Best Weight Loss Diets for 2023
Who hasn’t heard people talking about losing weight. As I noted in a recent blog, a guy on Twitter went to his doctor and the doctor said his BMI was too high and he needed to lose 67 pounds. Now, that is a challenge. What weight loss diet should this guy chose to go on? What are some healthy choices that will help him lose weight but not cut out food groups or nutrients needed for good health? What diet will help him not only lose weight but keep it off because the diet emphasizes lifestyle changes and adopting good habits?
Like this relative, if you do want to drop a few pounds or more, what are some healthy weight loss diets? Too many diets promise the world but are not good for your health. Although not ranked this year, one of the diets ranked as the worst in previous years is the Whole30 diet (previously ranked 35 out of 39 diets). U.S. News and World Report previously noted, Whole30 lacks scientific support and is severely restrictive according to the experts. This, like so many fad diets, this diet doesn’t work to help you change your lifestyle but offers some quick solutions that aren’t viable for the long term. You may lose some weight but when you go “off” the fad diet, the weight piles back on.
This year, U.S. News and World Report ranked a number of diets at the bottom including the Paleo Diet, Atkins Diet, Keto Diet, SlimFast Diet and the Raw Food Diet. So, instead of these poorly ranked diets, focus on one’s that have been proven to work. The US News & World Report has once again ranked the weight loss diets in their Best Weight-Loss Diets for 2023.
Why does US News & World Report rank a weight-loss diet a winner? The panel of health experts ranking the diets not only look for weight loss that is sustainable for the long-term, they also focus on ease of following the diet, and good meal plans that help you reach your goal. They noted some diets did well in the short term, people lost weight on the diet, but long-term results, not so good. A diet really isn’t successful if you gain all the weight back that you wanted to say good bye to. They ranked 24 diets. What Weight Loss Diets are at the top of their list for 2023?
What Weight Loss Diets were ranked the best by US News & World Report for 2023?
Weight Watchers (WW) Number 1 Diet for Weight Loss in 2023 (It was also number 1 for weight loss in 2022). WW is described not only as a successful for weight loss but is also focused on inspiring healthy living and improving overall well-being. WW focuses on teaching healthier eating habits and exercise. I really like WW as it helps you learn healthier eating habits and helps with lifestyle changes like adding in more exercise to your day. New to the program in 2021 was taking into account foods with added sugar, saturated fat and fiber. Foods with added sugar and/or saturated fats have more points while foods with fiber and/or unsaturated fats have less points. New for 2022/2023 is a more simplified version of tracking points. Except for diabetics, everyone is now on the same plan and the zero points list is the same for everyone.
a. Pros: WW not only focuses on long-term weight loss; it also focuses on healthier living. In 2021, WW introduced a new points system, calls PersonalPoints Program. My relative likes the new ZeroPoint Foods list that is now the same for everyone (except diabetics). Some ZeroPoint foods includes scrambled eggs, nonfat yogurt, non-starchy vegetables, fruits, lean proteins and legumes. My relative likes all the ZeroPoint fruits and vegetables but is disappointed that the list no longer includes avocados. One can still enjoy avocados but now with points. Another big pro is WW has all the food groups and you can still enjoy a dessert.
o PersonalPoints: In WW, you count points, not calories. WW uses its famous PersonalPoints system in which all the food and beverages you eat have points. You can track these points on the WW app on your phone. The WW app provides meal planning tools, has the food tracker for your points, has an activity dashboard to encourage you to move more, and has some coaching to keep you motivated. This diet doesn’t just focus on counting calories but on making healthier food choices. Unlike many diets, WW doesn’t just focus on cutting calories. It also helps you choose healthier foods, foods with less saturated fat, less added sugar and more protein and foods with fiber.
o NEW: WW used to let you add points for drinking more water and but now points are only added for activity and exercise.
o No Food is off-limits – unlike many weight-loss programs, WW doesn’t ban any foods. Their website says, “Everything is on the menu.” And they offer ZeroPoint foods that you can eat without worrying about tracking or measuring. The ZeroPoint foods include many fruits and vegetables and may include lean proteins, and whole grains. And you can have dessert as long as you save some points for the dessert.
o Support – you can get support from in-person meetings, from virtual workshops, by working with a personal coach or go it alone and rely on their digital tools.
o Healthier eating – in addition to promoting fruits and vegetables by giving many zero points, WW teaches you healthier eating habits. Learning to eat healthier can lead to lifelong weight loss and not those lose weight quickly and gain it back diets.
o Move More – WW emphasizes being active but at your own pace. You not only count points for food, you also count points for exercise. But not just going to the gym, cleaning your house adds points, mowing the lawn, walking the dog. Basically, get moving points. WW has their own fitness tracker to track your exercise points. And you can sync your fitness device like a watch to their activity tracker. So many weight loss programs focus only on giving up foods and not on adding exercise to your day.
b. Cons – some people don’t like all the counting of points but may find the WW PersonalPoints program easier to follow. A student in my class said their mother was happy counting the points but their dad said he just wanted to eat when out in a restaurant and didn’t want to figure out the points for every food on his plate. But WW offers a mobile app that has the points for over 285,000 foods and a “Menu Master” to guide you on how to eat healthy when eating out. My relative finds the WW app easy to use and likes “adding points” by exercising. She can hold her phone to a food label and WW counts the points per serving of that food item. However, when cooking and making a food with multiple ingredients, one has to enter all the items so a little more time consuming. That is why my relative called me to ask if she needed to count the olive oil, she was seasoning the baked chicken with. Yes, she had to include the olive oil in her points.
Some people also like the face-to-face meetings and weigh-ins while others like my relative prefer the digital approach.
Does it work? Yes, according to the relative that is on it. Her goal was to lose the 7 pounds she gained over the holidays. After 3.5 weeks of WW, she has lost 4 pounds. However, her friend quit WW as they found working the App too hard to do.
DASH Diet is ranked second for Best Weight-Loss Diets. (Last year it was the Flexitarian Diet.) Last week we discussed the DASH diet as it is also ranked number 2 for Best Diets for Healthy 2023 . Although designed to stop hypertension, it is a healthy diet that can be used for weight loss. As noted last week, this diet emphasizes blood-pressure lowering nutrients such as potassium, calcium and magnesium as well as fiber. The diet focuses on less sodium and saturated fats.
a. Pros: One fills up on healthy foods like whole grains, fruits and vegetables. The diet includes “moderate amounts of fat-free or low-fat dairy products, fish, poultry, beans and nuts”. One limits foods high in saturated fats and full-fat dairy products (e.g. whole milk, yogurt made with whole milk). U.S. News and World Report notes that the fiber and protein in this diet help feel fuller and satisfied while providing enough calories to keep you energized.
b. Cons: the DASH diet isn’t a weight loss diet but “If you cut out processed, sugary, salty and high-fat foods from your diet, you’ll likely lose weight.”
Mayo Clinic Diet ranked third for Best Weight-Loss Diets and ranks 4th for Best Diet Programs. Similar to WW, this diet promotes healthy eating and a healthier lifestyle. The diet emphasizes breaking your bad habits and replacing them with good habits. Like the other diets, this diet emphasizes fruits, vegetables and whole grains. For details on this diet, you can go to the Mayo Clinic Diet website. At the top of their website you will see, “Weight loss for life”. You start by taking a Free Diet Assessment that is on their website. The website notes you can join for as little as $5 a week and you can get unlimited coaching sessions. The program is for 12 weeks and consists of two phases.
a. Phase One is the “Lose It” phase: the first two weeks focuses on lifestyle habits. You learn to adopt 10 healthy habits while breaking five unhealthy habits. Like WW there are “free” foods in that you can snack on all fruits and vegetables you want. (Remember the student who began eating 5 fruits and vegetables a day and then got so full from this he had little appetite for the junk food he was eating?) According to the Mayo Clinic, you may lose up to 6-10 pounds during phase one. This phase includes eating a healthy breakfast and adding in a minimum of 30 minutes of exercise a day. No eating while watching TV. The really motivated can aim for 60 minutes of exercise a day and “eating natural or minimally processed “real food”. (Remember the student who “ate from the land”? He ate minimally processed food as close the land or natural sources as he could. He was not overweight.)
b. Phase Two is the “Live it” phase. Now you learn how to make smart food choices, learn to control portion sizes, meal preparation and exercise. Now you can “break some rules” and lighten up a bit. In this phase the calorie counting starts. The goal here is to lose a couple of pounds a week. Calorie counting may be a little easier as one counts servings and not “calories”. Thus, on a 1400 calorie diet you can have 4+ fruit and veggie servings, 5 carb servings, 4 protein/dairy servings, and 3 fats. Phase Two also emphasize physical activity which helps one keep off the weight they have lost.
Do you notice a pattern in these weight-loss diets? None of them say to cut out “bread” or cut out carbs. Yes, cut out sugary carbs but not whole grain bread, whole grain cereal. How many times have you heard someone say I am on a diet so I am cutting out bread. The above weight-loss diets emphasize fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Not one says to cut out bread. The Mayo Clinic diet emphasizes healthy carbs from fruit, legumes, vegetables, whole-wheat flour (e.g. whole grain bread, whole grain crackers, whole grain cereals), and wheat bran.
There are more weight loss diets in the Best Weight Loss Diets rankings including the TLC Diet, the Flexitarian Diet , and the Mediterranean Diet. The best weight loss diet is the one that works for you. One you can follow and stay on. One that not only results in weight loss but lifestyle changes that help you keep off any weight you do lose. WW (Weight Watchers) teaches you how to eat healthy and encourages more exercise. No wonder it is a number one diet year after year. WebMD has good advice to follow: to prevent disease and stay active for life, you do need to exercise. So be sure to add this into your new lifestyle!
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