Losing weight is not rocket science, but the majority of people try to make it that way. Weight loss products and weight loss books are among the best selling items in today's market. What people do not realize is that they do not need to spend money to lose weight. Losing weight is simple, though not easy.
To lose weight, the following steps will get you off to a good start, and all of the resources are within your reach right now.
Drink six to eight cups of water daily. This is one of the most important things you can do for your overall health. Water makes everything in your body work better. It has no calories. Many times hunger is actually thirst in disguise. When you feel those first hunger pains, drink some water first. Wait a bit and see if those hunger pains go away. If they do, you will know your body was thirsty.
Increase your fiber intake. (This is another area that more water will help you. It is important to drink lots of water to help move the fiber through your system.) Increasing your fiber intake is another way to feel full. This will discourage you from overeating. Soon you will begin to recognize the rewards of eating a fiber rich diet, and you will automatically reach for that bowl of high fiber cereal with fruit over a doughnut.
Eat three meals and two snacks a day. Many people try skipping meals or snacks while on a weight loss journey, but it just does not work. Skipping meals causes a drop in your metabolism and any calories that you do take in will burn more slowly. This is one reason that eating breakfast is so important. Not hungry in the mornings? The next step will take care of that.
Do not eat past 8 pm. Chances are, if you are not hungry when it is time for breakfast, it is because you were snacking the night before up until bedtime. If you stop eating before bedtime, you will wake up hungry.
Increase your exercise. You don't have to run a marathon. You don't have to join a gym. Take the stairs instead of the elevator. Park further away from your destination than usual. Stop searching the parking lot for the nearest spot. Go for a walk. Start with ten or fifteen minutes and gradually work yourself upward.
Eat everything sitting at the dining room table with no distractions...fully focus on your food. You will be amazed at how mindful you become of what you are actually eating. It is surprising how junk food is so much less appealing when you are sitting at the table as opposed to sitting in front of the television. Not only will you become more mindful of what you are eating, you will learn to recognize if you are truly hungry or eating for emotional reasons.
If you do these things, you will start to lose weight. If you stop losing weight along the way, increase your exercise a bit. Continue to re-evaluate yourself. You do not have to stop eating foods you love. Feeling deprived will guarantee weight loss failure. Just make sure that when you do eat something, you stay within the above guidelines. For instance, if you are really wanting some potato chips, then go into the dining room, put some chips on a plate. Then sit there and eat them. Just don't do it past 8 pm.
Have fun on your journey!
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Comments: 28
I was going to say it's 2 things. A hand to mouth thing and a move your butt thing - but you said it all so much nicer.
I'm sorry it's just one of those days
Great article Cheryl
Boy am I in a mood today
Cheryl....thanks for the tips! I can attest that the water really does help!
If you're diabetic (like me) you need to have a small snack at bedtime. Don't risk having an overnight low because you're trying to lose weight. You need that snack! Doctor's orders!
And remember that if you're a diabetic, you probably need to eat every two to two and a half hours, small meals, not full ones.
Hubby decided recently that he needs to lose some weight and I have been trying hard to get him to understand that there is more to it than what he thinks. He has decided he is going to buy some sort of weight loss drug, and I told him that it isn't going to make it permanent. Once he stops the drug he will just start gaining the weight back. He has to start controlling what he is eating, like eating smaller portions, and cut down on soda...