1. Do not skip breakfast. Many people assume that skipping the first meal of the day will help them loose weight. But it could actually do the opposite. Our bodies need fuel first thing in the morning to get our metabolism going. When we do not eat breakfast in the morning, our metabolism will remain slow, and a slow metabolism = weight gain. So, eat your breakfast!
2. Eat healthier snacks. Instead of chips, candy, crackers, and other starchy foods, try snacking on nuts, dried fruit, raw fruit, popcorn, or rice cakes. Also, try making your own trail mix. You can mix cheerios, raisins, nuts, and m&ms together for a sweet and salty snack. Homemade trail mix is much better for you than pre-packaged, store-bought trail mix.
3. Eat less. The easiest way to loose or keep off weight is to eat smaller portions. Limit yourself to only one helping and make sure that each portion of food is no bigger than the size of your palm. This may be hard, but after a while, your body will get used to eating smaller portions.
4. Eat whole-grain bread. Whole-grain bread is better for your body than pure white bread. White bread is starchy and contains extra sugar. Whole-grain bread contains fiber, essential fatty acids, and magnesium.
5. Get 2-3 servings of fresh fruit and veggies everyday. Fresh fruits and veggies contain so many nutrients that are wonderful for our bodies. So, pile them on!
6. Drink more water. This is a huge thing. So many people drink soda, juice, or energy drinks as their way of staying hydrated. But these drinks will make you thirstier because the sugar they contain makes your body use up more water. Besides that, the sugar can cause unwanted weight gain. And diet soda is not any better for you than regular soda. So, drink water. It will flush toxins out of your body, help you loose weight, and it’s good for your hair, skin, and nails.
7. Eat protein. If you get hungry often, make sure you’re eating enough protein. Protein can be found in eggs, meat, cheese, whole grains, fish, and nuts.
8. Chew gum. If you have a hankering to snack on something, popping a stick of gum in your mouth can quench your snacky urges.
So, in a nutshell, eat breakfast, eat fruits and vegetables, cut down on the sugar, drink water, and eat protein. It can be difficult to eat the right things sometimes, but in the end, it will pay off. After all, you are what you eat!
You kind of said it in so many words when you mentioned avoiding snacks like potato chips, but you could have added avoid processed foods. A lot of what we eat is hardly food at all, and can be described, as Michael Pollan puts it, "edible foodlike substances". These are, almost without exception, terrible for you. They can be recognized by their plastic packaging, and their unreasonably long shelf life (bread goes bad in a day or two, that sliced stuff is not bread).
ReplyDeleteAlso I thought it was interesting that you recomended eating protein. Other than vegans and vegetarians, most americans consume way too much protein. It is the carbohydrates they consume in combination with the protein that really adds to weight gain, but proteins are part of the problem as well. I say, less protein, fewer carbs, and more whole grains and vegies.