A fat burning diet is a long-term commitment to new habits and health. If you cannot commit yourself to two years of maintenance after the weight is off, it is better not to follow a fat burning diet at all, because the backlash weight gain can leave you heavier than when you started.

Most bariatric (fat loss) doctors feel that 2-3 lbs. per week is a safe and efficient amount to set as a permanent weight loss target.

While burning two pounds of fat a week may not seem like much, consider this: losing 2 lbs. of fat every week for a year, equals 104 lbs! It’s not just about losing pounds. It’s about improving your long-term health and attractiveness.

Dietary fat is the regulator of appetite. Consuming small amounts of healthy fat, by eating a few ounces of white cheese (Swiss, Jack, or Muenster) triggers the release of a chemical Cholecystokinin, or “CCK”. This is the chemical that tells your body it is no longer hungry- also known as the “full reponse.”

Without body fat, your body can’t produce CCK. Which means that you don’t feel full. Until you’re halfway through that bag of cookies.

It takes the body about 45 minutes to produce and release this chemical that stops your hunger. The trick is to eat small amounts of healthy fat before you get hungry. And to reach for the (healthy) fat instead of the sweets and carbs.

Foods that contain healthy fats are avocado, nuts and seeds, sugar-free peanut butter, salmon, sardines, trout, flaxseed oil, butter, and eggs.

Carbs and Fat Burning

Carbohydrates are addictive. The more you eat, the more you want. And it may be all in your mind- or more precisely, your brain.
Carbohydrate consumption raises the level of a brain chemical called serotonin. Serotonin is a calming chemical, and promotes feelings of well-being and satisfaction.

There is a simple way to give your brain the ingredients it needs to create and maintain adequate serotonin levels without consuming large quantities of carbohydrates. The secret is a supplement called 5-HTP.

Your brain can help your body burn fat
In the 1990’s, researchers at the University of Rome reported that female subjects given 5-HTP automatically decreased their caloric intake by 22%. Over 5 weeks, the women lost an average of 3.1 lbs., by taking 500 to 1000 mg of 5-HTP a day.

In a second study, the Italian researchers put 14 obese women on a 1200-calorie/day diet for 6 weeks. Some were given 300 mg of 5-HTP 30 minutes before meals (a total of 900 mg per day), while the others were given placebo. Over the 6-week period, the women taking 5-HTP lost 6.8 lbs. on average, compared with 1.5 lbs. for the women on placebo and the restricted diet. When the researchers tested the same women during a 6 -week period with the 5-HTP but no dietary restrictions , the average weight loss was 3.5 lbs.
Importantly, with or without dietary restrictions, the women in this study lost substantial amounts of weight (10.3 lb total) while taking 5-HTP - 4 times as much as with placebo. 4 to 5 times the weight loss