Change Is Hard - Quick Weight Loss Tips You Can Really Do
For anyone who has tried, and tried to lose weight, it can certainly be frustrating to say the least.
I know. I've been there and it was horrible.
Luckily I've been able to make some changes to my lifestyle that have brought me a lot of confidence and happiness, and now I'm trying to do my best to pass on the benefit of my experience in some small way to anyone who will care to listen. That's why I'm even considering writing about weight loss tips.
I should clarify though.
When I say I want to share some quick weight loss tips I don't mean 'quick weight loss' tips.
In other words, I'm sharing some 'quick tips for weight loss'. If that makes any sense.
This Hub is not about ways to lose weight quickly. I don't believe in that approach as I have done it before and it didn't last.
No. What I want to do here is pass on some simple steps that are quick and easy to implement into your life - yet powerful enough to change your life!
Tips on Quick Weight Loss Diets - Regardless Of Where You're At With Weight Loss - You Have To Understand 'Calories' Is Not A Dirty Word
C-a-l-o-r-i-e-s. How I used to be annoyed and frightened of that word. When I was overweight the mere mention of the word sent me into near fits of rage because I used to associate it with guilt, fear, pressure and a whole host of different negative emotions. That is, until I learned one simple truth:
Calories merely refers to a MEASURE of energy. It could be either energy in or energy out. But regardless, it isn't a word that can possibly carry any kind of judgment, just as words like 'miles' or 'ounces' carry any kind of kind of ulterior message.
Calories is the term we use to describe how much energy food provides to our body or how much energy we lose when we are active, so it is a VERY important term when it comes to losing weight. For in order to lose weight we must fuel our bodies with less calories than we burn off from activity. It's just as simple as that.
The First Part of the Equation - Calories IN
There are two distinct parts to any weight loss program, whether you are on a structured diet, or trying to go it alone. You have to monitor your Calories IN and your Calories OUT. As I mentioned above, to lose weight calories in must be less than calories out. It's just simple maths.
We often refer to monitoring Calories IN as dieting and monitoring Calories OUT as exercise.
However, in REALITY these terms are only a distraction from what any person, overweight or not, is trying to achieve in their life - health. To be healthy you need to EAT healthy and ACT healthy. Eating healthy is the Calories IN part, so let's start there.
To reduce Calories IN there are some simple steps anyone can take, as quickly or as slowly as you are able, that can have dramatic effects on the equation. For example, did you know that if you eat only 150 excess calories a day (one cookie too many) you will gain 1 pound every three weeks! So it stands to reason then that if you eat only 150 calories less than you need every day (one less cookie) then you could lose 1 pound every three weeks. That's 17 pounds a year - from doing nothing but reaching for one less cookie!!!
I hope I'm managing to convey the message that there really are some very SIMPLE and easy things you can do, that don't require massive stores of willpower to lose weight.
So essentially, my quick tips for weight loss by monitoring your Calories IN are to gradually start cutting down on the smallest things that you eat in your diet - one less this and one less that. Have one less take-away meal a month. Drink one less beer/wine/coffee. Have one less helping of dessert. That sort of thing. And even if you only do it now and again, it's going to start to make a difference to your life and help you build a foundation for reducing even more of those high calorie foods in your diet.
Just a note on drinks. Fruit juice, soda, milk, alcohol, energy drinks and sports drinks are very high in calorie content. They are big energy sources! So switching to diet drinks, watering down fruit juice and just drinking plain old water is going to be a big way to cut down calorie content.
Oh, and why not make a promise to yourself that as of today, regardless of whether you are able to resist the urge to eat take-away food, you will never agree to an 'upsize/supersize' again. There's another easy way to balance the scales a little more in your favor...
The Other Side of the Equation - Calories OUT
E-x-e-r-c-i-s-e really is a dirty word. We've taken this word and been misusing it for years and now we have come to think it should be a daily part of our lives, when in fact, for most people, it is anything but necessary. Let me explain.
The word 'exercise' is used to refer to physical exertion that we perform to improve our health, but it is more correctly used when applied to something done or performed as a means of practice or training than everyday physical activity. So if you think that you need to exercise to lose weight, but you're struggling because you hate exercise, take comfort - exercise is meant to be hated.
I hated learning to play the piano when I was a kid because I had to exercise my skills every day - which meant repeating scales again and again and again and again. It was boring as all heck. But it was necessary so my hands and fingers could learn to negotiate the keyboard with enough skill to manage difficult compositions.
Most of us don't need physical exercises in our daily lives in this sense. Unless we are athletes, that is. We don't need to train our bodies to endure hours of jogging or cycling. In fact, about the only exercises we should regularly perform are walking, because this is something we do every single day and we do want to be good at it.
I've found I've been far more confident when I've been considering Calories OUT when I've been thinking about ACTIVITY than exercise. I find activity a whole lot more fun. I love going out with my kids and kicking or throwing a ball around. I love walking on the beach on a warm day. I love playing tennis (even though I'm no good at it) and I love gardening. These activities are burning my calories just as readily as jogging around the same block every morning, but I'm enjoying it and sticking with it.
I don't know if this is making sense to you - it's a whole 'perspective' thing I guess and it works wonderfully for me because I hate repetition, get bored really easily and the very thought of jogging every morning sends me crazy. But I'll get up and take my dogs for a walk on the beach if the weather's nice because that's fun. I'll even run around chasing them!
And all the while I'm burning calories and losing weight. What could be better?
A Weight Loss Program That Works!
Much of the success I've had losing weight has come from the realizations I've had about Calories IN and Calories OUT - that is EATING and ACTIVITY. Understanding these principles has freed me from a lot of old mindsets and now I don't think of myself as dieting or exercising. I'm just making choices that are healthy and fun and I'm enjoying being happy.
These realizations came in part because of a great weight loss program that I bought online called The Diet Solution Program. You may have heard of it. It has been very popular online for several years and has helped a lot of people change their eating habits and lose weight - then keep the weight off.
Here's a quick link to the website because if you are starting to get some of the things I've been saying you should really check it out. Just Click Here Now.
10 Baby Steps To Help You Get Your Calories IN and Calories OUT In Balance
Just by way of conclusion, I want to give you 10 ideas for some quick and easy steps you can take that will take virtually no willpower to complete, but will have a big impact on your life and weight over time. They are in no particular order and they are only some ideas off the top of my head, so you can definitely tailor them to your own situation or come up with some of your own. In fact, the last step suggests something to help you do just that.
Here they are:
switch to low fat milk
switch to diet soda
water down fruit juices
refuse to 'upsize' take out food
take a walk around your neighborhood to find something you haven't seen before
skip the chocolate/sweets/chips/soda aisle in the supermarket
skip one take out meal a month for a home cooked meal
always eat at the table (not in front of TV)
take a class to learn a sport you've always wanted to try
buy a notebook and write down some thoughts for other simple steps you can take in your life to EAT healthy and be ACTIVE and take pride in crossing them out when you've done them.
Good luck! I can tell you that because of losing my weight (over 30kg) I've become a brand new person and I'm loving life in a way that I didn't realize I could. I wish that for you too and I know it's there for you whenever you're ready.
James Spacey writes about a variety of topics including best pet pharmacy and best cheap unsecured loans.
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