Healthy Eating Habits
I realize everywhere you look are suggestions, tricks or gimmicks to lose weight. But here I am giving you my recommendations. After being diagnosed with pre-diabetes, I had to make changes to my diet and lose weight to avoid medication. I lost 25 pounds in 4 months, and have maintained my weight for over 3 years. Many friends, co-workers and acquaintances have asked my secret. Well there really isn’t a secret pill, except needing to focus on what and how you eat. Making changes, even small ones, in your diet and how you eat can help you on your way to a healthier lifestyle.
Let’s get down to basics, calories out must exceed calories in order to start losing weight. According to Professor Tim Noakes, “you cannot out run a bad diet”. That sounds simple enough, so here are my tools that helped me to lose and maintain my weight.
A food journal has been key for me to be consistent with a healthy diet. My mantra, from Weight Watchers, if you bite it, you write. If my weight starts to creep up, I review my journal to see where I could have made better choices. There are several apps you can use to make keep a food journal simple. I like Fitbit and MyFitnessPal apps.
Make your calories count by eating nutrient dense foods and avoid the dreaded empty calorie food items. Not only will you feel fuller longer, by eating nutrient dense foods, you will have more energy and overall better health.
Focus on eating clean and limit processed food items. Eating clean means eating foods in their most natural state as possible. By making meals from scratch you can control the ingredients and calories, which will help you with healthy lifestyle.
Reading food labels cannot be stressed enough. When commercial processed food items are unavoidable, comparing nutrition information labels can help with making informed food choices. Realize serving size compared to our portion size are not always the same. Measuring your portions in the beginning is helpful to determine a proper portion size.
To help with weight loss make sure you are getting enough water during day. Health authorities recommend approximately eight 8-ounce glasses per day. Often when you feel hungry, it is related to you actually being thirsty.
Limit your alcohol consumption and avoid high calorie sugary mixers and liqueurs. Occasional glass of wine or distilled spirits mixed with club soda are fine.
These are generally accepted weight loss guidelines. However, individuals have different metabolisms and needs; therefore, you should find the tools that work best for you. I am willing to work with you to give you support and general guidance for good eating habits. If you have serious or chronic conditions, you should consult with your doctor or dietician for the best weight loss course for you.