On the road to becoming a happier and healthier you, achieving the ideal body weight is a goal that should always be on the top of your list. Losing weight has often been associated with deprivation and misery, but it doesn’t have to be that way. The following tips will pave the way for a more positive weight loss experience.
To help yourself eat less and lose weight, invest in some smaller dinner plates. Smaller plates will trick your brain into thinking that you’ve eaten an entire meal, when in fact you’ve reduced your portion size by a third or more. You can even order food at a restaurant to come on a salad plate.
A great way to lose weight is to pick up the phone and call a friend every time you’re feeling hungry. If you phone a friend whenever you feel hungry you’ll distract yourself, and you’ll suddenly lose the urge you had to eat something. Your friends won’t mind knowing they’re helping you also.
Downsize your plate to lose more weight. Traditional plates are bigger in diameter than is necessary to hold an appropriate amount of food. The desire to fill your plate and subsequently empty your plate is usually counterproductive to weight loss. Try using a child-sized plate, this will allow you to keep up your habits in a healthier way.
To help you lose weight, consider grabbing a drink of water instead of snacking on chips or popcorn. Water helps you feel full without providing any extra calories. Try to consume at least 6-8 servings of water a day. You can even give the water a little extra “pop,” with a splash of lemon or lime.
Go nuts! The combination of high protein and fiber found in most nuts make them a great snack for keeping hunger under control. Eat them as part of a healthy diet, and you could see significant slimming, fat reduction, and possibly healthier levels of cholesterol. Remember that nuts do contain fat and calories, though, so keep your portions reasonable.
One weight loss tip can be observed by looking at a certain group of people: the fidgeters. People who fidget are generally thinner than people who keep still. So if you’re not a naturally fidgety person, try to build some fidgeting into your routine. At work, if your environment permits it, when you take or make a phone call, get up and pace back and forth, jiggle your leg, or develop some other rapidly repeating movements you can do while attending to other tasks. Those micro-calorie burns will add up over time.
Separate your good into serving sized containers after you finish food shopping. Whether you use sandwich bags, snack size bags, or use plastic or glass containers, setting aside just the right amount for a meal will keep you from over-eating later on. You’ll be much less likely to overeat when the food is already set up for you to grab and go.
Remember to never turn to drastic measures for weight loss unless you absolutely have to. Having gastric bypass surgery is not only extremely expensive and also insanely dangerous, but many people who have their stomachs reduced in size just blow them back up again from overeating, basically nullifying the operation.
Remember as a dieter that most diets out there will only maintain your weight after a certain amount of time. So if you want to keep on losing the weight, you will have to continue to push yourself harder and harder. Once you lose the desired amount of weight, then you can coast through on maintenance mode.
If you are dining at a Mexican restaurant, tell the waitress to hold the salsa and chips. Chips are something that you should not be munching on and can cause excessive weight gain over the course of the week. When going out to restaurants, only eat the meal that you are served.
Remember what’s important and keep the goal in sight. If you have a craving for some food, then eat it, but try to eat only enough to satisfy the craving. Is it more important for you to eat an entire chocolate cake or to look good for your sister’s wedding? Think of how great you will look in that fitted dress, and of all the pictures that will be taken that day.
Make vegetables a regular part of your diet by serving them at each lunch and dinner. Things like baby carrots and pea pods require little to no prep, so try to keep them on hand. Vegetables are nutrient-rich and light on calories, so filling up on these foods will keep you from eating too much in a day.
Try not to eat fatty foods; not only will abstaining help you lose weight, it will make your skin look better as well. Multiple research projects demonstrate the advantages of diets rich in protein and not so much in fat. Sweets and foods that have been fried will upset the balance of natural oils on your skin and may cause unwanted problems.
Understand the effect of prescription medication on your body and metabolism. Many adults take one or more maintenance medications for a variety of health needs. Some of these medications have weight gain as a side effect or, at the least, may hinder efforts to lose weight. Talk to your doctor about alternatives if one of your medications is causing you to struggle with weight loss.
Utilizing the tips from this article will bring you closer to your weight-loss goals without sacrificing your happiness during the process. You can now move forward to a healthier lifestyle with confidence and optimism. Don’t fall for the pessimistic outlook of those around you – enjoy the experience of claiming the body that you want to go through life with.