The Grapefruit Diet. The Juice Diet. The South Beach Diet. The Atkins Diet. Every day, we are bombarded about the “best” weight loss diet, the diet that’s sure to help 110% of those looking to lose weight, the diet that will cure all your problems, from dandruff to diabetes and beyond.

Unfortunately, most people find themselves gaining weight on these strict diets! In addition, traditional diets cause binging on unhealthy foods, bring about guilt and burn-out, and are nearly impossible to adhere to in the long-term. Indeed, diets don’t work, but the truth is that you don’t need a traditional diet to lose weight! With the right strategy and information, your weight loss is not contingent upon silly traditional diet double-talk, gimmicks or fancy names.

The true theory of weight loss

The basic theory of weight loss is simple: you lose weight when you burn more calories than you consume. For the average woman who wants to lose weight, her total calorie intake per day should be somewhere between 1100-1500 calories a day. Men can add an extra 200 – 300 calories more per day.