Saturday, May 09, 2015

Top 10 (Realistic) Weight loss Tips

If you want to get healthy, drop some weight and keep it off long term, it can just take just a few simple changes. I'm only part way through my journey to being a healthier Me, but my habits have changed greatly. I am really one of those, 'If I can do it, anyone can' cases!
There are lots of quick fix diets and products out there, some of which are perfect for a quick slim down into your favourite party dress or that dreaded bikini on the beach.
Keeping the weight off long term though, requires a change of lifestyle, habits and mindset. If you really want to be fit and healthy, you will get there. You will have good weeks and bad weeks and it's great to get our children into the good habits too.

Here are my top ten tips for losing weight long term;
  1. Make yourself eat breakfast

    Breakfast wakes your body up and sets you up for the day. Even if you're short on time you can just grab a banana and a glass of skimmed milk and off you go.

    My favourite - berries and fat free natural yoghurt.
  2. Learn to love salads

    I used to think salads were just lettuce, tomato and cucumber. I never liked tomatoes or cucumber ( love it now) so I occasionally had a lettuce salad and unsurprisingly my diet efforts were short lived. Pack salads with colour, tastes and texture and they are the best meal!

    Raw veggies through a Julienne peeler make the best salads.
  3. Create an Instagram account for weight loss
    The internet is full of weird and wonderful people and sometimes you stumble accross a gem. Instagram, when used for weight loss or body building motivation, is amazing. People are so encouraging, appreciative and compleimentary. Sharing your food good and bad helps stay on track and  making them look nice encourages me to mix things up and try new things too. Seeing other people transform is so motivating too. See my account HERE.

  4. Set small goals
    If like me your journey begins with a large number of pounds to shift, focus on small goals first. Maybe you need to lose 3 pounds to get into the next stone bracket, or 7 lbs before your birthday. Thinking of the big picture can sometimes make it feel impossible and you need to keep motivated and happy with your progress to prevent slip ups (which we ALL have!).

  5. Enjoy water! 
    Water has transformed the way I feel some days. I can feel sluggish and sleepy and a blast of ater really feels like I have had a good brain flush. I find tap water so much harder to drink than bottles, but to combat this I add sliced strawberries, lime or cucumber to make it easier to drink, it's delicious!

    Lime and blueberry - Yum!
  6. Have treats as treats/Have a cheat day
    The most important thing for me was restricting my treats. My behavior was rubbing off on my toddler and I felt terrible. We both love fruit now and we still get a nice cake or bakery treat every once in a while, but it is just that - a treat. It feels much more enjoyable when you have waited for something, you savour every mouthful. I also take weigh day off and have anything I fancy to eat that I may have been craving in the week. My choices got healthier as the weeks went on too. We always have homemade big tasty pizzas on our cheat day and it is so worth the wait. Cheat days to some may seem like a waste of a day and yes it could slow progress but as this is a long term thing, limiting things and appreciating them works wonders for me.

    Our pizzas - worth the wait!
  7. Plan and prepare
    Preparation (as with most things in life) is key for meal planning and weight loss. It's so hard when you are busy or have a screaming baby to prepare fresh meals, far easier to grab some crisps and a can of pop. A few minutes prep though can mean a few meals made ready to be grabbed out the fridge. For bigger meals, things like a slow cooker, with a bit of preperation can really help too.

  8. Eat fresh clean food
    When you start looking at the rubbish that is in some food it's pretty scary. I'm not overly strict on totally clean foods, mainly because of cost but we do tend to read labels and bulk out meals with lots of healthy vegetables and whole grains. It feels good knowing that you have given your body lovely wholesome food with no nasties.

    Delicious salmon and omelette.
  9. Get walking
    I have been guilty of saying that I don't have time for exercise or I dont have the energy and it is true most days. A whole day looking after children or out at work, the last thing you want to do when you get home is go to the gym. Walking however is free, its good for the whole family and a really easy way to start feeling a bit fitter without too much effort. Just little changes like an extra walk to the shop or a longer walk for the dog and you will start to feel the benefit pretty soon.

  10. Get weighed by someone else
    I am six months into my journey now and have reached a point where I think I am in the right mind set to weigh myself without going back to how I was before. I do however, pay to get weighed at a Weight Watchers group as for some reason that fear of a stranger telling me I've had a bad week is enough to keep me on track. You don't have to pay though, you could set up a slimming group with friends, get your partner to weigh you or even get weighed weekly by your local nurse. If it helps keep you motivated find a way!

By doing all the above I have shifted 30lbs so far. I've never felt hungry and although my progress has been pretty slow, I feel like I have made permanent changes and really improved my health too which is the best part of all. It's not too hard, but the hardest thing was the initial cutting down on sugar and adapting to a new healthier lifestyle. I really noticed how often I actually open the snack cupboard, fridge or take bits off the kid's plates!

I feel like I never want to look back and can't wait to see what the next six months will bring!


Thanks for reading!Wafflemama