Maintaining a healthy weight isn’t a special secret, in fact natural weight loss is about eating properly and regular physical activity; although, not many people listen to this. This should be an easy concept for the many overweight people around the world, but a third of overweight Americans and millions globally would seem to disagree with this. The conflicting aspect is that a large percentage of overweight people are desperately trying to lose those pounds whether it is because they are tired of the looks they receive or for health reasons.

But the fact is that it is a whole lot easier to prevent putting on pounds than to try losing them later on. Nevertheless, weight maintenance is something that has to be worked on and planned, otherwise extra pounds are inevitable.

For some reason even when dieters who have become used to, and even enjoy a low calorie diet, eventually drift back to old habits and start piling the pounds back on again. Despite the momentum towards weight gain, natural weight loss methods can stop this from happening, and there are plenty of good reasons to avoid piling on excess pounds that go beyond vanity or social acceptance.

The problem is that weight gain puts a strain on the body’s ability to fight illness and many of today’s health issues are primarily affecting overweight individuals. Losing weight by natural means isn’t a big secret and deep down most of us understand the principles behind it.

A reasonable approach to natural weight loss is to stick to a diet that is high in complex carbohydrates and fiber, moderate in protein, and low in fat. You have probably had a meal like this in a restaurant; a baked or jacket potato with fresh vegetables and some meat, as lean as possible but not with gravy or butter on the potato.

The problem is calories from dietary fat can be high and have a tendency to be retained by the body, which is something that doesn’t happen when excess calories are consumed with other foods. Despite the number of either low fat or zero fat foods on the market, it’s a surprise that Americans continue to put on weight, but there is a very good reason for this.

What people fail to understand is that it isn’t just fat in their food that is making them put on weight, it’s the quantity of food they consume and the caloric content of it. Where this goes wrong is with overweight people who think that if it’s fat free, they can eat more of it instead of eating a healthy snack.

The subject of when to eat and how often can be contentious but the latest thoughts on the subject suggest that keeping to regular meal times and eating small nutritious snacks between meals may be the answer. Determination, will power and belief should be aspects of your natural weight loss program if you really want to look good and be healthy.

Eating healthy doesn’t mean you need to cut out desserts, because there are desserts combinations that are healthy and taste wonderful.  Fruits are ideal healthy desserts because they are refreshing, light and the perfect ending to a nice dinner or lunch.

You can also use fruit as toppings for things like angel food cake, yogurt, sherbets, and even Jell-O puddings made with low fat milk.  Here a few more healthy dessert ideas.

Healthy Smoothies

Smoothies make an easy dessert with endless combinations and possibilities.  Combine your favorite fruits in a blender with fresh fruit juice, ice and a small squirt of honey.  Blend to the consistency you like and you’ve got a great tasting smoothie.  You can have fun experimenting with different fruit combinations to find your favorites.

If you want even more flavor, leave the ice out and freeze some of the fruit before blending.  You can also add a small amount of low fat frozen yogurt to these recipes with frozen fruits that tastes more like an ice cream dessert.

Grilled Desserts

Here is another idea for a simple and healthy dessert.  Try grilling some fresh fruit on the grill.  Hard fruits like peaches, pineapples and even plums work really well.

Just clean the fruit, take any seeds out, slice peaches and plums in half and slice pineapple in one inch think rounds.  Place the fruits on a hot grill and the heat will bring out the natural sugars.  Grill for about one to two minutes and take the fruit off of the heat. 

You can enjoy them as is because grilling concentrates the sugars and add a wonderful flavor through caramelization.  You can also serve grilled fruits over sherbet or frozen yogurt for a delicious and healthy dessert.

For a grilled fruit sauce, blend plain yogurt, a squeeze of lime juice, a tablespoon of honey and fold it all together.  Then, drizzle the sauce over the grilled fruit.  It’s fresh, easy and makes an incredibly dessert.

Mango Strawberry Snow Cones

Put 2 mangoes, peeled and chopped and 1 pint of sliced strawberries into a blender or food processor. Squeeze in the juice of one lime and puree.  Crush ice in a food processor or blender until it is very fine. Pile the crushed ice into dessert dishes and pour the fruit puree over until you can’t see any more white ice.

Baked Pears with Cranberries and Walnuts

Place 3 ripe but firm pears, peeled, cored and quartered in a baking dish. Drizzle 1/3 cup pomegranate juice over pears. Sprinkle 1/2 cup dried cranberries and 1/4 cup chopped walnuts over the top. Bake for 20 minutes, or until pears are tender.  This also makes a tasty and healthy dessert topping on low fat frozen vanilla yogurt.

Blackberry and Peach Crunch

Mix 2 cups peach slices, 2 cups blackberries and 1 cup of granola in a bowl. Spread evenly into a buttered 9 x 9 baking dish. Bake for 30 minutes or until brown and bubbly.  Allow to cool for 10 minutes. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup toasted almonds and serve.

These are just a few recipes to give you an idea of the many possibilities so you don’t have to feel guilty for enjoying a dessert after a good meal.  Use your imagination to come up with your own ideas for delicious and healthy desserts.