Losing weight can be an intimidating topic for many people. Many people are ready to start losing weight but simply aren’t sure where to begin, and get frustrated. If this sounds like you, read on to learn some easy tips for setting up your own weight loss system so you can start shedding pounds.
Don’t go the diet shake route. Such items are highly dense in calories and will not satiate your need for actual food. Rather, you will feel grumpy and hungry soon after. Also, these things have a lot sugar, only adding to the unhealthy qualities.
Make your own snack packs and keep them with you to stave off hunger attacks. By keeping healthy, low calorie snacks around, you can avoid that stop at the vending machine. Try items like raw almonds, string cheese and whole grain crackers, to keep you full without the excess calories.
A great weight loss tip is to get rid of your television. You don’t have to actually get rid of it, but if you reduce the amount of time you spend watching television, you’re more likely to be more active. Staying active is important if you’re trying to lose weight.
Drink coffee one hour before you go to workout. Caffeine is not at all good for your body in large quantities. However, one cup of coffee an hour before working out can give you quite the adrenaline rush, allowing you to exercise more effectively and see results much faster.
One weight-loss or weight-maintenance tip people have adopted is to change the size of their dishes and cutlery. We switched from the regular dinner plates to luncheon plates, and similarly, downsized our flatware to salad forks and teaspoons. As a result, our portions have become automatically smaller, and we eat less, but the plate still looks full. People who want more food, and who don’t need to lose weight, can take second helpings. But we’ve found that, psychologically, it is much more satisfying to be able to take a full plate of food, and have the freedom to eat it all, than to try to content ourselves with lonely little islands of food on large plates.
If your having trouble sticking to your diet, give yourself a day off once a week. When you start feeling deprived, you may find your resolve slipping. Relieve that pressure by planning a “free” day once a week. This will help you to stick to your plan on the other days, and you will likely find that you do not overeat as much as you think you will on your day off.
In order to lose weight, increase your activity level. It helps to join a gym, as long as you work out faithfully, or take up jogging or some other sport that you enjoy. You can also move more during your daily activities. For instance, instead of riding the escalator or the elevator, try running up the stairs. Instead of parking your car as close to your destination as possible, park your car farther away. Doing these things forces you to use some calories while going about your daily routine.
You can consume less calories, and lose more weight, if you take the time to cut up your food. Portion control is difficult for most people, so take a food that contains a large amount of calories (like chocolate) and cut it into smaller portions. You can still eat what you like, but by only consuming a small amount of the food, you will not gain as much weight.
It can be difficult to find time to be active during the weekdays, especially if you have a “sit down” job. One good tip for weight loss is to take a walk during your lunch break, even it is only 15 or 20 minutes. Grab a friend to walk with if you can! It’s a great way to refresh yourself during the day and it can count as exercise.
A good way to help you lose weight, is to reduce the amount of salt you add to your food. Consuming too much sodium can make you bloated and can also, raise your blood pressure. Instead, try to use other alternatives to salt or just keep your salt intake low.
A practice that will help one lose weight is to replace time spent watching television or movies with time doing physical activities. By exercising in some way as opposed to sitting in a couch or chair will translate into more calories being burned and more healthy activity during time that would have been spent sitting.
If you were intimidated about losing weight because you didn’t know what to do, now you know. The hardest part of losing weight is setting up a system and sticking with it. Now that you can set up a weight loss system, you’re ready to start losing weight and feeling better.