GENERAL TIPS ON LOSING WEIGHT AND GETTING HEALTHY

After posting the advice on what I would say to someone who is just starting out, I got a lot of positive feedback via email, but most people also asked for some more practical advice on how to start out. Like what small changes they should make first. Well, I did mention some of the small steps in the previous post, but here are some more for you to consider. 

Some of these are taken from my weight loss diary I kept and some of them I have only learned myself during maintenance. They are going to be different for everyone, so you just have to figure out what works for you.

– Don’t give up: This is the most important one. It is not going to be easy, but it IS going to be worth it!

– Don’t take on too much: One of the points I made in the last post was to make small changes. Don’t change everything at once, otherwise you will get overwhelmed and something will have to give. Not being able to do everything will be frustrating and stressful and you don’t need any more stress. Start with the easiest things, like drinking more water and eating breakfast and then add on more changes from there.

– Snack wisely: No joke, I used to have a whole bucket full of unhealthy snacks when I was obese. I would never let the bucket get half empty before I filled it up with snack sized cakes, chocolate bars and other fattening treats. They would give me an instant hit of energy, but I would soon come crashing down. Choose nuts, seeds and fruit for a snack that will do exactly what a snack should do – carry you to your next meal and keep your energy levels up.

– Make sure you are eating enough: It might seem that seriously restricting your calories will help you lose weight quickly, but you will end up doing more damage than good. Make sure you are eating enough to fuel your body. I often found when I hit a plateau that upping my calories helped me diet for weight loss. This is a good calculator to tell you how many calories you should eat if you just sat down all day: http://www.health-calc.com/diet/energy-expenditure-advanced

– There is no finish line on health: don’t see it as you have a certain amount of weight to lose and then you have finished. You will never finish. You always have to work hard at looking after your health. You will reach your weight loss goal, but you can’t just go back to your old habits.

– Move on from days where you go off track: I went off track countless times. Sometimes for one meal, sometimes for one day and sometimes for a whole week. But I always got back on track again and I didn’t punish myself for it. What is done is done; it is going to happen to all of us. As the saying goes, “fall down 7, stand up 8”.

– If you are hungry, then eat: you will see a lot of “diet plans” that say when you feel hungry, to drink a glass of water. I don’t necessarily agree with this. If you can identify it as real hunger, and not emotional hunger (which takes some time to tell the difference), then you need to eat. Trying to cover it up with water is most likely going to lead to a binge later on. But, if you can identify it as emotional eating, then a glass of water is a good idea.

[Source: http://www.hungryhealthyhappy.com/general-tips-on-losing-weight-and-getting-healthy/]