Getting in shape requires hard work, but that doesn’t mean it should be a stress.
Here are a few tips for a healthier lifestyle that won’t make the results wait.
Preparation is the key
Right before initiating your weight-loss adventure, remember this: life is about enjoying it to the full and achieving goals and make a winner out of yourself should be a fun and motivational.
“Dieting is like any other skill—you have to buckle down and work at it,” according to the therapist Deborah Beck Busis, Ph.D., a coauthor of The Diet Trap Solution and the diet program coordinator at the Beck Institute for Cognitive Behavior Therapy. “As long as you act in a smart, reasonable way, you’ll ultimately get where you want to be.”
We give you 10 steps to follow the path of a healthier lifestyle!
- Adjust your lifestyle to become a new, better you!
Beck Busis says: “Thinking of a diet as something you’re on and suffering through only for the short term doesn’t work”. You have to change your habits and be consistent if you want to achieve lifelong results.
John Apolzan, Ph.D., an assistant professor at the Ingestive Behavior Lab at Louisiana State University’s Pennington Biomedical Research Center says that the amount of pounds you drop off the first month are the best predictors of long-term weight loss.
Immediate results are the motivators. Researchers suggest to hone in on your new diet the first 2 weeks to gain a momentum. First things to be cut are: unrefined carbs, sugar and alcohol. After you’re comfortable you can gradually brings those back in in moderate quantities. It’s all about proper balance. Limit yourself to specific tasks: certain amount of drinks per week, pizza slices etc. Don’t make it a torture, stay motivated!
- Exercising is crucial
Working out can’t be underrated. It is a direct way to strengthen your body and boost your metabolism. Your body biologically tends to keep extra pounds says Louis Aronne, M.D.
When you start exercising your body automatically raises its hunger signals and that can trick you into taking more calories than you’re burning.
Use cardio and strength training sparingly to achieve the best results! Work on building your lean muscle which increases your metabolism and the ability to burn calories fast.
- Control your mild hunger
In some cases hunger anxiety is what prevents you from losing those treacherous pounds. For some people feeling hungry is unacceptable and they try to put out hunger with the consumption of endless little snacks. Try controlling your eating behavior and rather eat actual meals and lessen the amount of endless munchies we’re so seduced by everywhere we go. Ideally you should be eating when your stomach is actually growling and the hunger is obvious. Sometimes we eat out of a pure boredom or stress.
- The difference in calories
The process of weight loss is quite logical: use more energy than the amount of calories you consume. Some processed foods distort hormone signals that are responsible for telling our brain we’re full. The result is – we keep eating more than we need. That is true for saturated fat and sugars. According to studies some junk food is addictive and we simply want more and more of the same “goodness”
Take a step back and analyze your diet. Do a research on what food is beneficial to your body, in a few weeks you’ll notice a major change, you will cut back on the amount of food you eat and the overall energy levels are going up if you’re eating properly.
- The Three P’s
The importance of eating the right amount of protein, produce and plant-based fats can’t be underrated!
To build muscles you need protein which also does wonders to your metabolism that burns the fat. Having a proper produce diet helps to get the right amount of food with minimal calorie intake. Finally plant-based fats are extremely satiating and healthy.
Try to build a proper diet incorporating the three P’s in your meals and the results will be obvious in a very short time.
- Danger of crash diets
Crash diets always backfire, instead of fine-tuning your organism to better practices you rather force it into an undesirable condition. And your body will try to protect itself and quickly gain the lost pounds back. The key is in the balance and self-control between the amount of calories you consume and the exercises you’re doing. be consistent!
- Controlling your eating habits
In order for your brain to acknowledge that you’re full you have be paying attention to the process of eating. Multi-tasking can be your enemy here. A lot of people eat while watching TV, reading, driving etc. and this results in a consumption of extra calories. According to the British Journal of Nutrition when people ate lunch while listening to an audiobook they end up eating 30% more than those who ate without being distracted.
- Weighing helps you to keep track of your progress
This works rather simple, when you monitor yourself it is easier to improve and have a steady progress. Get weight scales and start paying attention to how your diet effects you.
- The importance of sleep and avoiding stress
Your body produces cortisol every time you’re stressed which results in extra carb cravings. Not getting enough sleep increases the production of ghrelin a hormone naturally associated with hunger. As you can see the importance to keep yourself properly rested and happy is seminal!
- There are no limits
At some point you will hit a plateau, your body will try to eliminate the cause of weight loss by producing less leptin. A good way to overcome these thresholds is by gaining lean muscle to raise your metabolism. Add new exercises into your routine or cut extra 100 calories from your diet.