You don't have to make sacrifices! Whether you want to lose your first 10 pounds or those last, hard to lose 10 pounds, just follow these simple guidelines to boost your efforts. You'll find these tips are not just good for a quick jump start of a stalled program but lay the ground work for a balanced and flexible plan to use for as long as you want.
1. Track everything that you eat and drink. Don't worry about the calories. Just note what you eat and how much. By making yourself more aware of what you eat you start to plan more healthy meals and snacks.
2. Go meatless (and cheese less) for at least one lunch and dinner every week. Meals built around whole grains, vegetables and beans are great alternatives and will increase fiber while reducing fat intake.
3. Treat yourself only three times a week with goodies containing sugar. Avoid chocolate, ice cream, desserts, cake, pastries, cookies, etc. at other times.
4. Limit your use of eggs, nuts and red meats and substitute lower fat proteins at most meals. These can include chicken, fish, beans, cottage cheese, or low fat yogurt.
5. Reduce your consumption of all pure or added fats by half. This means using half as much butter or spread on your bread, toast, muffins and potatoes; half the usual amount of mayonnaise or sauce on your salad; and half the oil in the frying pan every time.
6. Substitute water instead of sodas, juices, milk drinks or alcohol. Diet soda should also be limited as the sweet after-taste encourages you to crave sugar. For a refreshing morning starter try hot water with a slice of lemon.
7. Get used to skim milk! Reduced fat milk still contains fat. Also choose lower fat cheese and yogurt. If you use yogurt, check the label to make sure that it does not contain sugar.
8. Eat fruit - at least twice every day. Fresh, in season fruit is a real treat for dessert or between meal snacks.
9. Whole grains should be used wherever possible. The fiber will give you a fuller feeling and also helps your digestion. White flour contains nothing of value.
10. Have a minimum of two servings of vegetables at lunch and dinner. Veggies also make a healthy between meal snack.
11. Don't wolf your food. Learn to eat slowly and chew each bite. You actually get more satisfaction out of the food. Your body is slow to register when you are full, so it is easy to over eat if you eat fast.
12. Carrots make a healthy snack and grated carrot makes a great snack. Grated carrot is much more satisfying than a whole carrot. Strange but true.
13. Don't watch the TV at meal times. Whether snacks or meals, studies have shown that we eat larger portions in front of the TV. This is probably because we are much less aware of what we are eating when we are distracted.
14. Consume food that you have to chew. This will increase your fiber intake, and the act of chewing will make you feel more satisfied. This means eating fruit instead of drinking juice. If you have soup, make sure it is chunky.
15. Don't just grab something to eat when you feel hungry. If you do, it will probably be a high calorie, quick satisfaction food. Plan your meals and snacks ahead of time. Plan your shopping by making a list of what you need and sticking to it.
If you are overweight, then you know how hard life can be. It hurts to walk or climb stairs, you get winded just walking down the street and you think that everyone is looking at you and laughing. This is no way to live your life. It is time to make some major life changes and lose the excess weight. Read on to discover some things that you can do right away to start the weight loss process.
First of all, slow down when you are eating. Instead of shoveling the food into your mouth as fast as your arm will bend, slow down and chew your food thoroughly. Some people have success with counting how many times they chew a piece of food. Take your time when you eat and give your stomach a chance to signal your brain that you are getting full.
Here is one that no one likes to hear, but it is critical to losing weight. Start moving. Get some kind of exercise. Just starting by lifting light hand weights while sitting at your desk or on the sofa will help. Then gradually increase your exercise routine so that you are able to walk or use a stationary bike. Purchasing a good treadmill so that you can walk no matter what the weather is a great idea. The more you exercise the more you will lose. Going for a half hour walk four to five times a week will make a big difference to your overall health.
Change your eating habits. Don't eat just because you are hungry. Start eating four to six small meals throughout the day. Eat small portions of fresh fruit and vegetables. Have lean meat and fish. Stay away from excess bread and pasta because these will pack on the pounds. You will find that by eating small meals throughout the day you won't feel hungry and you will lose weight. You'll also be keeping your metabolism humming along at a steady pace.
Consider what you are drinking. Do you drink a lot of soda throughout the day? If so, change to diet soda and cut back on the number of sodas that you drink. Drink more water. This will help you to burn fat and lose weight. If you don't like plain water, try some of the flavored waters that are available. Stay away from excessive alcohol consumption.
Don't diet, make a lifestyle change. Crash diets or fad diets will get you nowhere if you go back to your old eating habits. Become committed to eating healthier for the rest of your life. Once the weight comes off, you will be able to keep it off with a healthy diet and plenty of exercise. You will also feel better and your confidence level will soar.
So there you have some great tips on how to lose weight and most importantly, how to keep it off. Start using these tips right away and you may be surprised at the results that you achieve!
Both Gerrymarsh & Emma Martin are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Gerrymarsh has sinced written about articles on various topics from Lose Weight. Bonus tip! If you really want to jump-start your weight loss and quickly shed pounds, combine your diet with a proven workout routine like