I’m sure you’ve read many articles about dieting tips for weight loss before. You find them literally all over the place with the same tips spat out time and time again.
But have you ever stopped to think about whether they actually work? In fact, have you tried them all and not noticed a drop on the scales or a change in your waistline?
I’ve spent 15 years helping people lose weight. Although they know all about the common tips, they’ve still turned to me for help and support. Something isn’t working. Although some of the diet tips you’re familiar with do have benefits, others are merely drivel.
That’s why I’ve put together this article. To provide you with diet tips that will deliver results. You see, it’s not my purpose to provide content filler and clickbait. It’s my purpose to provide you with information that gets you results.
By following these weight loss tips, you should be one step closer to achieving your weight loss goal.
Don’t call it a diet
If you’re unfamiliar with my work, I must tell you that I hate diets. A diet represents somebody trying to lose weight, but this isn’t what the word “diet” means.
Diet – Noun – The kinds of food a person, animal, or community habitually eats.
It’s a word that seems to have been taken over by the weight-loss culture. People say, “I’m going on a diet,” but the truth is—we’re all on a diet.
You see, how a person eats is a diet. My dog is on a diet, I’m on a diet, and the bird tweeting outside my window is on a diet. They are all different diets catered to our individual needs. I’m not sitting here munching on dog biscuits, the dog isn’t eating worms, and the bird isn’t tucking into a falafel wrap.
By calling it a diet, you’re putting pressure on yourself to stick to something. You’re also thinking short-term, as you’re “going on a diet” to lose weight and “going off a diet” when you achieve your weight loss goal.
Just remember, we’re all on a diet for life, whether we’re trying to lose weight or not.
Do call it a lifestyle change
Have you ever been on a diet to lose weight and then, once you’ve hit your target weight, come off the diet? Your weight begins to creep back up to where you started. This is known as yo-yo dieting. One of the most frustrating things for anybody who wants to lose weight for good.
Instead, it would be best to approach your weight loss journey as a lifestyle change. This is what you should call it, as it’s the only way to lose weight and keep it off.
A lifestyle change means modifying parts of your current lifestyle that you control. This includes how you eat, your daily routine, your habits, and how you see things.
If your objective is to lose weight and keep it off, then the only way to do this is by making minor changes to your lifestyle, focusing on moving forward rather than sliding back and forth.
Don’t avoid food groups
It appears as though you have to be on one of two teams these days. Team “no carbs” or team “no fat”. But this doesn’t have to be the case. It appears as though you have to choose which side you’re on. But you don’t No matter how popular these “diets” are, I urge you to ignore them.
You see, our bodies function at their best when they get everything they need. Proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals, and plenty of water. When your body has everything it needs, it will perform physically and mentally at its best. And when this happens, your body can do its thing, and you will feel more positive. Long-term weight loss is achieved by including all food groups.
Do track your calorie intake
I’m sure you’ve heard the saying ““weight loss is all about calories in vs calories out”” You may even have heard ““eatless move more”” which kind of preaches the same thing – Consume less calories and burn more calories.
In short, this is what calories in vs calories out actually means….
When you take in more energy than your body burns - You gain weight.
When you take in the same energy than your body burns - You maintain weight.
When you take in less energy than your body burns - You lose weight.
It’s that simple. And this concept in body weight regulation is as close to scientific fact as we can get.
Many people say that you don’t need to track your calories. You may even think this yourself. But what gets measured gets managed. If you don’t know whether you’re consuming fewer calories than your body needs, how do you know if you will lose weight? To ensure you’re guaranteed to lose weight, Track your calorie intake.
Don’t starve yourself
For many people, weight loss means restriction and starvation. This simply isn’t sustainable for the amount of time needed to lose weight.
By starving yourself (and I don’t mean literally), you may notice a short-term drop on the scales, but because you feel tired, irritated, and hungry all the time (also known as Hangry), you give in to temptation.
Our bodies are highly intelligent things. Most of the time, it’s making decisions without us as people even realising. We end up doing something without even knowing why. When you drop your food intake too low, your body will respond by forcing you to eat foods high in calories. Why? Because it needs them to do its thing.
Overall, it would be best if you never dropped your calories below 1200 per day. I refer to these as crucial calories. Your brain needs 400 calories, your heart and lungs combined need 400 calories, and your liver and kidneys combined need 400 calories each day..
If you drop below this number for too long, you will cause long-term damage to these vital organs, which is detrimental to your health. Weight loss is your goal, but what’s the point in losing weight to reduce the functionality of your body and the quality of your life?
It’s this reason why your body will fight you if you starve yourself for too long. By starving yourself, I’m referring to anything below 1200 calories per day.
Do consume high-volume/low-calorie foods
Rather than starving yourself mentally and physically, why not switch some of the foods yyou’recurrently consuming for new ones?
A lot of the time when people are wanting to lose weight, they just shrink everything down. Using a small plate is actually a common diet tip, but iit’snot one that I advise.
As mentioned earlier, you’re just going to feel hangry, and I certainly don’t agree with negative emotions and feelings. They cause you to reach for comfort foods. Ultimately, your emotions dictate what you eat.
Instead II’madvising you to switch up your way of eating. There are plenty of foods out there that you can consume in large quantities that don’t contain many calories. Don’t forget that most of these foods contain lots of vitamins and minerals (Your body likes them).
Try building your meal with plenty of salad and vegetables. Then add a source of protein such as a chicken breast, fish, or quorn. If you wish to add some carbohydrates or fats, feel free to do so too. First, you must fill your plate with as many high-volume/low-calorie foods as possible. A full plate is undoubtedly better than a little plate with hardly anything on it.
Don’t deny yourself of your favourite foods
Earlier, I mentioned that weight loss is achieved by taking in less energy than your body burns. By tracking your calorie intake, you can see how many calories you’ve consumed each day. I find that everyone is always all or nothing.
If you deny yourself your favourite foods, you may last a week or even a couple of weeks with a strong mind. But at some point, you’re just going to want them more and more.
Think back to your childhood. Your parents told you not to jump in the puddles. What did you want to do? I wanted to jump in the puddles even more. A teacher at school shouted, “Don’t run in the corridor.” I wanted to run like Usain Bolt down the corridor. In fact, I did, which is why I got my fair share of detentions.
What I’m getting at is that if you say you’re not allowed to have or do something, you’ll only want it more.
If you like a little treat every now and again, you can have one as long as it fits into your daily calorie needs. If you fancy going out for a meal, that’s also fine.
You have to enjoy your weight loss journey, and by including some of your favourite foods, you will stick to your new way of eating.
Do create a structure
If you’re allowed to eat your favourite foods, then it’s important to create a structure for your weekly food intake. This is achieved by sitting down and looking at your weekly routine. Where are you going to factor in your treat? Where are you going to be on your best behaviour?
If you have a weak spot for a hot chocolate and a croissant on a Sunday morning then keep it. But make sure it doesn’t turn in to a croissant every day. Also structure your week so it fits in with your weekly calorie requirements.
If you wish to have a couple of glasses of wine on a Saturday night, that’s also fine. But make sure that the two glasses of wine you’ve structured into your week don’t end up as a hangover on a Sunday morning.
And if you go to the cinema every Wednesday and can’t watch a film without a load of popcorn, that’s fine too. Just make sure it fits in to your weekly calorie requirements.
Overall, consuming foods you enjoy is absolutely fine. It even means you’re more likely to stick to this lifestyle change for the foreseeable future. This leads to you sticking to your weight loss journey, which is the most crucial part.
For you to lose weight successful, you need structure to your eating habits and weekly routine. All foods are fine in moderation.
Don’t keep trying the same diet
“Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” – Albert Einstein
I see it so many times from people who re-join slimming world because they lost a stone last time they did it. What they aaren’tthinking about is the fact that it let them down as they ended back where they started.
I see people ditching carbohydrates and losing half a stone in two weeks, but as soon as they start factoring in carbohydrates again, their weight instantly goes straight back up. But what do they do? They do it again and expect the weight to stay down this time.
The same goes for exercise. Every January, gyms rub their hands together and make everyone sign a twelve-month contract. The New Year’s resolution craze gets them. But they don’t like the gym, so after six weeks, the gyms begin to empty. Year after year, they do the same thing yet expect different results.
This is why you need to try something new. A way that will actually work this time. A way that will ensure you lose weight and more importantly keep it off.
Do plan your journey
Failing to plan is preparing to fail. I’m sure you’ve heard this many times before. It’s so true regarding weight loss.
So many people try to lose weight “off the cuff’’ with no plan to ensure success. There’s no structure to their weekly routine and no plan in place on how they’re going to lose weight. They feel as though their motivation and desires will get them there some way or another. Unfortunately this doesn’t work.
A plan is needed to ensure you’ve mapped out every part of your weight loss journey before you even begin.
You’ve got to ask yourself these questions….
How much weight do you wish to lose?
How much weight are you expecting to lose each week?
What needs to change to help you achieve your weight loss goal?
How are you going to stay motivated throughout your weight loss journey?
What is potentially going to hold you back from achieving your goal?
These are just a few questions you must ask yourself when planning your weight loss journey.
It’s best to have a clear plan mapped out right in front of you before you begin to take action. I call this your weight loss roadmap.
Creating your own weight loss roadmap is the key to achieving the body you desire without disrupting your life.
A plan specific to you and only you is the best way to lose weight easily and keep it off for good.