't need to count calories each day. It's more about servings of healthy proteins, carbs, and fats. A free online calorie counter is good to help 

you understand the energy values that certain foods contain. It helps you to keep in mind the fact that certain foods are better choices than others. In other words, given two healthy food choices, what do you want to spend your calories on?

Most free online calorie counter programs are okay, but they usually have some promotion of a particular diet program that go along with them. But, the USDA has launched a new diet 

tracking program at choosemyplate.gov. Along with a free online calorie counter, their program called Super Tracker allows you to search and chart the foods you want information about. Right now the USDA has about eight thousand foods in the database.

In addition to the free online calorie counter section of the site, there is also a fitness section. It can help you to determine the amount of calories burned during certain exercise activities. This kind of information might be helpful in motivating you to choose one type of exercise over another. It may also help you to realize that if you make a poor food choice, you may have to walk a mile to burn it off. It still comes down to calories in versus calories out. This free online calorie counter site might be just the thing to help you stick with your New Year's resolution!

Lets look at a quick example to show you how this can help you out in your weight loss goals. Let's say I am coaching a two hundred pound sedentary adult male, one who should be at one hundred and seventy pounds to have a healthy BMI. If he ate twenty six hundred calories a day, 

he would maintain that current weight. If he ate twenty one hundred calories a day, and exercised for thirty minutes, five days a week, he would lose a pound or two a week until the weight was gone.

Simple, right? The trick is to know how to put together healthy meal plans that have the proper nutrient make up for your body type, knowing what your body type is, and what exercise will be the most effective for you. Ah, that is where a little professional advise can save you some much time and effort!

Franz and Hilga are very passionate about healthy eating habits! They have been where most people are these days: choosing processed foods and ignoring all the healthy foods that should be eaten. One day, reality set in! Feeling tired all the time, being overweight, and just disgusted 

with how they looked and felt, they made a change. Franz studied how food and exercise affect the body, got a nutrition certification, and he has never looked back. For ten years now he has talked healthy nutrition habits to anyone that will listen.

Living full time in their RV gives them the opportunity to interact with people all over the country. They created a website to share knowledge in not only RVing, but also on optimal nutrition for better health and permanent weight loss.

Visit http://www.yourfulltimervliving.com/a-to-z-nutrition for articles, pictures, and all kinds of useful information.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Franz_Williams

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The Dukan Diet VS The Atkins Diet

Both the Dukan diet and the Atkins diet stick with the same objectives. Above all is to help in shedding weight and second is to reduce the ingestion of carbohydrates from food. One other important similarity is the number of phases which they share equally. Both of them offer 4 phases respectively. However, to satisfy the same objective, they follow 

two different routes. Where the Dukan diet stresses the usage of high proteins to minimize carbohydrates, the Atkins diet does not. It stresses on the consumption of carbohydrates which it would like to first reduce and then finish off in the dieter's diet.

Phase 1:
Where phase one in the Dukan diet is referred to as the "attack phase", the Atkins diet refers to it as the "induction phase". Although the objective of the first phase is comparable (to trim down body weight considerably), they go forward with unique methods. Dukan emphasizes complete protein food in this first phase, cutting down most of the carbs and 

fat. Atkins focuses on cutting down the consumption of the carbs only, and then works on switching the body from burning mostly carbohydrates (in the form of glucose) to burning mainly fat (including your body fat) for energy. Whilst there is no intake of carbs in the Dukan diet at all, Atkins diet allows for only 20 grams daily (including vegetables) during the first phase.

Phase 2:
Though objectives remain the same, there is a big difference in the paths in phase 2. The "Cruise phase" of the Dukan diet is about how to attain the target weight and for the first-time allows the dieter to eat vegetables. The Atkins diet 

ensures that a small increase of 5gm to 10gm (25 to 30 grams a day) in the intake of carbohydrates occurs in the first week of the phase "Ongoing Weight Loss" (OWL) until the weight stops to decrease so the dieter can easily determine when the maintenance period should start. Then the dieter is advised to subtract five grams of carbohydrates from their daily consumption so that they move on with sustained, moderate weight-loss.

Phase 3:
The diets use a different approach at phase 3, which is the "Consolidation phase" for the Dukan diet and "Pre-maintenance" for the Atkins diet. For the Dukan diet, this is the start of the maintenance period of the dieter's "true weight" that was attained in phase 2. Where as at this phase the Atkins diet performs the preparations required by the Pre- maintenance period. The carbohydrate intake is reduced again to achieve the goal weight.

Phase 4:
In this last phase, "Stabilization" for Dukan and "Lifetime Maintenance" for Atkins, it's about showing everyone around you that "Yes! I can stick to it!" At this stage both of the weight loss programs will make you climb onto exactly the same platform. You will have to live the rest of your life in phase 4 of your respective diets, well done!

Eating is part of life and should be neither regimented nor sacrificed. The Dukan diet promises those on a diet to drop weight by eating as much as they desire with one hundred accepted foods. The Atkins diet has been around for 40 

years and has been supported with over sixty studies during this time period. In summary, both diets are designed to help one slim down. However, in losing weight the diets require the dieter to give up some foods, whichever one you consider.

If you would like to learn more about the Dukan Diet click here.

Slimfast Diet

Why The Slim Fast Diet is so Popular

The Slim Fast Diet is a very popular and effective weight loss program that has been around for over thirty years. Many individuals prefer this diet to other diets because it is easy to follow and convenient.

So what exactly is the Slim Fast Diet and why is it so recommended? The Thompson Medical Group created Slim Fast in 1977. The plan consists of having a shake for breakfast, another one for lunch and a reasonable dinner. Dieters can 

also enjoy two Slim Fast snacks during the day. Slim Fast has a get started plan to help you lose up to six pounds in just two weeks. The plan recommends no more than 1,200 to 1,500 calories per day along with daily exercise of at least thirty minutes. According to the Slim Fast website, most people lose at a rate of one to two pounds a week.

The shakes include the original shake, the Optima, low carb, high protein, and Easy-to-Digest which are lactose and gluten-free. Slim Fast's products include great tasting meal replacement shakes that come in a variety of flavors such as creamy milk chocolate, French vanilla and strawberry. The shakes can be bought in ready to drink cans and in easy 

to use powder. Then they have the Meal-On-The-Go bars and craving control snack bars. The shakes and bars have the perfect blend of fat, protein, carbohydrates, and vitamins and minerals, so you can stay strong and still lose weight. They come in an assortment of delicious flavors such as creamy milk chocolate, French vanilla and strawberry. Slim Fast has even designed soups and pastas to satisfy even the hungriest dieter.

Slim Fast's website has free online support from registered dieticians along with a ton of helpful diet tools. Users get customized diet and fitness plans that help them figure out how many calories a day they need and includes menu 

plans based on their Slim Fast choices, a BMI calculator, weight loss tools, healthy recipes and eating out guide, and a community support forum where other users can chat online and find weight loss buddies. The focus of the plan is on healthy eating, portion control and exercise. Success stories are posted on the website for other dieters to view.

Almost every major retail store across the United States carries the Slim Fast products. Many celebrities have endorsed Slim Fast through the years including super model Rachel Hunter, Whoopi Goldberg, Kathie Lee Gifford and Tommy Lasorda. Rachel Hunter is part of Slim Fast's new "Find Your Slim" campaign that includes a weight loss contest for dieters.

Overall, the Slim Fast diet appears to be a reasonable diet program that is easy to follow. It stresses the importance of portion control, eating healthy food and exercise along with incorporating Slim Fast products into a balanced low calorie diet. Slim Fast is one of the few diet plans that has the doctor-tested research to back up its claims of weight loss. Slim 

Fast could certainly be used successfully for weight management and a healthy lifestyle. The diet works better when combined with Hoodia supplements. Hoodia is a plant that grows in the African desert and is well know for its health properties and its ability to curb the appetite.

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List of Foods Low In Carbs

Whilst putting together this list of foods low in carbs I thought to myself, "this might take some time..." because the beauty of low carb diets is the fact that they are so flexible and broad.

This is great news for us low carbers, as knowing what foods we can incorporate into our own customized plans allows us total freedom with our low carb food diets from day to day, week to week!

This freedom of course, will ensure that those of us who are committed to losing weight and staying healthy through a sensible low carb diet will find the variation enough to keep us "excited" about our next meal (and therefore able to actually stick to our low carb diet.

Finally having this overview type of knowledge allows us to get a better understanding of the low carb diet as a whole. However, I must tell you that the following list of low carb foods is NOT exhaustive, as there are literally thousands more options available. I have merely attempted to give an overview for easy understanding and reference.

Therefore, if you'd like thousands more ideas, and some powerful tips and motivation to make your low carb diet a success, then please keep reading to find out how to get access...

List of foods low in carbs - Vegetables

Green vegetables are of course acceptable and can be very low in carbs, such as:

Spinach

Asparagus;

Lettuce;

Mustard greens;

Beet greens;

Turnip greens;

Parsley;

Kale;

Collard;

Bok choy;

Broccoli;

Cauliflower;

Celery;

Cucumber;

Cabbage - Green, red, or Chinese;

Mushrooms;

Sweet or hot peppers;

Yellow summer squash;

Zucchini.

Beets;

Carrots;

Red or yellow onions;

Watercress;

Kohlrabi;

Turnips;

Avocados;

Pumpkin;

Radish;

Brussel sprouts

List of foods low in carbs - Fruits

Fresh fruits are thankfully plentiful in most low carb diets. Fruits such as:

Melons,

Bananas,

Tomatoes,

Figs,

Lemons,

Limes,

Apples,

Pears,

Kiwis,

Plums,

Berries (all kinds)

Oranges,

Grapefruit,

Pineapple,

Tangerines

Fresh coconut and/or unsweetened coconut milk

List of foods low in carbs - Meat, Fish and Dairy

Eggs (but not more than 1 yolk daily) and egg whites are acceptable

Fresh fish two to five times weekly is not only a great source of protein, but also a recommended part of a low carb diet. Fresh fish such as:

Wild caught salmon,

Alaskan halibut,

Orange roughy,

Sardines,

Anchovies,

Chilean sea bass,

Trout,

Mackerel

Shellfish (such as shrimp, crab, clams, oysters, and lobster) is fine about once a week (although shellfish are common allergens and may also accumulate toxins).

Most meats are acceptable in moderation (which should be easy to moderate when you incorporate everything else on this list). Meats such as:

Lean red meat

Wild game (rabbit, pheasant, duck, goose, deer) once or twice weekly. Try to keep the fat off with the richer game, such as duck which is very high in natural fat.

Grass-fed beef that hasn't been treated with hormones or antibiotics.

Goat. Internal animal organs (such as liver, heart, pancreas, and bone marrow) are fine once or twice weekly.

Pickled herring

List of foods low in carbs - Flavorings, herbs and accompaniments.

Fresh garlic,

ginger,

turmeric,

cinnamon

Also, you are OK to use any other antioxidant, anti-inflammatory culinary spices with your low carb cooking. More herbs are fine to use such as:

Oregano,

dill,

thyme,

sage

List of foods low in carbs - Oils

omega-3 fatty acids

Canola,

flaxseed,

walnut oils

List of foods low in carbs - Others

Soy foods and soy protein powders

Brown rice and rice protein powder (watch the carbs in this one)

Seeds or fresh olives.

Tea, especially green tea.

There you have it, my overview of the official low carb foods that are perfectly acceptable to use in your low carb diet. Of course, it is still important to monitor your carb intake, but with the right guidance and this list as reference, you will have no problems sticking to your low carb diet and actually enjoying the huge amount of choice us low carbers have before us!

But a list of foods low in carbs is NOT enough to actually make your low carb diet a success on it's own. You need to make sure you don't make the common mistakes that 99.9% of low carb dieters make, and you will always need exciting new recipes at hand to keep your low carb diet varied and interesting, so that you don't get bored and throw in the towel.

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2000 Calorie Diet Menu and Meal Plan Top

The 2000 calorie diet plan limits a person's daily intake of food to 2000 calories. This is almost close to the normal amount of calories a person consumes in a day. But the difference between 

a 2000 calorie diet plan and a normal everyday eating is that the 2000 calories from a diet plan come chiefly from fruits, vegetables, nuts and other nutritional food stuff rather than from foods that contain saturated fats. Following the 2000 calorie diet will keep you hale, healthy, energetic 

and brisk. With this 2000 calorie meal plan, your odds of reducing your weight and maintaining it at the desired level is more because you don't have to worry about adjusting calories and food stuffs after the weight is lost. Against normal conceptions, a healthy diet like this can also 

be very tasty and so sticking to the diet plan will not be a difficult task at all. Consequently all the pieces those are required to achieve a healthy weight loss and to maintain a perfect body shape fall into their places correctly with the 200 calorie diet plan.

Sample 2000 calorie diet plans:

In general terms, a 2000 calorie diet plan can be made up using two servings from the fruit group, seven servings from the grain group, eight servings from the vegetable group, three servings from the dairy group and eight servings from the meat and bean group. This comes to

around six ounces of grains, two and a half cups of vegetables, two cups of fruits, five and half ounces of meat and beans, three cups of milk and six tea spoons full of oil. In a 2000 calorie meat plan, you should limit the sugar intake, avoid trans fats, eat lots of whole grains, limit the intake of saturated fats by consuming mono-unsaturated and poly-unsaturated fats. Moreover

around 20% to 35% of your calorie intake per day should come from dairy products. Now we will have a look at two simple, tasty 2000 calorie diet plans which will give you an idea of how the actual diet must be framed.

Sample Diet 1:

Breakfast:

Two scrambled eggs, two slices of bacon, two slices of whole wheat grain toast, a single cup of skimmed milk and one serving of jam and preserves will make the ideal breakfast for a 2000 calorie diet plan.

Morning Snack:

The morning snack can be anything of your choice but the total calorie content of your morning snack should be around 100 calories.

Lunch:

You can dine on anything you like as long as the total calorie count for lunch comes around 450 calories. Three crunchy tacos would be an excellent choice for lunch.

Afternoon Snack:

Enjoy any dairy product for an afternoon snack. Low fat cottage cheese, low fat cheese and low fat yoghurt are a few suggestions. Just a keep an eye on the calorie content so that it does not exceed 110 calories.

Dinner:

Three ounces of steak (oven roasted, grilled or pan roasted), a small baked potato, margarine, half a cup of beans (baked), whole grain bread and a mixed salad made of lettuce or spinach with a little lemon, a table spoon of shredded cheese, a slice of tomato and cucumber and a 60 calorie salad dressing of your choice.

Bedtime Snack:

You can have a bedtime snack of a cup of skimmed milk blended with half a cup of strawberries.

Sample Diet 2:

Breakfast: (570 calories)

Omelet from three egg whites and one yolk with chopped onions and garlic, two slices of whole wheat bread with jam, natural fat-free yogurt and a small piece of fruit. This will make up the mouth watering breakfast for a 2000 calorie diet plan.

Lunch: (530 calories)

Lunch comprises of chicken pasta salad, four tablespoons of whole wheat pasta and fruit juice worth 90 calories.

Snack: (200 calories)

Two slices of malt loaf with a thin smear of butter.

Dinner: (800 calories)

Chili Con Carne, salad with light dressing, and one small low-fat fruit trifle.

Whatever the diet you follow make sure that you drink lots of fluids. Water is the best option to keep your body hydrated. You can also drink liberal amounts of green tea and other zero calorie beverages. Always say a strict no for alcohol, coke and even diet coke. Drinking a lot of calorie less fluids cleanses your body of all toxins and it keeps your body's metabolism ticking.

This 2000 calorie diet plan does not supply very low calories like other diet plans and hence are considerably trustworthy to follow. But it is always safe to consult with your doctor or dietician and tell them about your diet plans and get their approval of the same before you start with your diet. This will put your mind at ease as you will be sure that you are headed on the right path. Happy Dieting!

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