How Can You Lose Weight without Going on a Diet?
Yes, you can lose weight without constant dieting. There are many tweaks you can make to your daily routine that make it simple to create the calorie deficit necessary for shedding pounds. If you’re not the kind of person who can stick with a plan that includes counting calories and measuring portion sizes, try some of these easy ideas and chances are the number on the scale will start going down pretty quickly. If not, talk to your doctor to make sure there isn’t something else going on.
Table of contents:
- set a timer and eat your meals slower
- serve more than one veggie at mealtime
- get more sleep at night
- sub water for sugary drinks
- take a regular yoga class
- skip eating out and cook at home
- eat off smaller dishes
- chew slowly
- it's all about the protein
- don't eat distracted
1 Set a Timer and Eat Your Meals Slower
Many people eat way more than they really need because they are distracted or eating so fast that they can’t tune into their satiety. It takes about 20 minutes for your body to realize it’s full, so set a timer and eat slowly. At the 20-minute mark, assess your hunger and if you’re done, put down your fork and leave the table. You’d be surprised at how many calories you can eliminate this way.
2 Serve More than One Veggie at Mealtime
If you’re stuck in a green bean rut, it’s time to try something new. By serving two or three veggies, you fill up on fiber and the variety tricks you into thinking you ate more than you did. Start putting out a bowl of peas and roasted squash with your green beans you won’t have room for the second helping of potatoes or another chicken leg.
3 Get More Sleep at Night
Research shows that as little as one extra hour of shut eye each night can really help you control your appetite. That’s because lack of sleep spurs your body to produce more hormones that make you feel hungry. This means you’ll overeat during the day. If you get just a bit more sleep, you may notice that you don’t feel like snacking all day every day.
4 Sub Water for Sugary Drinks
I guarantee this works because I tried it after having my second son. In just weeks, I was down a few sizes and close to fitting back into pre-pregnancy jeans. Sugary drinks like soda, juice and energy beverages are packed with sugar, which leads to weight gain. By swapping them out for water, you save hundreds of calories every single day. Start with switching out just one, then keep going until you aren’t drinking any of them anymore. You can do it!
5 Take a Regular Yoga Class
Yes, yoga burns calories and builds muscles, which is great for speeding your metabolism and helping you lose some weight. However, studies also find that women who do yoga on a regular basis weigh less. It’s likely because you learn to tune into your body, which helps you make more mindful choices when it comes to choosing what and how much you are going to eat.
6 Skip Eating out and Cook at Home
Restaurant meals are notorious for being really large and being heavy on the fat and calories. By simply preparing your own meals at home, you can slash hundreds, even thousands of calories from your daily diet. Start out with easy recipes that come together quickly and pretty soon a home cooked meal will sound so much better than going out.
7 Eat off Smaller Dishes
Many studies show that eating off smaller dishes tricks you into thinking you are eating a huge meal. Slashing a couple of inches from your plate, for example, lets you fill it and feel like you’re loading up, when really you’re probably eating less. Slim down the bowls and glasses too and you have an effortless way to slash calories without having to go on a diet.
8 Chew Slowly
By slowing down how you chew your food, you allow your brain time to process the fact you're eating. This allows you to decrease your food intake and feel fuller faster. That means you can eat your normal foods and not have to feel guilty because you're still losing weight.
9 It's All about the Protein
Protein is such a powerful tool to weight loss. It increases your feeling of fullness, reduces hunger, and allows you to take in fewer calories. Studies show even a small increase in protein intake caused participants to lose 11 pounds more in 12 weeks time without actually restricting food intake.
10 Don't Eat Distracted
We tend to spend our time eating surfing the web, texting, or checking emails. We're so busy we don't even take that time to put the electronics down. However, this bad habit has been linked to a 10% increase of food intake during that meal, as well as a 25% increase at later meals in the day. This is 35% more calories per day than if you just put the phone down or turned the TV off to eat.
Don’t you hate dieting? Which of these ideas are you going to try first?
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