Everybody needs at least 13 different essential vitamins and minerals each day. These include your basic A, B, D, E, K, magnesium, iron, and so much more. You need a minimum percentage of these vitamins in your life to maintain good health. But, with modern diets that rely on processed food, this is hard to achieve, let alone maintain.
Weight loss has been the topic of controversy for many decades, and the standard saying goes, “more out than in”. This means you need to take in fewer calories than you expend. If you are looking to shed a few kilos but your diet isn’t cutting it, you can benefit from adding certain minerals and vitamins. By using the right balance of specific vitamins, you can boost your weight loss efforts.
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Hidden Deficiencies
The whole objective of eating fresh food is that you better ensure you are taking in all the macro and micro-nutrients you need. Even the slightest deficiency can wreck your weight loss efforts. Including all groups such as carbohydrates, fats, and proteins means having a variety of different food items that have enough vitamins and minerals to increase your metabolism.
Apart from the usual ABCs of vitamins, you also need zinc, manganese, magnesium, and folic acid. Most of these you can get pretty easily by having a diet full of various items. Try everything especially whole grains, lean meats, and good fats in the form of nuts, avocados, and seeds. Eat completely clean and you’re still battling? You might have a more severe deficiency that requires medical testing. Just your average vitamin D and B can cause all kinds of havoc if you aren’t getting enough in. But you need to get a healthy supply of everything, even more so if you’re vegetarian or vegan.
Combine Major Food Groups
With the busy lives that we all lead nowadays, even meal prepping can be hard to get right. Sometimes it’s just easier to buy a quick muffin on the way into the office. This isn’t the greatest option. Over time you will start to lose valuable nutrients because your body is compensating for the lack of fresh unprocessed food.
Maybe try out a few shakes in the form of a meal replacement. You can find many healthy and useful weight loss shakes that will include all the major food groups that you need. Especially when you don’t have the time with a full family and job. You still need to take care of yourself properly. Take these shakes with 20+ vitamins and minerals from Shake That Weight. They offer a wide variety of low-calorie meals that have enough protein to get you through the day. Shake That Weight is ideal for any diet and you will find all kinds of flavours to suit your tastebuds.
Consistency is Key
You need a regular supply of multivitamins throughout your diet to maintain your appetite. Some dietary theories suggest that if your body is low on certain minerals, you may be overeating without realising it and contributing to your weight gain. Therefore, it is important not to skimp on your meals but be cautious of how much you eat. If you are getting the right amount of nutrition, you won’t take in too many calories, and you will feel fuller for longer.
Get into the habit of meal prepping as well. It will not only save you money, but you will make better diet choices. There will be less wriggle room to buy junk food like sweets and chips because you have already spent your money on healthier options. Learn how long you can store cooked food items in the freezer. Soups and curries are great because you can keep them frozen for a few months at a time.
Eat According to Symptoms
During any diet, you are likely to experience some fatigue, sluggishness, brain fog, and increased appetite. These signs indicate what types of food you might need to include more of in your diet. Needing to eat more shows that you aren’t consuming enough fat and protein. These macronutrients satiate you for much longer, so you should aim to eat moderate amounts. Fatigue and brain fog could be from too much sugar, which is a common ingredient in diet-branded loaves of bread, and low-fat meal replacements. The less fat or carbohydrates, the more sugar to make up for the lack of flavour.
If you suffer from depression, you might be lacking vitamins B6, B9, and B12. B6 nutrient regulates your blood pressure and homocysteine levels; low levels cause some psychiatric disorders. B12 is only available through animal products so any restrictive diets may cause you to eat less of this vitamin. The B9 is vital for brain function and haemoglobin, so anaemics should include more of this in their diet.
By following a healthy and easy-to-sustain diet, your weight loss journey will be much simpler. Include more fresh foods, and actively avoid processed items as much as possible.
Read more: How To Speed Up Metabolism After Bariatric Surgery