If you have been struggling to lose weight for longer than you’d care to admit, then you are not alone. At the same time, you have probably been misinformed, and that’s not your fault. It can be frustrating. You do everything you think you’re supposed to, but you just can’t get rid of those extra pounds. The following tips will help you with your weight loss efforts.
1. Exercise – As much as a lot of people would like to avoid it, exercise is one of the biggest boosts to losing weight. Not only will it burn calories when you’re doing it, it will also increase your metabolism and improve your overall health. Don’t worry, you don’t have to run a marathon to reap the beneficial effects of exercise. Just get moving and you will soon notice a difference.
2. Portion control – Give some thought to how much food you are putting on your plate. It’s all too common to mindlessly pile as much on our plates as the plate will hold. But we only need enough to fill our stomachs, which is usually much less.
3. Mind power – Keeping your mind sharp, refreshed and relaxed will help you cope with things that would otherwise derail whatever weight loss plan you’re on. Things such as meditation and yoga are a good way to do this.
4. Look at labels – When you are shopping for food, look at the nutrition labels. These will help you to select the foods that are lower in saturated fat, calories and refined sugar; and higher in protein, fiber and healthier fats. By doing this, you will have healthier food at home when you get hungry.
5. Grazing – The idea of eating three large meals a day is out of date when it comes to losing weight. The problem is that it gives you too much time between meals to get hungry, and the hungrier you are, the greater the chance that you will consume more calories when you finally eat. If you want to lose weight, then eat several smaller meals throughout the day. You will not only feel fuller longer, but you will also have a steady supply of fuel to get you through the day.
6. Eat, eat, eat – This is similar to the idea of grazing, but it is even more basic. It simply means that you should eat when you’re hungry. Of course you still have to give some thought to what you’re eating, but other than that, go ahead and eat when you’re hungry.
7. Drink water – Be careful here! It was a long-held belief that you had to drink at least eight glasses of water if you wanted to lose weight. However, there is now plenty of evidence that this is not true. But you should still drink plenty of water, just don’t think it will cause you to lose weight. Not only is water good for your heath, but it also has no calories, and that’s a good thing for weight loss.