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1. Never eat while watching TV - When we watch television, or sit in front of a computer screen, we tend to automatically enter into a form of hypnosis. In this state our critical faculty becomes disengaged, which is why we can cry at a sad movie that we know is not real, and why time can pass so rapidly when in front of the pc. If we eat in this state we miss many of the cues that tell us we're satisfied. To manage your eating, never eat in front of the TV or pc screen.
2. Eat what you feel like eating - Remember, no food in and of itself is fattening - it's the excess of food that puts the weight on. Allow yourself to eat what you feel like, consciously, in small quantities and only at meal times. Denial just isn't the way to go. Being reasonable is.
3. Ditch the Scales - Scale weight can fluctuate wildly depending on many factors not necessarily directly connected with eating. The real indicator of how well you're doing is the fit of your clothes and the way you feel inside. When your belt needs tightening a notch, or when that dress isn't straining at the seams then you know you're doing well. Focusing on scale weight does you no favours and can even de-motivate you. Let your clothes and feelings tell you how well you're doing instead.
4. Smaller plates equal smaller quantities - The way food is presented to the eye influences the way the mind perceives it. Remember, the average adult stomach is only about the size of a fist. It really doesn't take all that much food to fill and satisfy it. By using smaller plates, we programme the subconscious mind to appreciate and accept a plateful of food, thereby increasing our chances of eating more reasonable quantities.
5. Eat something starchy -- Glycogen is the fuel of the brain and this is produced from carbohydrates. Insufficient quantities of glycogen affect our mental functioning and consequently our mood. And we know that overeating has a lot to do with mood and how we feel. So make sure you eat some complex carbohydrates - whole wheat bread, brown rice, etc - in order to give your brain, and your mind, what it needs. The key here, of course, is moderation.
6. End emotional eating - Eat only when hungry. Easier said than done? Well, it's as easy as A B C. A: When you feel like putting something into your mouth STOP and ask yourself if it's really hunger, or is it boredom, frustration, loneliness or some other emotion that you're attempting to feed? B: Identify the cause of the feeling. Give it a name. Only then can you really do something about it - other than eating. C: Take care of the feeling. For example, if it's boredom, maybe this means you need to challenge yourself a bit more; if it's frustration, perhaps you need to change what you've been doing, so try something else. Loneliness means we have a healthy need for human company: talk to a friend, call someone, develop an outside interest that involves others. You get the idea - A B C.
7. Learn to listen to your inner self - You have your own inner wisdom that knows exactly what you need in order to be healthy. Learn to listen to it. Diets don't usually take this into account. They work at the symptom level - the overeating - and on denial: 'No, you can't have this'; 'No you mustn't have that'. And each time the inner self is being ignored. Then, when the diet is at an end, the weight is put right back on again, often with a vengeance! The fact is that the more we understand our feelings and what they're telling us, the more in control we are capable of becoming. There's a lot to be said for working with a good therapist who knows how to help you in this area.
8. Chew each bite thoroughly - There is a saying in India: 'Drink your food'. What's meant by this is that food should be so thoroughly chewed that it becomes paste-like and easy to swallow. Often, people gobble their food without really chewing it. Needless to say, this does nothing for the waistline! A useful trick is to put your eating utensils down in between mouthfuls. Change the way you treat food in your mouth and you give your body the very best chance of proper absorption and your mind of knowing when your stomach is full.
9. Drink plenty of fresh water - Not only does water re-hydrate your body, replenishing tissue and cells and washing away toxins, it can also provide a pleasant sense of fullness in the stomach, reducing the 'Eat! Eat! Eat! messages that the brain receives. Thirst is a poor indicator of the body's need for liquids and if we drink only when thirsty we end up drinking far too little. Drink more water and notice the improvement in your health - and in the way you feel!
10. Do NOT beat yourself up if you slip - Mistakes are there to be learned from, which is why psychologists call them 'successive approximations'. Mistakes are just opportunities to learn the right way to do things. So do just that. Then pick yourself up and get on with it. Persevere. You know you can do it!
Let's have a look at a few weight loss principles.
1. Increasing Your Metabolism
In order to produce Sustained, Permanent and Long-Term Weight Loss, it's imperative that you boost your metabolism. And the most effective way to raise your metabolism is to have a greater proportion of functional muscle on your body.
The only way to build this lean muscle so you can raise your metabolism is through "Strength Training". There's no other method that works wonders on the Metabolism like Strength Training.
By performing Strength Training, you'll effectively increase the amount of functional lean muscle on your body so that your metabolism will elevate.
After a Strength Training session your body will undergo a significant increase or "Spike" in Metabolism, which will allow you to burn much more fat then you were able to before.
2. It's All About Lean Muscle
"The amount of fat the body can burn is directly related to the more lean muscle your body can hold."
If your muscle system can sustain more energy and use this energy significantly when performing strength training, then it will be able to burn off the calories you eat and the excess fat on your body.
In other words, if your muscles become stronger and can holdmore energy then you should be able to release this energy moreefficiently to increase your metabolism, and to burn off excess calories that you have eaten.
Once we can build more lean muscle through our own strength, then our bodies will become more efficient at burning fat.
It's also the amount of lean muscle on your body that makes you LOOK GOOD. Once you burn off the excess fat from your body, the lean muscle underneath your skin will be exposed making you look healthy, energetic, and well toned.
3. Fast Walking Burns Fat
All you need to do now is incorporate "Fast Walking" into your weight loss program to hasten the burning of excess fat.
Not only is fast walking better much easier on the hips, but italso produces a greater percentage of fat loss as opposed to jogging or running.
Here are some of the benefits of Fast Walking.
Programming Strategies
If you want any weight loss program to work you have to perform "Strength Training". It's absolutely imperative during the course of a lifetime not only for weight loss goals but also for general health and well being.
For years we have been told to diet the excess fat from our bodies and throw in some fast walking to hasten the process. The trouble with this is that the low calorie restricted diet would throw the body into starvation mode, with the body holding onto the fat and using precious lean muscle tissue for energy.
This would "Lower Your Metabolism" causing greater muscle loss and once the diet was broken the original fat returned, and you would have greater chance of gaining even more fat.
"A Vicious Cycle"
Eventually, your body would become used to the diet and then you will reach a point where nothing was happening.
So what do you do now?
Try weight loss supplements, creams, massage, toning tables, drugs. You should know by now that these don't work.
There is a better way, it's simply...
"Strength Training"
Many studies are showing that Strength Training is a superior method for weight loss.
(Ladies, you won't bulk up by using weights, you don't have thetestosterone to get big and muscular, so don't worry).
If you don't incorporate Strength Training into your weight loss program then look forward to "disappointing results".
The days of strength training three to five days a weeks in the gym, an hour at a time are long gone. That just doesn't work. One short strength-training workout a week done at home or in the gymwill melt away more fat than you would have ever thought possible.
Fats, Figures and Cardio Work
We've already found out that by increasing the functional muscleon your body, you increase your resting metabolic rate. Due to the HIGHER metabolic rate you can now eat MORE calories, which means that you won't need to starve anymore to lose weight.
In a sense, fewer calories have to be cut back from our daily intake of food and successful dieting (provided that you eat the right foods) will become more likely.
As far as Fats are concerned, they're burned from the body when cells oxidize to release energy in the form of exercise. Whenexercise is done slowly to moderately for 20 to 30 minutes, then the majority of energy is TAKEN from the fat stores.
It's important to understand that the loss of fat comes from fat cells ALL OVER the body, NOT just from one or more specific areas. Therefore, fat reduction of a certain area is not generally possible.
Mix up your cardio activities in the gym. Use the treadmill, bike, climber or any other training gear available to you.
The best exercise for the purpose of fat loss is fast walking either indoors on the treadmill or outdoors. Walk until you are mildly puffing and hold that rate for the allotted time.
If your cardio activities leave you panting or breathless ~ You are going too hard. Your energy will be then coming from your carbohydrate reserves and not from your fat stores.
Weight loss is not the big complicated mystery that some people or magazines and books will have you believe. It's really very simple and it can be all done in as little as ten weeks by following easy to follow, non-disruptive principles.
Nutrition For Weight Loss
The way to lose body fat and maintain muscle is to have a food program for life. Quality food and more energy output are the basics you'll need to go for. Bulk foods that fill you up and don't fill you out, foods that are low in fat and sugar which aren't refined should be the ideal.
Small frequent meals should be consumed during the day each containing a little protein to maintain muscle and energy levels. Foods with vital vitamin and mineral supplements should also be taken on a daily basis.
How can you determine how many calories you require?
A quick and easy method to find out how many calories you require per day for weight loss and maintenance is to calculate a calorie value with a multiplier as set out below.
Weight loss = Multiply your bodyweight in pounds with 12 calories (12 x lb).
Maintenance = Multiply your bodyweight in pounds with 15 calories (15 x lb).
By decreasing the amount of calories you eat per day to the weight loss amount, you should start losing weight. Don't go any lower and check the mirror regularly to judge your progress.
If you don't have an accurate idea of how many calories your consuming a day, how will you know whether you’re overeating or not?
Another word about diets... They'll send the body into starvation mode; a survival mechanism from long ago when humans faced periods of famine. Cutting back on your calories too low will cause the body to lower its metabolic rate, which reduces its ability to burn fat.
At the same time, hunger signals increase and we quickly start to crave high-energy foods loaded with fats and sugar. The same foods we are trying to do without.
Here are some great eating tips for you to consider: