Well, the race is certainly on for those of us who want to lose weight and look great. More than a few of us are now taking some actions to lose weight that we may have gained over the years.
The key to weight loss is smaller portions. Always has been.
Eat less, exercise more. Portion control is necessary in these days of “supersizing”.
Eat less than you burn up. Sounds easy but hardly any one does it. We are growing into an obese society overall here in North America.
Losing weight can be achieved in various ways, but healthy habits are necessary if you want to lose the weight and have high energy permanently. That weight that you gained did not just appear yesterday, it probably built up over months, maybe even years.
Weight gain is in most cases a result of unhealthy lifestyle choices. You can roughly calculate the amount of calories your body needs a day and when you stay close to that number, you will probably have few weight issues.
But for the rest of us that indulge in fast foods, candy, other high calorie and high fat foods, the weight accumulates slowly over a longer period of time.
Losing weight, especially losing weight permanently can only be achieved if the right goals are set, and then the goals strategies and results are monitored closely. You can only manage what you can measure so keep an eye on your progress.
Build up those daily, habitually healthy actions and you will consistently hit your mark.
First of all, you need to realize that your extra weight has accumulated over months or years and therefore you will not be able to lose it within a few weeks or a few months, especially if we are talking of more than 20 pounds.
Generally physicians all over the world say that a healthy rate of loosing weight is about 6 pounds per month. So when to get started, set an achievable goal, set yourself 5 pounds for every month until you arrive at your goal weight.
Losing weight permanently often means a change in lifestyle and especially bad eating habits. You will most likely not be able to drop poundage when you keep eating what you are eating, even if you cut it down.
You need to eat to live, not live to eat. Find out what foods will help you in your weightloss goals.
If you include fruits, vegetables and grains into your daily routine, you will seldom be hungry and you will lose weight. Changing to the new healthier eating habit will not only help you lose weight, you will also live a healthier life, and gain more energy.
More vitamins and minerals from nutrient dense foods will enter your system regularly so that your body will thrive and energize.
Also know that the temptation to go back to old habits will be there, but setting goals for permanent weight loss gives you the motivation to resist those temptations.
This does not mean that you should never eat a piece of candy or have dessert. There are first of all very yummy, healthy desserts and every once in a while, when that chocolate is calling your name louder than ever, you can have a piece or two.
Excluding food that you love completely can risk your whole diet. If you indulge in one or two small pieces every once in a while will first, satisfy that sweet tooth and second, prevent you from getting to the point where you will eat a whole bar of chocolate and ruin your diet.
Set a goal to reward yourself. When you have reached one of your long-term goals, go ahead and give you self a reward. Make it commensurate with the size and difficulty of your goal.
Rewards have positive effects on our motivation to keep up certain behaviors and since there is not really anybody else who will reward you, do it yourself. Treat yourself to that new smaller outfit, or maybe a trip to the spa.
One very important goal in your permanent weight loss is certainly more exercise. Eating less food and keeping to those nutrient dense varieties, and exercising on regular basis is the key to keep the weight off.
A more fit you will burn more calories and also you will feel much better about keeping up the routine and the healthy lifestyle. Yes, it can be hard, but if you set reachable goals, you can build the daily habit.
Fit that exercise in your daily routine, no excuses. Start slowly and you will not only see the results, you will also be able to permanently keep that weight off.