Are you one of the millions around the world who over-indulged in the holiday season and now needs to shed some pounds? The best way to do it is the healthy way! No crash dieting, no fad diets … just good sense and some time-honored tips. These little ways will help big in your New Year’s resolution to lose weight.
Think about your lifestyle, weekly routine, any upcoming parties and trips and what realistic goal for weight loss will fit into this given scenario. There's no point setting over-ambitious targets which you cannot meet. This will only lead to abandoning your weight loss plans long-term. Don’t set yourself up to fail by deciding to lose 8lbs in a week or anything that requires MAJOR changes to achieve.
Record what you eat in a food diary - research into successful weight loss routines has shown that diary keeping and dieting go hand-in-hand. If you don't like writing by hand, simply move your diary to an app. Record every day what you eat and how you are progressing with your weight loss. Be honest or you'll be deceiving only yourself.
Most dishes can easily be swapped for a healthier, less calorie-infested substitute. Instead of trifle for dessert, try strawberries or diced banana dipped in chocolate - it's sweet and yummy but has far less sugar content. Or swap an avocado for butter and grilled chicken or turkey for fried red meat.
If you view the world as a glass half-empty, you'll never see how life's glass is really half-full. Weight loss champions have a long-term eye on success and remain positive throughout the process, despite occasional set-backs. Remind yourself every week of the fantastic reasons why you want to lose weight and how that will benefit your health and lifestyle. Make positive mental attitude part of your weight-loss plan.
Pumping iron allows you to improve muscle tissue and tones your body from flabby floppiness into sexy splendor over time - but it also speeds up your metabolism, which helps with weight loss. It's a win-win scenario.
Tabatas and similar short, intense bouts of exercise can easily be accommodated into a busy schedule. They can reduce body fat and provide a great workout in a shorter time frame than a regular trip to the gym. Most routines take just a few minutes out of your day.
Studies have shown that slimmers who see themselves eat a particular type of food reduce their urge to actually eat it. In your mind's eye, you will already have treated yourself to that illicit choco bar...
When we eat slowly, we allow our bodies to receive "pleasantly full" signals from our brains. Savoring every morsel you eat will help you feel full more quickly and make it far less likely that you'll overeat.
Or a camel that's just crossed the Sahara! Fill your trunk with water every day - around 8 to 9 glasses of the stuff - and you'll feel full without having consumed a massive amount of calories.
Using smaller plates, smaller cups and smaller portions will help you control what you eat and to adopt a far more sensible approach to food intake quite quickly. A sensible serving looks nothing like the meals they serve at your local diner...where one breakfast or lunch portion is large enough to feed an average family of four in countries that do not overindulge all the time.
I wonder how many of you reading this have weight loss as a New Year’s Resolution for 2019?