Mayo Clinic Diet is one of many diet plans designed for people with high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, obesity, osteoporosis, aging, cancer, or other medical conditions. It is important to remember, though, that the diet is not meant for everyone. If you have been diagnosed with any of these conditions, it would be wise to consult with your physician first. You should also follow the guidelines laid out in the Mayo Clinic Diet Guide because eating well independently is not enough to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
Snack times are not allowed during the week, but the Mayo Clinic Diet allows a mid-morning and mid-afternoon snack. Snacks can include nuts, seeds, granola bars, or similar snacks that have zero calories. Food that is high in fat, sugar, or salt should be avoided as much as possible. Good fats include olives and olive oil, raw avocados, fish oil, nuts, seeds, and sunflower seeds. It is recommended that you limit your consumption of fried foods and those high in fat, salt, and sugar.
You should plan to eat two small meals that have little to no food throughout the week but will fill you up not to feel hungry. These are referred to as snack foods and provide a few extra calories and contribute to weight loss. In addition, it would help if you strived to avoid processed foods that are high in sodium, fried foods, and sugars. Evenings are usually reserved for social occasions or other activities that are less important than losing weight.
The Mayo Clinic Diet consists of seven simple phases. You get all the essential vitamins and minerals you need to keep your body healthy in week one. During week two, you add supplements that promote overall health. At week three, decide on how you will follow through with your goals. By week four, you should have started to see some improvements in your weight loss.
When you start the Mayo Clinic Diet, you should expect to lose about ten pounds in the first two weeks. This will be a gradual process, so you may lose more or less over time, depending on your activity level. If you are a beginner, you will want to start with about two pounds less than your desired point. As you lose weight, you will see that this amount will decrease slowly, and you will probably have to adjust your diet to keep the weight off. After you reach your goal weight, you will maintain your loss, and you will likely have to continue to make adjustments to your eating habits if you want to maintain your new weight. When you first begin the Mayo Clinic Diet, you should plan to have about one to two attempts per week.
The following guidelines are suggested to help you keep your calorie intake under control. Your recommended number of servings (the number of servings per meal) is two servings for every ten thousand calories you consume. If you are not tracking your calories, you are unsure how many calories you are consuming. For anyone tracking their calories, the recommended number of servings is one serving for every six hundred calories. Some of the foods that you can eat when you are on the Mayo Clinic Diet include:
Phase One: The goal of this phase is to lose as much weight as possible in the least thirty minutes a day. You can eat any of these foods: Any fruits except for grapefruits. Vegetables include broccoli, celery, carrots, and beets. Nuts include almonds, walnuts, cashews, pecans, and pine nuts. Low-fat dairy, including low-fat yogurt and low-calorie cottage cheese. Eggs, tuna, chicken, and fish.
Phase Two: This is the time to introduce more foods that you can eat daily. You can eat all of the fruits and vegetables in the previous phase plus extra lean meats such as poultry, fish, and beans. You can increase your calorie count even more by adding high-fiber foods like dried beans and prunes. Nuts, seeds, eggs, soy sauce, rice, oatmeal, and bran cereals are allowed. Be sure to drink plenty of water. In this phase, your diet is considered to be a balanced diet.