Trying to lose weight can be a challenge under the best of circumstances. So, is it any surprise that many of us fall under the spell of slick marketing campaigns that lure us into popping pills that may not be safe or banning entire food groups all in the name of losing weight?
Personally I don’t know why I ever thought eating several pounds of bacon and cheese a week (yes, literally) while giving up fruits and grains was healthy. Yes, I lost weight on that low-carb diet craze that was popular a few years ago, but the second I weakened and took a bite of bread the weight came right back.
I also don’t know why I thought I could lose weight in a healthy and safe way by just popping a couple “weight loss” pills into my mouth every day. Some of them worked for a while. Some of them didn’t. And some of them were pulled from the market while I was taking them because they were found to cause serious health problems, and in some cases, death.
It can make a person wonder if there are any healthy and safe ways to lose weight. Along the way, I finally got smart and learned some. Here are 9 that work for me:
1) Think green – as in lots of green foods and no, I’m not talking about green jelly beans. Dark leafy green vegetables are filled with nutrients and fiber. Lighter green veggies don’t usually have as many nutrients but they have fiber, are low in calories, and offer that “crunch” factor that many of us crave.
My favorite green goodies are: spinach, romaine lettuce, Swiss chard, green peppers, broccoli (love it roasted), cucumbers, kohlrabi, and avocados.
One warning about avocados though (there’s always something to spoil the fun isn’t there): they are healthy and delicious but are high in calories. Enjoy them in moderation.
2) Eat foods that are as close to nature as possible – and no matter what those slick marketing campaigns say, I don’t think high fructose corn syrup is a food close to nature because it’s so highly processed. I’ve eaten tons of foods whose ingredient labels read more like a science textbook than a food label and have packed on the pounds. When I eat highly processed crappy food with lots of hard-to-pronounce ingredients in it my body probably thinks “What the @#$& is this stuff you are feeding me? I don’t recognize it and don’t know what to do with it so I guess I’ll just turn it into fat and store it until later when I figure out what to do with it.” I don’t think my body ever figures out what to do with it because it’s not a fuel source it understands so it permanently attaches to my hips. Plus I don’t feel that great when I eat foods that are highly processed or that contain ingredients I can’t pronounce.
When I eat fresh fruits and vegetables (or frozen), lean protein, whole grains, and lean dairy I feel great and have lots of energy. I think that’s because my body knows exactly what to do with those foods so it uses them to fuel me instead of storing them as fat.
3) Chew your calories – instead of drinking them. We all know soda contains tons of calories. But do you know juice, sports drinks, energy drinks, smoothies, coffee blends and health drinks can contain a ton of calories?
Not to pick on Starbucks because I love their nonfat lattes and have one a couple times a week, but did you know their 16 ounce “Peppermint White Chocolate Mocha” made in a seemingly healthy way with nonfat milk and without whipped cream has 430 calories? That’s not a beverage – it’s a meal!
4) Make water your best friend – and take it with you wherever you go. I used to treat water like a beverage that only needed to be consumed when I was out of diet Coke, diet Sunkist, diet root beer, regular Pepsi and regular Coca-Cola. There were times when I literally only drank a couple ounces of plain water a week. Is it any wonder I was having a hard time losing weight? Now I drink lots of water and take it with me wherever I go so that I can sip it all day long.
Not only do I feel better when I’m hydrated but it helps me avoid overeating. I’ve realized that I used to eat food when I was thirsty, mistaking thirst for hunger. Now, before I eat something I try to drink some water first to be sure that I’m really hungry and not just thirsty.
5) Have breakfast, lunch, and dinner – and quit skipping meals. I used to hardly ever eat breakfast and would also often skip lunch as well in an effort to lose weight. By the middle of the afternoon I was not only starving and ready to chew my arm off, I was also feeling pretty smug and happy about how I had “stayed on my diet.” By dinnertime I was so hungry I practically inhaled my food and didn’t bother counting calories or making a healthy meal because I thought I absolutely would lose weight by only eating one meal a day. Plus, because I had been so good earlier in the day I always allowed myself one or two treats at night. What a disaster! I probably ate more calories in the last 5 hours of the day than most other people were eating in 2 days (people who hadn’t skipped meals)!
Now I almost always (sometimes slip up and fall back into my old bad habits) eat a healthy breakfast, lunch, dinner and 2 snacks. It helps prevent me from getting so overly hungry that I lose control, and eating every couple of hours helps keep my metabolism up.
6) Lose weight slowly – I know this is probably not what you want to hear. I didn’t want to hear it either and refused to try and do it the “slow and steady” way for many years. As a result I spent those “many years” losing a few pounds quickly, putting them back on quickly, and gaining a couple extra pounds after every diet gimmick I tried because I had messed up my metabolism. Most experts say it’s not healthy to lose more than 1 to 2 pounds a week (insert big sigh) so that’s what I aim for. Since I’ve taken “slow and steady” approach to weight loss I’ve lost 50 pounds and kept them off, which is 50 pounds more than I kept off after every “quick and easy” weight plan I tried.
7) Move your butt – and not just from the sofa to the recliner so you have a better view of the television. Yes, I’m talking about exercise (such an icky word). Our bodies were made to move but I’ve always hated exercise, mostly because I thought the only way to do it effectively was in a gym. I don’t like gyms (way too many mirrors that I don’t want to see myself in) and I absolutely hate walking on a treadmill. But now I’ve found activities (a word I like much better than “exercise”) that I like, namely bike riding, walking outdoors, swimming, and doing short sessions (30 minutes) of strength training. Exercise has become much easier for me since I’ve found types I enjoy. Plus it’s been a boost my weight loss and is good for my heart.
Be a pig – when it comes to fruits and vegetables. Do you know of anyone who got fat eating fruits and vegetables? I don’t. Every vegan person I’ve seen is skinny and vegans make fruits and vegetables the staples of their every day diet. It’s recommended that we get 5 servings a day of them. I treat the “5 a day” as the minimum and instead do my best to eat at least 8 servings of fruits and veggies every day with an emphasis on crunchy raw veggies.
9) Go to bed – and sleep! There has been quite a bit of research showing how important it is to get enough sleep and that not getting enough of it contributes to weight gain and difficulty losing weight. Our bodies need that rest time to recover from the day and to recharge. Most experts recommend 7-8 hours a night. Isn’t it great to know that going to bed and getting 8 hours of sleep a night is actually better for weight loss than skimping on sleep?
There you have it – 9 ways that I’m losing weight in a healthy way and strategies I’m using to help me get rid of those extra pounds that have been hanging around for far too long.
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