How to eat to lose weight
Which weightloss plan should I use and how should I eat to lose weight? If I had a dollar for every time someone came up to me and said, “I need to lose weight fast,” I’d be stretched out on the sandy beaches of Copacabana. High protein, weightloss shakes, liquid and cabbage soup, low carb menus – with all the (fad) fatloss plans on the market, how on earth do you choose?
The lure of the fad weightloss and diet plan.
When people want to lose weight, they want to do it quick, fast and in a hurry. Fad diet marketers take advantage of this desperation and use the promise of lightning speed results to reel you in.
Quick does not always equal better. In fact, when it comes to permanent weight loss, slow and steady always wins out in the end. Here are two of the main reasons faddy-type diets don’t work:
- They don’t deliver long-term results. Most fad diets require you to drastically reduce your caloric intake. Your metabolism will slow down and this will have a fatstoring effect on your body. Once you revert back to your regular eating habits, you’ll gain the weight back just as fast as you lost it.
- They are simply bad for your health. Fad diet plans deprive you of some of the key nutrients you need for good health. This can result in malnutrition, zapped energy, damaged organs, hair loss, and loss of lean muscle tissue. Cleary not the healthiest option to lose weight, right?
5 simple rules of eating to lose weight
Losing weight on a good weightloss system is certainly not the easiest thing to do, but if you remember these five rules, you’ll never have to hop on the fad dietplan bandwagon. You can lose weight gradually (remember slow and steady) and keep it off for good.
- Start moving. A good starting point is to get some form of daily activity. Please note I do not mean that you should spend hours of fitnessworkouts daily. Walking everyday for 20 to 30 minutes is also a good start.
- Eat enough good nutritious foods. Every time you are hungry, you are probably not eating enough food to fuel your body.Then the fat will be stored and you will gain weight. This is not what you want to happen when you’re trying to lose weight. Every good weightloss plan should have a good nutrition system in place
- Stay away from processed foods. These foods are full of high fructose corn syrup, salt and chemical additives that can cause weight gain, diabetes, heart disease, hypertension and cancer. Yep. This includes those frozen diet meals that some weight loss programs encourage you to buy.
- Stay hydrated. Water is important when you’re trying to slim down because it helps to metabolize fat and eliminate toxins and stored fat in the body. Drink at least 2 litre of water daily.
- Leave the sugar alone. Sugar is riddled with calories. If you use it to sweeten foods and beverages everyday, you can easily rack up too many calories and hinder your weight loss efforts.
Where Does Exercise Fit In?
When you follow a healthy eating plan and are eating to lose weight, you’ll likely lose weight, even if you don’t workout. However, unless you add exercise into the mix, your metabolism will eventually slow down and you won’t see the results you want.
Your workout routine should consist of both weight training and HIIT cardio (high intensity cardio training). Relax ladies. Training with weights won’t turn you into the the female Arnold Schwarzenegger. It will simply help you build muscle mass and sculpt a lean, fierce frame. Weight training should always come before the cardio in any good fatloss plan!
Getting in the habit of working out several days week can be tough, especially if you already have a lot on your plate. Choose exercises you enjoy. This way, you’re more likely to stick with a program.
Unfortunately, there are no shortcuts to permanent weight loss (believe me, I’ve looked). I know what it’s like to want to lose weight too fast. I’ve been there and I feel your pain. The best way to achieve long-term lasting weight loss without jeopardizing your health is with proper nutrition and exercise. In other words: eating to lose weight and adding a good workout plan.
