With today’s fast-paced lifestyle, we all struggle to maintain a healthy and beneficial diet. In order to maintain a healthy food routine, picking a simple plan would be the optimum choice. While there are many diet plans, finding one that can provide weight loss benefits along with improvement to a myriad of health issues can be challenging. This is where the new rising trend of the Omni diet comes in.
Created by nurse Tana Amen, who struggled herself with nutrition and health, she states that the diet is similar to the Paleo diet where it promotes plant-based food sources with the added step of elimination of grains and dairy. She describes The Omni Diet is a Mediterranean inspired diet made up of 70% plant and 30% protein that promotes and restores energy, minimizes disease onset, improves memory and brain functions while producing significant weight loss.
How it Works
In order to really understand how it works, it is important to pay attention to the details. Based on a phased approach, the Omni diet program is a six-week plan that is focused on healthy eating and exercise. The early phases are the most restrictive, as you progress, you can incorporate more foods, such as grains and alcohol as you go on. A suggested tip is to start progressively eliminating one item at a time as you go along so it doesn’t get too restrictive to continue. A plus to the Omni Diet is that there is no time plan or a set eating schedule, instead, it’s based on intuitive eating. While it can be easier to start on the plan based on your current regular eating hours, the main point is to eat when you are feeling hungry.
Foods to Eat
- Fresh Vegetables – this is a plant-based diet that will require eating lots of organic vegetables. Try to minimize starchy vegetables and avoid white potatoes.
- Fruits – You should always have fruit a part of your daily diet. You’ll find that for example, all kinds of berries, in particular, are great options because they contain healthy sugars and antioxidants.
- Protein – poultry and organic lean meat, range-free eggs and wild seafood
- Nuts and Fats – seeds and raw nuts, macadamia nut, coconut, olive oils, almond, and grape seed
- Legumes – beans, quinoa, lentils
- Herbs and spices – Dried and fresh for promotion of immunity
- Nutrient-rich Superfoods – goji powder, maca root powder, lucuma, spirulina, and pomegranate can be added to any recipe for a boost of vitamins and anti-inflammatory health-improving nutrients.
Foods to Avoid
- Dairy – Elimination of dairy is to avoid the unnecessary fat content that comes in milk and other dairy products.
- Grains – except for small amounts of quinoa, amaranth and buckwheat slowly added back into the diet at a later stage.
- White Potatoes – As with corn, their high glycemic factor increases the sugar levels in the blood
- Sugar, simple carbohydrates, and Gluten – They are addictive and their negative effects on immunity and the digestive system can be extreme.
- Corn – has a low protein content, with a high fiber, sugar, and carbs (which are to be avoided) that it increases the blood sugar level.
- Artificial sweeteners
- Alcohol – Non-gluten alcohol can be introduced gradually during the later phases in small amounts.
Considerations
The Omni diet seems to be suitable for a wide range of people with a variety of ailments such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and lactose-intolerance, gluten-allergy, and other diseases. Because it is a plant-based food plan, along with the elimination of carbs and sugars, the source of calories and nutrition is considered as non-activating of any disease or condition, therefore it is relatively safe to follow by anyone. While it is plant-based, vegans will find this regimen particularly challenging to follow as the other main source of food is based on protein.
Along with its ease of use, this diet, like any other health plan, requires an adequate exercise regimen to complement it. Dieting alone will not provide you with the comprehensive health benefits that are meant to be achieved. As with the diet, starting gradually to be able to sustain the lifestyle change is key. Start with a simple 10-minute routine everyday while working yourself up to at least a minimum of 30 minutes of workout a day.
If you are looking to change and improve your lifestyle and health, the Omni Diet can be a great option to try out to help you lose weight. To help you maintain it longer and refrain from yo-yo dieting, approach the diet gradually and eliminate foods as you go, as to not get overwhelmed. As with any new diet plan, be sure to check with your doctor before starting. Like any new change, it will take time to get used to a simpler and more restrictive diet. However, if you take a slow and mindful approach to incorporate this diet and exercise plan, you’ll be feeling healthier and fitter in no time.
