Dieting is hard. Thinking about what you have to eat and in what quantity each mealtime can be exhausting. But that’s exactly why so many people fail at their diets. It’s not because they choose the wrong nutrition, but because they go for a routine that’s just too hard to keep up with. 

A dietary regime that takes months to complete and needs careful calorie-counting just doesn’t work for most people — they have too much going on in their busy lives to keep track.

However, choosing a diet plan that’s more manageable and setting realistic goals can be your key to success when other more complex dietary regimes haven’t worked. 

Here’s a selection of three manageable diet plans for you to explore. 

1) 7-day shred meal plan

The 7-day shred meal plan is a great way to start dieting if you’ve never tried it. Rather than having to wait weeks or even months before you start to see tangible results, this meal plan encourages you to monitor your progress and see results after just one week.

Drastically cutting down the amount of food you eat in a normal diet can put your body into a fat-protective state and stop you from getting slimmer, not to mention make you feel hungry and exhausted. Instead, the 7-day meal plan suggests a gradual reduction in calorie intake without cutting out any specific foods.

If you start seeing results after seven days, then you know you’re doing it right, and you’ve got the confidence to carry on with your diet rather than giving up hope.

2) 5-2 Diet

The 5-2 diet is another simple yet effective means of reducing your calorie intake. With the 5-2 diet, you can eat what you normally would do five days each week and then cut down on your calorie intake considerably for two. That means you can enjoy your favorite foods and sweet treats (in moderation) for five days each week. However, you only eat the bare minimum to keep your hunger at bay for two days.

Many people have found the 5-2 diet a great balance of healthy eating and happy eating. It allows you to still enjoy your favorite cake or chocolate bar — often very hard to give up — without feeling guilty about it, so long as you knuckle down and give them up for two days.

3) Vegan Diet

A plant-based vegan diet is one way people reduce calorie intake without cutting down on meal portions and feeling hungry. They also enjoy health benefits like lowered cholesterol and increased fibers. All you need to do is stop walking down the meat and dairy aisles at the supermarket.

And aside from feeling good about yourself, you’re also cutting down on carbon emissions and reducing your consumption of goods processed by harmful farming techniques like battery farming. 

Be warned, however, that you may need to take vitamin supplements to ensure you still get enough protein and iron in your diet.

Final Thoughts

Remember, everyone is different, and no diet will deliver identical results for two different people. What works for you will depend on several factors, including your fitness regime, food preferences, weight loss goals, and how well you manage your stress. 

But the simpler and more realistic goals you set, the more likely you are to achieve them and the more confident you’ll become at managing your weight and fitness. So don’t go setting another 16-week plan when the last one failed — focus on today and learn to feel empowered by your new diet one meal at a time.

If you’re ready to trade in your “Dad Bod” or you’ve always wondered if there was an easy-to-follow nutritional and exercise plan that will get you in the best shape in your life, without endless hours in the gym or trying to survive on lettuce and water, then look no more.  BJJ Fanatics has brought one of the most respected BJJ martial artists, teachers and school owners, Tom DeBlass in to share the simple to follow secrets that have him in the best shape of his life at age 35!  Check out “Ripped in 12 Weeks” available here where Tom will share all of his nutritional and fitness secrets in an easy to follow format, complete with guidebooks and recipes.