An Oatmeal Diet Plan That'll Help You Lose Weight

Oatmeal is a grain rich in vitamins, minerals and antioxidants which are required by our body each day to function properly. Being low in fats and rich in water-soluble dietary fiber, it's an integral part of the weight losing regime that gives a feeling of fullness after eating.

Another advantage of oatmeal is that it's a good source of protein, complex carbohydrates, nutrients and iron which not only helps you to reduce weight but also combats different health related problems and diseases, especially certain types of cancer.

It's also a good source of low glycemic carbohydrates that promote stable blood sugar levels in the body. Containing phytonutrients called lignans, oatmeal is highly beneficial for heart health and is inexpensive too. Therefore, here is an oatmeal diet plan for 30 days that will make you lose nearly 2 to 5 lb per week.

Though there's no particular oatmeal diet for weight loss, most of the plans that are recommended are based on incorporating varying quantities of oatmeal into the diet on a regular basis. The most common method of doing the oatmeal diet to lose weight comprises eating nothing but oatmeal for the first week.

However, any diet based on a single food, i.e., excluding all other healthy foods is considered as a fad diet, which will not be supportive of the health of the dieter. Therefore, it's not recommended to follow a diet where oatmeal is the only food permitted.

Try avoiding instant oatmeal and granola bars for the first seven days and ensure that your calorie intake is somewhere between 900-1200 calories per day.

Following is a sample diet plan containing 5 meals which are healthy, protein rich and filling too.

• ½ cup oatmeal
• ½ cup skim milk
• 1 tbsp raisins
• An apple

• ½ cup blueberries, strawberries, bananas, apples, oranges and seedless grapes

• ½ cup oatmeal
• ½ cup low-fat yogurt
• A serving of baked green beans

• ½ cup of fresh, raw vegetables like carrot sticks, celery sticks and green peppers slices. Avoid melons and high starchy vegetables like potatoes.

• 4 oz grilled chicken breast
• Large green salad
• ½ cup oatmeal

For the next 30 days, dieters can continue having ½ cup of oatmeal thrice a day along with their regular diet. Instant oatmeal and granola bars can now be eaten and calorie intake can be increased slightly to between 1000-1300 calories per day.

After 30 days, the dieters can resume their normal diet, while continuing with one meal and one snack of oatmeal daily. They are advised to restrict their intake of fats after returning to normal eating. Recommended foods are skim milk, berries, apples, carrots, lettuce, chicken breast, fish, club soda and turkey.

This program is to be followed up to a maximum period of 3 months to see the best results. In contrast to the above program, this plan has a larger measure of oatmeal in the diet. This has 3 stages.

Spanning a week, your diet must include whole oatmeal with half cup milk (maximum). Have this meal thrice a day.

Covering a period of two weeks, this is the most hectic period. You can eat whole oatmeal and/or baked oatmeal cookies. But you must ensure that you do not consume more than the required amount of calories, 1200-1400 calorie consumption each day is sufficient. If needed, you can eat fruits low in calories, but see if you can try avoiding it for good results.

Here, you should ensure that oatmeal includes major portion of your daily diet but you are allowed to be a little flexible by opting for other foodstuffs. Sweets, junk and oily stuff should be strictly avoided.

Oatmeal is a nutritious food that reduces your appetite and is also a rich source of carbohydrates for a weight loss diet. If weight loss is to be maintained over a long period, it's essential to pay attention to other aspects of nutrition and lifestyle, like, exercising for 30-40 minutes a day or three to five times a week and drinking at least eight 8 oz glasses of water every day while following the oatmeal diet.