To lose weight safely, you need to consume fewer
calories than you burn up in your daily activities. However, this does not mean
a drastic reduction in your daily food consumption.
Replace fatty, calorie-rich foods with complex
carbohydrates that are low in calories, but nutritious. It is also recommended
that this well-balanced diet be combined with some form of aerobic exercise; it
is best to exercise three to five times weekly.
If you eat less calories and do some exercise, you
will lose weight. It's not going to happen quickly and losing it slowly is the
sensible way.
Remember, it may have taken months to put on extra
pounds, so losing them can take just as long, if not longer. Many people,
however, look for quick results and use methods that can be hazardous.
Crash or fad diets are often dangerous because they
can push the body to near starvation if they do not provide adequate calories.
This means that your body will begin to use muscle and bone tissue to supply it
with the nutrition it needs. The weight you lose on a crash diet will be muscle,
not fat. When you return to normal eating, your body will begin to store more
fat, so that it won’t have to turn to muscle for energy again.
* It is important to use your willpower
to lose weight and to develop a positive attitude.
* Emphasize your weight loss triumphs
and work towards making them more frequent
* Find a weight loss "buddy,"
club, or support group. This will help you stay with your weight loss program.
* Weigh yourself each week. Do not be worried about
small daily changes in your weight. You should not lose
more than 1 to 2 pounds a week. There may be weeks when you do not lose weight.
This is normal. But, stay on your diet and you will
again start to lose weight.
* Bake, roast, or broil your food
instead of frying. Remove all fat from meats and skin from poultry before
cooking.
* Drink 6 to 8 glasses of water each
day. This will help flush out your body while also suppressing your
appetite
* Limit how much alcohol you drink.
Alcoholic drinks have many calories and little else.
* Don't give it up if you don't want
to, just reduce your intake.
* Pick one place at home and work that
you will do all your eating. Be sure you are seated. Don't eat anywhere but in
that place. Enjoy your food by sitting down and eating slowly. Sitting down
focuses your attention more directly on the activity of eating. By eating in the
same place you identify and associate that place with the idea that it is the
only area in which you should eat.
* Shop for Groceries only after eating.
You will be less likely to buy foods impulsively – especially foods you don’t
need.
* When you shop for groceries stick to
your shopping list. This helps you guard against impulse buying. Make sure you
list is complete and do not buy any extra food items.
* Watch food labels. Foods with a high
percentage of fat (or carbohydrates that are sugars) will slow down your weight
loss program Don't just count grams, but instead percentage of total calories
that are fat or sugars.
* Don't think that just because you are
eating low fat/low calorie foods that you can eat all that you want. The
calories still add up and must be burned off regardless of what kind of food you
eat. Balance is the key.
* If you are going to a restaurant,
decide ahead of time what you will be eating. Stick to it.
* Never starve yourself, especially
before going out to eat (or you will binge). Never skip meals, you must have
some kind of nourishment regularly or your body's starvation defenses will kick
in, lower your metabolism, and store fat.
* Exercise – If you want to stay
healthy and make weight loss permanent you just cant do without exercise. Along
with cutting down on the fat you eat exercising regularly may be your best ally
in improving your all around health and bringing your weight loss under
control.
* Schedule your exercise time just as
you plan your other activities of the day. Treat this time as an important
appointment you don’t want to miss
