8 Weight Loss Tips to Get Off to the Best Possible Start
So you want to lose weight, but you also don’t want to waste your time on ineffective and unsustainable diet and exercise plans? Good news! You can get off to the best possible start with these eight tips that have been shown to be effective in both the short and long term.
8 Tips to Help You Lose Weight
1) Schedule your meals
Studies have shown that you’re more likely to eat better and feel less hungry when you schedule your meals ahead of time. With a plan, you can shop for healthy food, prepare your meals and snacks in advance, and not deviate from your diet. Keep in mind that sometimes unexpected events come up or work gets busy, so be sure to keep some on-the-go snacks handy so you won’t have to choose between a healthful meal and saving face at work or school.
In addition to eating at regularly scheduled times, try these other diet-friendly tips: eat breakfast every day; pack lunch; drink lots of water; avoid all beverages besides water (caffeinated drinks like coffee, tea, and soda) while eating; share dessert with friends; brush your teeth after eating! Planning is half the battle of weight loss—stay tuned for my next post about what to do once you’ve lost some weight!
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2) Eat breakfast
Research has shown time and again that people who eat breakfast are more likely to maintain a healthy weight and avoid diet-related illnesses like diabetes. "When we eat breakfast, it kick-starts our metabolism and makes us feel energized", says Dawn Jackson Blatner, RD, author of The Flexitarian Diet.
Eat any kind of healthy food you want—just make sure you get up early enough in your day to enjoy it! Don't have time for a sit-down meal? Try a high-protein smoothie or egg in a hole (poached egg over easy).
3) Eat more vegetables
Vegetables are low in calories and high in nutrients, which is why they’re a staple of any healthy diet. While everyone knows that eating veggies are important, most people don’t actually eat them. It's estimated that up to 90 percent of Americans aren't getting enough fruits and vegetables every day. Try including a vegetable at every meal if you haven't already! Snacks can also be helpful; just be sure you choose one with fewer than 150 calories and make it high in water content, like cucumbers or celery.
If it has more than 20 grams of sugar per serving, pass on it (or split it with a friend). Fruit smoothies are also a great choice if you’re trying to shed pounds. Instead of blending your whole fruit into a glass, blend it with ice cubes so you have something refreshing yet filling. You might even opt for some frozen yogurt instead of regular yogurt for an extra punch.
In addition to providing weight loss benefits, exercise will help reduce your risk for serious health problems and improve the overall quality of life by strengthening bones, reducing stress levels, and keeping muscles flexible (at least until old age sets in).
Exercise helps prevent musculoskeletal problems such as lower back pain and osteoporosis while simultaneously improving mental health by reducing stress. However, simply going out for a daily walk isn’t necessarily the best method because too much time sitting around between sessions leads to fitness plateaus.
4) Add in lean proteins
When trying to lose weight, it’s important to add protein to your diet. Muscle is denser than fat, and adding lean proteins such as poultry, fish, and eggs can help you build muscle. This increases your metabolic rate so that you burn more calories at rest—and that means more weight loss. Just make sure not to add in so much protein that you eliminate a healthful food group entirely; keep your daily protein intake around 20 percent of your total calories.
If you can stick with it—in a six-month trial, participants who increased their protein intake lost about twice as much weight as those who followed a normal diet—you’ll also reap other health benefits like lower blood pressure and reduced cholesterol levels.
Try adding in lean proteins like fish, poultry, and eggs. Simply increasing your protein intake by 30 grams—which is about two glasses of low-fat milk—can boost metabolism by 90 calories a day, according to one study published in The International Journal of Obesity.
Another study found that overweight women who followed a diet rich in lean protein lost 12 percent more weight than those following a standard diet. A bonus: Protein takes longer to digest than most carbs, so you’ll feel full for longer and help turn off hunger cues.
Just remember to try and keep your daily protein intake between 20 and 35 percent of your total calories—the rest should come from carbohydrates like fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. And if you want even faster results? Combine that lean protein with exercise!
5) Cut down on sugar
Try not to add sugar or sweeteners of any kind, including honey and agave syrup, in your coffee or tea. These added sweeteners can drive up your calories for the day and are often packed with artificial ingredients that can make you feel bloated and sluggish. If a drink tastes too sweet, try adding some unsweetened almond milk or whole milk—which has more fat than skim—to balance out your cup. The less sugar, additives, and preservatives you consume, especially when trying to lose weight, is a good rule of thumb!
6) Keep track of what you eat on paper
When it comes to dieting, people can be their own worst enemies. The good news is that there are concrete steps you can take to avoid sabotaging your progress. At its core, weight loss is a simple math problem—burn more calories than you consume and you’ll lose weight. The simplest way to achieve that? Keep track of what you eat.
Studies show that people who keep food journals consistently lose about twice as much weight as those who don’t. That might seem like a lot of work (it can be!), but try buying one of those pretty-yet-practical notebooks or picking up a cheap Moleskine at an art store and see how keeping track of your meals changes your relationship with food.
Along with keeping track of what you eat, commit to spending a certain amount of time each day on physical activity. If you’re not accustomed to exercising every day, start small—try walking for 30 minutes a few times a week or take an after-dinner stroll around your neighborhood. You should also make sure that you get enough sleep each night.
In fact, experts recommend getting at least 7 hours of sleep per night for optimal weight loss results. The National Sleep Foundation reports that adults who sleep 6 hours or less per night weigh more than those who get 7 hours or more of shut-eye nightly and have greater risks for high blood pressure and other serious health problems.
7) Water, water, water
Water is essential for weight loss. Why? For starters, it helps curb hunger. Dehydration causes you to lose a sense of fullness, so you end up eating more than you need. Additionally, water can boost your metabolism and help detoxify your body (thanks, water!).
Another reason why having enough H2O in your life is important: It aids in digestion by helping move food along through your digestive tract, according to a study published in PLOS One. Plus, drinking plenty of water will keep you feeling energized and focused—which helps you power through workouts more effectively and makes it easier for you to get leaner over time. Aim for at least half of your body weight in ounces every day.
There are a few other water benefits that you might not know about, however. For one, it can help improve your metabolism. Many studies have found that drinking cold water boosts your metabolism by speeding up your metabolic rate and inhibiting fat storage. In addition, it helps lower your cholesterol and blood pressure levels because of its high vitamin content.
Furthermore, it aids in digestion by helping move food along through your digestive tract, according to a study published in PLOS One. Plus, drinking plenty of water will keep you feeling energized and focused—which helps you power through workouts more effectively and makes it easier for you to get leaner over time.
8) Exercise regularly
Experts have long agreed that regular exercise is an essential component of any successful weight-loss program. And while some people respond better than others to certain types of exercises, research suggests that exercise alone can help improve health markers, such as blood pressure and blood sugar levels, even for people who start out with a sedentary lifestyle.
Additionally, it’s likely that improving cardiovascular health through exercise will make it easier for you to shed extra pounds since heart disease is a major risk factor for obesity. Even if you don’t feel like exercising, getting on your feet for just 10 minutes every day can contribute meaningfully to your overall well-being.
Along with exercise, you should also make sure that you eat a healthy diet to ensure your body gets all of its nutritional needs. When it comes to weight loss, reducing calorie intake is what matters most and there are plenty of ways to do so without sacrificing vital nutrients. There are plenty of low-calorie foods you can eat that are also high in fiber and filling.
To lose weight, try incorporating more fibrous fruits and vegetables into your diet on a daily basis. A good rule of thumb is that if it’s green or orange, you can probably eat it!
Conclusion
The 8 tips above will help you lose weight and get fit without stress. While everyone is different, it’s not a bad idea to use most or all of these tips at some point in your weight loss journey. The best way to lose weight and get fit is by having a balanced approach that allows you to eat well, exercise regularly, and build healthy habits that can be maintained for years after your goal weight has been reached. For more information about losing weight check out my website!
