When it comes to losing weight, the first thing that comes to our mind is “EAT LESS AND MOVE MORE”.
But, is it the only way to get the body you desire?
In reality, if you want to lose weight you need to consume lesser calories than you will burn or you need to balance both of them. But, nowadays we consume more junk foods that add a lot of calories to our body, making us obese and unhealthy.
And in the case we eat lesser good diets, we don’t absorb enough minerals and vitamins. The key elements for a healthy body.
So what could be the real cause of excess weight?
With the media and the internet that display the ideal quality of being attractive and fit, almost everyone of us ends up chasing the most effective and complicated diet plans that are posted over several blog sites on the web.
While some are able to pursue the pieces of expert advice, many just end up doing what they perceived to be the easiest diet regimen – eating less!
That is right! Are you guilty?
Eating less has been one of the greatest diet myths in the history of contemporary society to lose weight and achieve the “ideal body.” Thus, some of us associate an eating practice whereby we limit and restrict ourselves to calorie intake, and to some extent, crash our diets.
We tend to place restrictions on the quantity of the foods that we are eating and starve ourselves. Science tells us that when we starve ourselves, we tend to eat more when we are hungry.
This becomes a serious problem to weight loss diet regimens because it manifests how some of us lack the knowledge about the proper and effective ways of losing weight without compromising our health.
So, is it possible to lose weight without restricting my body from eating my favorite food choices? Definitely, yes! here is a comprehensive guide to how you’re going to deal with calorie intake without moving away from your diet goals.
1. Have control and be knowledgeable of our food intakes.
Our body appreciates healthy food consumptions that are taken into part sizes.
And yes, it is a way of reducing calories. We can divide our regular meals to control our food intake and being careful with our food choices.
It makes more sense when we focus in consuming more fruits, vegetables, and whole-grain foods that are rich in fiber and cut down fatty foods.
For breakfast –
1. We can resort to a non-fat milk instead of whole milk.
2. Replace butter with a non-stick pan and a little of a cooking spray for omelets and scrambled eggs.
3. Choose a cream cheese that is fat-free for our muffins, or trade cheese and meats for spinach and mushrooms.
Don’t ever miss your breakfast.
For lunch and dinner –
1. We can have a veggie burger instead of McDonald’s,
2. We can stop ourselves from tuna flakes in oil,
3. We can reduce our favorite pasta consumption by half,
4. We can have a salad without the tempting croutons,
Along with all above aspects, we need to pay serious attention to the sizes of per servings. It is also best to avoid wheat, dairy products, and processed foods.
2. Good sleep also helps in weight loss.
You might be amazed but it’s true. Good sleep promotes many important activities that help in losing weight. For example, if you’re not getting good sleep every day your risk for following health conditions along with obesity increases significantly.(1)
- metabolic disorders
- diabetes
- hypertension
Also, there have been conducted so many studies on the effect of sleep on weight management. And those studies favor good sleep for the weight management.
For example, according to this study, a good night sleep is key to a healthy body. And when we don’t get it we are susceptible to weight gain along with other serious health issues.(2)
In another study, the findings suggest that there is a correlation between increased body mass index(BMI) and the short sleep duration.(3)
So how much do we need to sleep?
According to the National Sleep Foundation, a young adult has to sleep for about 7 to 9 hours and those who’re above 65 years must sleep for 7 to 8 hours a day. Anything less than this may lead to the unwanted weight gain, obesity, and other serious health concerns.(4)
But, do you know how much sleep an average American adult is getting every day? This is just 6 hours and 30 minutes.
Well, are you getting enough sleep? Answer yourself.
Also Read: Why Good Sleep Is Related To Longevity
3. Have a good sex because it is also a great fat burning exercise.
There can be no better and enjoying weight loss exercise than sex.
Good sex also promotes good sleep which is an added advantage in your weight loss goal.
A good sex can help you burn more calories than you burn in your 30 minutes of jogging.(5)(6)
Also Read: How Running 30 Minutes A Week Can Keep Away Your Doctor
4. If you enjoy cycling it can also help you lose your unwanted fat.
Cycling is a good exercise because when you’re cycling your heart, lungs and blood vessels get good workouts. These workouts strengthen:
1. Your immune system,
2. Improve your brain function etc.
Along with reducing the risk of weight gain.(7)(8)
If you are cycling faster you can burn even more calories. For example, if your weight is 180 pounds, and you’re cycling for 3o minutes with the speed of 14-18 miles/hour. You can burn 408 calories.
Here is a simple calculator, you can use for reference.(9)
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5. Happiness also helps in getting a fit body.
Do you know how always being happy help you getting a healthy weight?
Well, it not only helps you in your weight loss goal but it improves your overall health.
When you’re happy you take everything positively that boosts up your energy level and you achieve what you desire.
However, according to a study when you’re sad your chances of gaining weight increases significantly.(10)
So, next time when you feel sad or depressed, doesn’t let it destroy your weight loss goal.
Also Read: 8 Key Motivators for Natural Health and Wellness
6. Stop or control your soda consumption.
Your love to soda could be an obstacle to your weight loss goal. It is addictive like tobacco, drugs etc. If you consume it regularly it is now the time to give it up completely or reduce the intake.
It may be tough to quit completely, but reducing the consumption is not that hard.
According to Malia Frey, a weight loss expert, reducing your soda consumption can reduce your calorie intake significantly.(11)
How much?
If you restrict your daily double gulp consumption to water you’re consuming 209875 lesser calories per year.
This change will help you in saving your money along with achieving your weight loss goal.(12)
7. Start reading your nutrition food labels before consuming.
How many of you really read food labels before consuming? Really, most of you do not do this. But, this is as important as consuming the food itself.
If you don’t know what you’re eating then how can you achieve your weight loss goal?
Therefore, next time when you’re at a grocery store you should check the labels and confirm what types of fat it has or how much fiber it has.
If you don’t know how to read food labels. Here are the instructions.(13)
8. If you’re not meditating then start it now.
Have you ever thought how our ancestors were dealing with such issues in ancient time?
Definitely, there would be such issues and they were being solved more traditionally.
Actually, the practice of meditation is found throughout the history. And this practice alone is capable of maintaining a healthy body because it benefits your body in 76 ways.(14)
Also, a 2011 study justifies through the findings that the meditation controls our diets and maintain a healthy weight.(15)
And the best thing is that you don’t need to do this whole the day to reap the benefits.(16)
But, even 20 minutes a day can help you get the most benefits.
Also Read: 11 Tips for Getting the Body You Want
9. Start drinking more water.
If you’re not drinking enough water you should start doing it first. The reason is when your body is dehydrated then it is not a normal body.
Also, in a dehydrated body, the breaking down of fat cells becomes hard. And, this is a big hurdle in your weight loss goal.(17)
Well, there are many other benefits of drinking water.
And in the case of weight loss, drinking more water suppresses your appetite and your calorie intake is controlled.
And here is a real success story of Steven Aitchison in achieving weight loss goal by drinking water.(18)
10. Juicing, a unique and tasty diet helps in losing weight.
If you’re fond of fruits and vegetables then your success rate of achieving your weight loss goal increases significantly.
The reason is, fruits and vegetables are rich in nutrients and fiber our body need for the healthy functioning.
You can also make the juice and consume all at once. However, you should not rely on juicing completely for your weight loss journey because when we make the juice we lose fiber content of fruits and vegetables. Juicing also increases our sugar consumption.
Also Read: Here Are 15 Juicing Recipes You Need To Know For Healthy Living And Weight Loss
11. Stop sitting at your desk for longer duration.
If you always sit at a place for prolonged duration then you should reduce it because it makes you heavy and sick.
The reason is when you sit on a place for prolonged durations your metabolic health is compromised. Sitting for prolonged durations also damages our heart, pancreas, colon, brain etc.(19)(20)
According to the findings of studies, the typical adults in the United States sit for 6 hours a day on average excluding the time they spend while working on computers.(21)
You can reduce your sitting time by reducing your time on watching TV, sitting in automobiles and working on computers.
12. Yes, social support helps in losing your extra fat.
Why do we make friends?
Simply to share thoughts and to help each other when required. It also helps in achieving your weight loss goal because you can find the like-minded people who’re struggling with the same issue.
You can share your thoughts and in return you may get some tips which probably you don’t know but your colleague has been using them and getting good results.
Also, when we’re social we feel happy and a happy brain works the way we want.(22)
13. Don’t starve but eat more of high fiber foods.
How much fiber you’re ingesting is also a concern in weight loss?
Have you ever monitored how much fiber you’re ingesting everyday? If you have not done it, it is the time to keep watch on your fiber intake.
This study also proves that ingesting more fiber foods is key to a healthy weight loss.(23)
There are many foods that are rich in fiber and can help you in ingesting more fiber and losing weight the way you want.
14. Don’t procrastinate, but start working on your weight loss journey today.
There are also people who plan but they don’t start and these people never see the results they dream for.
If you’re such a person then you must avoid procrastination.
Procrastination leads to you nowhere in your weight loss goal.
15. Consistency is as important as exercising itself in your weight loss goal. So,be consistent.
You need to set a realistic time span to achieve your weight loss goal. And you must be consistent in your schedule.(24)
There are many people who after following for a couple of months quit and don’t achieve the results they aimed for. And this is one of the prime reasons many people fail in losing weight.
Therefore, if you are determined you need to follow the schedule and be consistent through out the schedule.
If consistency is your weakness you can follow these 3 steps to build it up.(25)
16. Don’t make unrealistic goals in your weight loss journey.
If you make unrealistic goals you feel sad and depressed when you did not achieve them. And when you’re depressed your brain works in a different manner that you don’t want.
Ultimately, you lose motivation and quit.
Therefore, make small goals which possibly you can achieve easily.
Really, obesity has been an epidemic.
It is responsible for many serious health conditions that can be avoided if you get rid of it on time.
If you’re struggling to lose weight then above tips can catalyze your process. So, it is time to follow them seriously.
Do you have any weight loss story to share? Please leave your thoughts below or contact us.
