Pritikin Diet PlanThe Pritikin diet plan was made out of a medical experience of the man whose name became the basis for the diet he created. Nathan Pritikin was diagnosed of a heart disease, which he used to propel him to change his ways and create a different diet that is high in fiber and low in fat. He then founded the Pritikin Longevity Center to aid the others obtain a healthy body. Pritikin's Aims When Pritikin came up with the whole diet plan, it was not his intention that the person choosing the plan will lose weight, but the ultimate goal was to cleanse the body of fats that can harm the heart. The introduction of food rich in fiber helps in cleansing the body's digestive tract and generally makes the person healthy. Aside from the diet, a person is advised to exercise for at least 45 minutes a day. That way, a balance is maintained in the body, and the little fat that the person ingests can be burned away. The whole diet would then produce long-term benefits and keep the person from illnesses such as colon cancer and heartburn. There is, of course, no guarantee that the diet can indeed keep you from diseases, but it was designed to keep the person generally healthy. When Robert Pritikin took over, he slightly modified his father's original concept and marketed the diet plan as a weight loss campaign. The new campaign claims to help people lose weight even with them eating as much as they want. This is achieved by balancing the diet and lowering the intake of fat, which is still what the original plan was advocating. What to Eat in the Pritikin Diet Plan The Pritikin diet does not have a strict list of what you can and cannot eat. However, you must determine the total calorie value of anything that you are going to eat and see if these are beneficial or not. The calorie contribution of each food item must be considered and how it would affect the whole meal. A rough outline can be seen in that food rich in fat must be limited to 10% while those that are rich in fiber and have low calories must be taken in large proportions relative to the serving size. For example, foods that belong to the low calorie group (e.g., pasta, fruits, and vegetables) should comprise 90% of the meal while those high in fats (e.g., meat) should only be at 10%. Problems with This Diet Plan The Pritikin diet plan is not favored by a lot of people because, for one, although fat intake is lowered, the carbohydrates can still make you gain weight. Also, it is not a balanced meal and may disrupt the body's natural processes as the meat and fat intake is very low. However, the freedom that you have in choosing what to eat makes the entire diet process very susceptible to over-indulging and binging. Those who are not self-disciplined can easily forget. |