Finished your Isagenix Cleanse? Now it’s time to maintain your results.

Few things are more frustrating than watching the pounds you fought so hard to lose come sliding back. Everyone knows that the key to keeping excess weight off is to develop healthy habits in order to shed it in the first place. But the fact is, a weight maintenance diet is a very different thing than a weight loss diet, and it can take some time to find your footing.

What is the Best Type of Weight Maintenance Diet?

Fortunately, there is recent evidence indicating that simply following a high protein diet can have a significant positive effect on maintaining weight loss. A 2014 study in the Netherlands followed 256 adults who had lost an average of 24 pounds in eight weeks for an entire year after their weight loss. The participants were randomly placed in one of five groups, each of which was required to maintain specific diets.

One of the diets was based on national dietary guidelines, while the other four were comprised of varying combinations of protein and glycemic levels. The groups were:

• High protein, high glycemic
• High protein, low glycemic
• Low protein, low glycemic
• Low protein, high glycemic

The participants overall regained an average of 9 pounds over the course of that year, which is more than a third of the 24 pounds they lost within 8 weeks. However, the two groups that were eating high protein diets regained an average of about 4 pounds less – which is almost half as much. The group that performed best overall was the one following a high protein, low glycemic diet.

How to Stick to a High Protein, Low Glycemic Diet

So now you know that the cornerstone of any weight maintenance program should be higher portions of protein and low glycemic foods, you can almost keep a running tally in your head throughout the day. That is a whole lot easier than counting calories, though there is still some planning involved.

It’s obviously a lot easier to eat good foods if they are kept handy. Unfortunately, that’s not always possible with fresh foods, which makes protein shakes and bars an excellent alternative. However, those products are not all made equal. So you need to ensure that they are low glycemic, as well as high protein. The type of protein is important as well.

There is an enormous and compelling body of research showing that undenatured whey and milk proteins are superior for both muscle building and fat burning. That’s why Isagenix choose to base their products on those ingredients. The IsaLean® and IsaLean® Pro Shakes provide 24 to 36 grams of high-quality protein, and are also low glycemic, making it easier to healthy blood sugar levels.

However, there are many vegans, vegetarians and dairy sensitive people who are not able to reap the benefits of those products. So the company created a dairy-free version using plant based protein with an amino acid profile similar to whey, in order to produce the same advantages. The Dairy-Free Natural Berry Harvest IsaLean® Shake, for instance, supplies 22 grams of pea and hemp protein.

By always having a supply of Isagenix snacks and meal replacements on hand, sticking to a diet heavy on high quality protein and low glycemic foods becomes a much more manageable task.

Personalizing Your Diet

Everyone gains and loses weight differently, enjoys lifestyles that are significantly varied and has different preferences. So it stands to reason that diets will have to be personalized at least to some extent. That’s why flexibility is so important.

If all you need are high protein, low glycemic snacks to make sure you don’t overeat at mealtimes, then Whey Thins or FiberSnacks!™ may be all you need to help keep you satisfied between meals. Alternatively, you may find the meal replacement shakes a wonderfully convenient option.

Some people may find that just adding a few hundred calories to the Isagenix 30 day system works. The important thing is to keep your diet healthy and the pounds off. By doing so on a regular basis, you won’t have to worry about the special occasions when you don’t even want to think about your diet.