Healthy & permanent weight loss with a personalized diet - here's how!

There are many different reasons for losing weight: Better blood values, better health, fewer exercise restrictions or greater well-being are just a few examples. You are now asking yourself 'Lose weight, but how? Various diets promise quick weight loss or simply getting rid of belly fat. But once the yo-yo effect sets in, it becomes clear that this has nothing to do with healthy and lasting success. Losing weight properly and maintaining your target weight is not that easy. We would like to show you how it can still be done and why a personalized approach is so important.

Low carb diet

With this diet, you reduce the proportion of carbohydrates to around 20 to 30 percent. In return, the proportion of proteins and (healthy) fats increases. This means that pasta, bread, sugar etc. are only allowed in very small quantities. Your diet can now look like this:

Instead of pasta you can cut spaghetti from zucchinis (a spiral cutter is helpful here)

If carbohydrate-rich foods are eaten, then it should be the wholemeal variant should be

Plenty of vegetables such as cabbage, salads and pulses

Low-sugar fruit varieties

Good orientation is the Mediterranean diet (apart from white bread)

High quality oils such as olive or rapeseed oil

Milk and dairy products, eggs

tofu and tempeh

Fish and meat are allowed, but should not be consumed in larger quantities than usual (this applies especially to red meat)

Ketogenic diet

This diet is an extreme form of the low carb diet, as carbohydrates are reduced to around 20 grams per day. Healthy fats become the focus of the diet. The body now produces so-called ketone bodies from fat, which supply the brain with energy, for example. The diet is interesting from a medical point of view, as it has been shown to have positive effects on neurological diseases such as epilepsy.[2] These foods are ideal:

Avocado, olives, nuts and seeds

Vegetables with low carbohydrates such as zucchini, cucumber, spinach

low-sugar fruit varieties

High-quality fats such as olive and rapeseed oil

milk and dairy products, eggs

Fish and meat (red meat only in small quantities)

Tofu and tempeh

Paleo diet

Also known as the Stone Age diet. The idea behind it: Our body is not designed for modern nutrition and is still stuck in the Stone Age. Your diet should therefore be as similar as possible to that of the Stone Age. It also includes more exercise, as people in the Stone Age were much more active than they are today. The food selection for the Paleo diet:

No convenience foods

No cereals and no pulses

No milk and dairy products

Seasonal fruit and vegetables

Plenty of fish, eggs and meat

Please note: With this diet, you should pay particular attention to getting enough B vitamins and calcium, as you are eliminating the usual sources from your diet.[3]

Intermittent fasting

It is not the choice of food that is important here, but the intervals at which you eat. Intermittent fasting is just an umbrella term and includes several nutritional concepts such as the 16:8 method, in which you fast for 16 hours a day and eat two meals in eight hours, or the 5:2 diet, in which you eat normally five days a week and only consume a quarter of the usual amount of energy on two days. Researchers have already found some benefits of intermittent fasting, for example it is said to prevent diseases such as type 2 diabetes.[4]

IIFYM: If it fits your macros

With this diet, you can eat whatever you want as long as you cover your macronutrient distribution. To do this, you first need to work out how much protein, carbohydrate and fat is right for you and then track your food accordingly. Our recommendation: Even if everything is allowed, you shouldn't reach for burgers, pizza and the like too often, because in addition to macronutrients, your body also needs micronutrients and these are rarely found in fast food.

1. find your method for stress management

Various studies have shown that weight loss, diet and stress are directly linked.[5] This means for your weight loss: Constant stress makes it harder to lose weight because cravings are more likely. Relaxation is therefore just as important as exercise and the right diet for losing weight. Here too, everyone is different. You need to find your individual method to manage stress. Some ideas: Breathing exercises, autogenic training, yoga, meditation or working out while exercising.

2. set goals and know your own requirements

Many weight loss diets promise quick success. But losing a lot of weight in a short space of time is not necessarily healthy. So-called crash diets can reduce energy expenditure in the long term and even lead to eating disorders.[6] Realistic and healthy goals are therefore crucial for long-term success. We therefore recommend a calorie deficit of between 200-500 kcal per day. This will allow you to lose about 1-2 kilograms of weight per month. Example of a healthy weight loss goal: 5 kilograms in 7 months. Although this type of weight loss requires staying power, studies show that a small calorie deficit is less likely to lead to the yo-yo effect.[7]

Reading tip: The basics of burning fat - lose weight healthily and permanently. Here we explain how you can calculate your individual energy consumption and calorie requirements to lose weight.

3. develop healthy routines

We humans are creatures of habit. Sometimes that's good and other times it's bad. Unhealthy habits are not so easy to eliminate from our lives, but once we have developed a healthy routine, it is easy to stick to it. To lose weight sustainably and healthily without the yo-yo effect, this means that you should take a close look at your routines. If you discover an unhealthy habit, change it into a healthier routine. For example:

Old habit: having a sweet dessert after lunch.

New habit: After lunch, have an espresso, coffee or tea (without sugar and with a little milk if necessary).

4. increase calorie consumption with exercise and sport

At the end of the day, the calorie deficit is what counts. Some people find it easier to achieve this by reducing calories in their diet, others by increasing calorie consumption, i.e. getting more exercise in their daily routine. Losing weight without sport and exercise rarely works. So take the stairs more often instead of the elevator or get on your bike instead of the car.

Strength training is also ideal for losing weight, because the greater your muscle mass, the higher your basal metabolic rate. In the following table, you can see how many calories each type of sport or everyday activity consumes per 30 minutes.[8] Please note that this is an average value for a person weighing 80 kg. Depending on the intensity and your physical condition, you may consume more or fewer calories:

Type of sport Calorie consumption in 30 min. at 80 kg

Boxing: 380 kcal

CrossFit: 200 kcal

Soccer: 340 kcal

Gardening: 200 kcal

Golf: 180 kcal

HIIT: 220 kcal

Horse riding: 160 kcal

Climbing: 380 kcal

Cooking: 90 kcal

Jogging at 7 min/km or 5 min/km: 330 kcal or 500 kcal

Cycling at 15km/h or 25 km/h: 240 kcal or 410 kcal

Walking: 140 kcal

Swimming: 350 kcal

Squash: 480 kcal

Climbing stairs: 280 kcal

Walking: 260 kcal

5. boost your metabolism

There are actually foods that help you lose weight, such as chili peppers. This is because the pepper increases your energy metabolism by making you sweat.[9] Water also helps. If you drink a lot of cold water, your body needs energy to heat it up to body temperature. Great side effect: if you drink water around 30 minutes before a meal, you will probably consume less energy.[10]

In addition, more muscles ensure a higher energy turnover, because the muscles need to be supplied with energy. So any additional exercise you do is a booster for your metabolism. Consequently, expert Matthias Weber, press spokesman for the German Society for Endocrinology, also recommends a combination of endurance and strength training to lose weight.[11]

Many people want to lose belly fat. But what are the typical mistakes? Some diet myths have been around for several years. We took a look at common assumptions and checked what science has to say about them. Here are our findings:

1. eating in the evening makes you fat

Although this statement has been examined in many studies, researchers are not in agreement. What is known is that people who consume the majority of their calories at dinner are at a greater risk of being overweight. [12] But whether this is increased by eating late is not quite so clear. Another research group concludes that our diet should be aligned with our internal clock in order to prevent obesity.[13] Several studies suggest that eating late is unfavorable for the body. It can worsen the symptoms of heartburn[14] and generally lead to digestive problems, as the metabolism is restricted at night.

2. low carb brings you to your dream figure

This statement does not apply to everyone. Depending on your metabolism, a different diet may be much easier for you. For example, one study found that people with a healthy glucose metabolism lose weight best on a diet with less fat and more carbohydrates. While people with a disturbed glucose metabolism benefit from a low-carb diet.[15]

3. fruit is always good because it is healthy

It's true that fruit contains lots of vitamins and is healthy, but you shouldn't overdo it. This is because they also contain fructose, which can also lead to obesity if consumed in excess. Two pieces of fruit a day is a recommended amount. Be aware of the fructose in products that contain 'natural sweetness from fruit'.[16]

4. sugar makes you fat

A combination of several factors usually contributes to the development of obesity. Lack of exercise, genetic predispositions and a poor diet. The latter also includes excessive consumption of sugar. According to the German Nutrition Society (DGE), a maximum of 10 percent of energy intake should come from sugar. More sugar in the diet contributes to obesity and other diseases such as diabetes.[17]

5. fat is always unfavorable

This statement is simply wrong. Fats are not necessarily bad. On the contrary, we even need some fatty acids, such as certain omega-3 fats, for normal brain function. However, as fat contains more calories per gram than other macronutrients, you should pay particular attention to a good selection of fats when losing weight. In other words: chips, whipped cream and the like are rather taboo and healthy fats from avocado, olive oil or nuts are allowed (in normal moderation).

Beim Abnehmen kann das Kalorienzählen eine nützliche Methode sein, um sicherzustellen, dass du ein Kaloriendefizit erreichst, ohne dabei die Nährstoffzufuhr zu vernachlässigen. Hier bieten Trinkmahlzeiten eine praktische und effektive Lösung. Sie sind nicht nur bequem und schnell zu konsumieren, sondern bieten auch eine präzise Anzahl an Kalorien sowie ein ausgewogenes Verhältnis von Makro- und Mikronährstoffen. Dies erleichtert es dir, den Überblick über deine tägliche Kalorienaufnahme zu behalten und gleichzeitig sicherzustellen, dass dein Körper alle essentiellen Nährstoffe erhält, die er für eine gesunde Funktion benötigt. Ob zu Hause, bei der Arbeit oder unterwegs, Trinkmahlzeiten können dir helfen, dein Abnehmziel zu erreichen, indem sie eine einfache Möglichkeit bieten, gesunde Entscheidungen zu treffen, ohne dass du Zeit für die Zubereitung aufwenden musst.