Effective Strategies To Lose Weight
Have you ever tried to lose weight? There are so many weight loss programs out there, ranging from hard core fitness regimens to miracle supplements to fad diets, all promising fast weight loss results.
Unfortunately, crash dieting and fast weight loss has its drawbacks, including a fast rebound in weight gain once those restrictive weight loss programs are no longer being followed. The best weight loss strategy is the one that stands the test of time and doesn't leave you feeling deprived and hungry all day.
Instead of starving yourself, counting points, or going on an all liquid diet, follow these ten effective strategies designed for losing weight naturally so you can keep it off for good.
Remove The Gluten
A recent study [1] found out that a gluten-free diet can help reduce your waistline, insulin resistance, and inflammation. Now, this doesn’t mean that you need to go out and replace all your favorite foods with gluten-free varieties. Simply start cutting back on the amount of gluten you consume, and try to be more aware of what you're eating that may contain gluten.
Be Mindful Of Fruit Consumption
While fruit is an essential part of a healthy diet, too much consumption of fruits can actually hinder fat loss. Excess fructose, the natural sweetener in fruit, can increase weight gain and lead to leptin resistance [2]. Leptin is a hormone that signals your brain to stop eating; if your brain becomes resistant to it, you're more likely to go after those second helpings.
Switch Your Carbohydrates For Green Vegetables
Cruciferous and leafy vegetables can provide you with antioxidants, nutrients, and fiber for fewer calories than starchy carbohydrates such as rice and potatoes.
Slowly Increase Your Fiber Intake
Harvard Research reveals [3] that higher fiber consumption is associated with weight loss. This can be as simple as aiming to eat 30 grams of fiber each day. Some high-fiber foods include quinoa, legumes, lentils, raspberries, and avocado.
Try An Appetite-Curbing Technique
About 30-60 minutes before eating your meal, add one teaspoon of fiber-blend supplement powder or fresh ground flaxseed to one glass of drinking water. Drink the whole glass and then gauge your hunger level.
Get 7 to 9 Hours Of Quality Sleep
Poor or inadequate sleep can affect your fat-burning hormones [4]. It may also lead you to add a banana nut muffin to your coffee order in the morning. Increased appetite or cravings for sugars and carbs are often signs of fatigue.
Do Intervals To Blast Fat
High intensity interval training or burst training for just half an hour could turn you into a fat-burning machine. Not only are burst workouts more efficient with your time, they've been shown to burn off pounds faster [5], which means quicker weight loss results.
Practice De-Stressing Daily
Psychological stress, including life events stress and perceived stress, is often associated with weight gain. The simplest way to de-stress is to meditate, breathe deeply, and gently massage your arm or hand for a few minutes. It's very important to know what works best for you in order to deal with stress effectively.
Drink Water Before You Eat
Starting your meal with a glass of water will not only help you drink more water, it will also help fill you up so you don’t confuse thirst with hunger.
Make Simple Food Swaps
There are many ways to make simple ingredient substitutions that cut calories, sugar, and sodium without surrendering good taste. A few examples to try include:
- Greek yogurt instead of sour cream
- Applesauce instead of butter in baked goods
- Zucchini noodles instead of traditional white flour pasta noodles
Remember Weight Loss Takes Time
Losing weight doesn't happen overnight, it takes time. However, it doesn’t have to be difficult, and it doesn’t have to be temporary. Trying just a few of the practices outlined above can help you transform your weight loss goals into healthy lifestyle habits that you can stick with for life.
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Resources:
[1] NCBI: The Effect of Gluten Free Diet on Components of Metabolic Syndrome
[2] NCBI: Leptin Resistance: Underlying Mechanisms and Diagnosis
[3] Harvard Health: Making One Change-Getting More Fiber-Can Help With Weight Loss
[4] WebMD: Sleep and Weight Gain
[5] Healthline: Short and Sweet: High Intensity Workouts Help Speed Up Weight Loss