Having trouble slimming down? Then use our tips to help you shed a few kilos.
We procrastinate, promise ourselves we’ll lose weight and get fit but then put it off for another day because we are just too busy.
Weight loss expert Vickie Cummings shed 27kg and kept if off by educating herself about healthy food, sticking to her 10 principles and ditching the faddy diets.
The Australian healthcare worker shares her philosophy in Diet Tips for Busy Chicks.
1. Commit to change
Unless you start to take charge of your life, you will never get rid of that unwanted fat — remember, a little can change a lot.
2. Know your approximate daily energy requirements
If your daily energy intake exceeds your body’s daily requirements, it will store the excess as fat. Likewise, if your energy intake is too low, your body will slow your metabolism and store the unburned calories as fat.
3. Know where your excess calories are coming from
High-calorie processed foods and alcohol tend to make up a major part of our modern diet. My daily intake is made up of 55 per cent whole carbohydrates, 20 per cent fat, 10 per cent refined carbohydrates and 15 per cent protein.
4. Reduce your daily intake by 500 to 1000 calories
Just making one small change each day can mean a calorie reduction of at least 500 to 1000, which should result in a loss of half to one kilogram of unwanted fat per week (that’s one or two tubs of butter — a lot of fat off the hips!).
5. Don’t ban foods or food groups
I enjoy a mainly plant-based diet, but I still love my treats. The key is to enjoy them in moderation. Don’t start and stop restrictive diets that ban or heavily reduce whole food groups because once you return to normal eating or old eating habits when ‘the diet is over’ the weight will return, and you could find your body fat percentage is higher than before.
6. Enjoy plant-based meals at least two or three times a week
There is mounting evidence to support long-term fat loss and health benefits based on plant-based nutrition.
7. Focus on fibre
Making plant-based foods the mainstay of your diet will ensure a healthy, varied diet that allows for lots of low calorie foods to be eaten, with some of the calories speeding weight loss.
8. Move more
We’re moving less than ever. Increase your activity to decrease your unwanted fat.
9. Drink plenty of water and herbal teas
We all know that drinking water is beneficial but we tend to overlook this fact. Good food and plenty of water are the perfect prescription for a lean, healthy body.
10. Don’t be a slave to the bathroom scales
Weight alone can be misleading. Busy chicks who are scale-watchers can be sent into an absolute frenzy, despite the fact normal fluctuations in body composition can take place many times throughout the day. For true validation of your weight loss and healthy lifestyle changes, take body measurements and keep watch of how loose your clothes are becoming and how different you look when you see yourself in the mirror.
Article courtesy of newideanz
