Liquid Diets

A recent study has shown that morbidly obese persons can lose weight and keep it off by using a liquid diet program that includes lots of milkshakes.

This may sound strange, especially to those who know that a standard milkshake made with ice cream can have upwards for 500 calories - mostly from fat - but made correctly, the milkshake maybe the perfect diet drink for a number of reasons.

First let’s start with the basic ingredients. In reality, you can put tons of stuff together to make tasty and nutritious shakes or smoothies that are perfect for burning fat. Skim milk – less than 1% fat – is a good start. If you’re lactose intolerant, they make a special lactose-free skim milk so you won’t explode.

The great thing about using a dairy base is its ability to make you feel full, helping you to eat less. And all you need is a blender.

Here's a good recipe you can try:

2 cups of skim milk
1 cored and washed apple sliced in quarters
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon

Blend until the ingredients until smooth and voila – you have a great tasting shake that’s low in fat, high in quality proteins and relatively low in carbohydrates. This drink has less than 250 calories.

For those that want to add more high quality protein, add a couple egg whites. The calories go up slightly, but this drink could replace breakfast.

To vary things, try replacing the apple with papaya, bananas, peaches or even a few strawberries. They have a few more calories, but it’s all natural, full of macronutrients and – most importantly – will keep you from feeling those hunger pangs that drive you to the snack machine.

To add some high quality fiber, toss in a handful of raw oats and blend for a little longer to break them up. Again, this could serve as a meal replacement.

A couple pecans or walnuts really add a nice flavor as well.

Not all shakes have to be milk based. If you’re hooked on sodas, you can whip up a great tasting substitute in your blender that’s way healthier and much cheaper, too. Here’s a great option to the sugary soda:

½ a medium cantaloupe
1 liter cold water

Peel the cantaloupe and cut into roughly 2 inch cubes – place in blender with water. Blend until smooth – it takes awhile, so blend for at least 3 minutes to break down the pulp. Stir before serving. Each 2 cup serving has less than 30 calories. Just one glass and you get all your daily needs for vitamins A and C, too.

Another nice, cool summer drink is lime aide – just use less sugar than normal. Sugar is just a simple carbohydrate – a few teaspoons of it aren’t going to kill you.

4-5 medium limes – with or without seeds 4 teaspoons of sugar or less 1 liter cold water

Squeeze the limes into the water using a squeezer to avoid the seeds, or do it by hand but pick the seeds out first. This makes about 4 glasses and each has about 30 calories. Less sugar, fewer calories. It’s great vitamin C boost, too.

You’ll find that these drinks are tasty and healthy, but don’t drink too much – it’s still calories that need to be counted in your daily total.

For those that are interested in building muscle as part of their fat burning program, milkshakes may be the best thing since sliced bread. Just make the regular skim milk concoction above, but add some quality whey protein powder. It comes in chocolate, vanilla and strawberry so it has a nice flavor of its own.

Makers usually recommend 2 scoops per shake, but you can get by with just one and, with two shakes a day, you get about half or more of your protein requirements.

Protein requirements for a person trying to develop muscle are about 1 gram per pound of body weight. These products usually give about 16 to 24 grams per scoop so 2 per day should give you enough.

Whey protein powder is derived from milk, but it’s filtered so it has very little lactose. Most people should tolerate it just fine – even those who can’t normally drink milk. Being very low in carbohydrates and super low in fats, it’s also a great way to get a quick meal in when on the run.

It costs about $30 – or up to $70 for the deluxe versions - per 5lbs. and should last you about 1 to 2 months.

Don’t be mislead in to thinking you should just drink shakes. Even though tempting at times because they are so quick, tasty and filling, you need to eat solid food at least twice a day. Check our Lean Dozen for good fat burning food options.

You may even want to eat the regular three meals per day – just make them smaller so you don’t feel too full and have a nice shake after your workout or on your break at work.

This program has worked for the morbidly obese so well that, until now, it’s the only effective diet proven to work in the long term. If it works for them, it will work for you.

In today’s fast paced world, these shakes can be a godsend, but remember: they are only one part of your program. You still need to exercise and eat properly to really burn fat.

But one thing is for sure: once you get hooked on these great tasting liquid wonders, you won’t ever go back to nasty sodas and super sweet juices.

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