We are in the month of diets. You will start to see them everywhere. There will be ads and people pushing their fantastic plan that is absolutely perfect and will make you lose weight super fast without barely any work. To me when I hear certain key phrases I know to go the other way! Quick disclaimer here, I am by no means bashing anyones form of weight loss. I honestly just believe that having a healthy lifestyle is a better option that weight loss pills. Whenever I write posts like this is usually end up with comments like well I did those pills and lost 75 pounds and they worked great for me. My point here isn't to say those extreme options don't work, my point is there is a healthier way that is more sustainable. Being healthy is more than just losing weight and often I find people miss that point!
Here are some tips I can give to help lead a healthier lifestyle and lose weight.
* DRINK WATER - I know you don’t like this one because lets face it, diet coke is delicious but at the end of the day you need water, and a lot of it. You should be drinking at least half your body weight in ounces of water. I like to max that at 80 ounces depending on how much you weigh. Water plays a huge part in your body, it does more than just hydration.
* BE REALISTIC - This one might be different that what you expected. Especially now everyone is sitting and making their diet plans for the new year. They are going to 100% cut out all bad foods and exercise 6 days a week. It sounds GREAT on paper, but the truth is your life isn't laid out as simple as it is on paper. What about your daughters birthday party next week. Are you going to only eat salad and water while everyone has pizza and cake? You can but do you really want to? I strongly believe in being consistent about 80% of the time. Letting yourself celebrate at a party for 1 meal is not going to derail all your plans. This is not saying you should eat 3 slices of pizza and have a huge piece of cake but a piece or pizza and a salad is a reasonable choice. You will find you will be more successful if you set yourself up for success. You will not be able to 100% commit to anything forever so lets be realistic from the start and go into it with those expectations. By doing this you will find you have a better chance to make a good plan when you go off your nutrition plan.
* EAT VEGETABLES - Something I've been introduced to this year was to eat a vegetable with every meal, including breakfast, and your snacks! It was a challenge in the beginning because I'm not really a breakfast person but setting my mind up for having to have a vegetable at every meal made me make better choices. Sometimes that vegetable would be raw peppers. It doesn't matter what it is you should just try and eat a vegetable at every meal!
* PAY ATTENTION TO QUALITY AND LOOK AT FOOD LABELS - When you start to be more observant of what you are eating you tend to eat better. I try my best to limit foods that come in a box. Usually when food is packaged its processed and honestly not entirely healthy for you. Try and fill your fridge with lean meats and vegetables. You will obviously have a pantry of food, this doesn't mean its bad but again pay attention to what you are buying. You will be SHOCKED at how many canned products have added sugar in it, things you expect to be healthy like crushed tomatoes. They can be loaded with sugar and honestly, why! Try and focus on buy items with limited ingredients, ingredients you can pronounce, and do not have added sugar that shouldn't have it!
Don't start your new year with just a focus on weight loss. Focus on eating healthy and doing things that are better for you body. Trust me the rest will follow!
Happy New Year!
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