Over the years, you have probably heard your fair share of wacky weight loss recommendations, whether to drink celery juice every day or substitute your meals with weight loss “cookies.” And often, such advice is promoted by people without any health expertise.
Sure, you can lose weight quickly. Plenty of fad diets work to lose weight rapidly — while leaving you feeling starved and deprived. But what good is losing weight only to gain it again? To keep pounds off, it's best to lose weight gradually. And experts say you can do that without going on restrictive "diets." The key is making simple changes to your lifestyle.
One pound of fat is equal to 3,500 calories. By shedding 500 calories a day through dietary and exercise changes, you can shed about a pound a week. If you only need to keep your current weight, shaving 100 calories daily is enough to avoid the excess 1-2 pounds most adults gain yearly.
Just as there’s a ton of misguided weight loss advice to avoid, there are also a lot of legitimate, research-backed, and expert-approved recommendations for people who are in the right mental health space and have weight loss as a personal goal.
Lifestyle modifications are necessary if you want to lose weight. And if you want to maintain your goal weight once you’ve reached it, these changes will have to stay.
Avoid unhealthy fads and manage weight the healthy way. We bring you 11 tips to help you lose weight.
Eat Slowly
Chew slowly and swallow only when the food is all chewed up. It takes time to know when we're full. Slow eating not only lets us enjoy healthy food more but also gives us better cues of satiety. Practice mindful eating.
Don’t Skip Meals
Our body's main goal is to stay alive. As soon as we are kept from empty calories, which are the life energy for our bodies, they will do things to survive. Our body knows what types of foods are higher in energy density, and we will crave those more. Recognize your hunger, and do not allow your body to think it is starving. This goes against many of the dieting methods, but those tactics truly do not work well for people in the long term. We generally recommend healthy eating every four hours.
Stay Hydrated
By choosing options such as sharp cheddar over mild cheddar, you can choose a low-calorie diet, but you’ll still get a lot of flavors without feeling like you're on a diet.
Weigh Yourself Once a Week
Same day, same time, same clothing. Don't forget that your weight is not a single number but a 5-pound range. Work to move the range down, not the exact number.
Give Your Breakfast a Protein Boost
Aim for 15-25 grams of protein when you eat breakfast. Protein is digested slowly and suppresses hunger hormones, helping keep you full. Also, a high-protein breakfast helps control cravings later in the day. Match protein foods with fiber and healthy fats, like eggs with whole wheat toast and avocado, or high-protein waffles with nuts, berries, and a little maple syrup.
Eat Plenty of Fruits and Vegetables
Your food choices can significantly affect your weight loss journey. Fresh fruits and vegetables have fewer calories, sugar, and fat and are high in fiber – three essential ingredients for healthy weight loss. These healthy foods also contain lots of vitamins and minerals.
Eat High Fiber Foods
Foods with lots of fiber can help keep you full, which is perfect for losing weight. Fiber is only found in certain foods coming from plants, such as fruit and vegetables, oats, whole grains, brown rice and pasta, and beans, peas, and lentils.
Stop Eating Junk Food
To avoid temptation, avoid eating junk foods, fried foods, and processed foods – such as chocolate, biscuits, chips, and sweet fizzy drinks – at home. Instead, choose weight loss-friendly foods, such as fruit, unsalted rice cakes, oat cakes, unsalted or unsweetened popcorn, fruit juice, and green tea.
Cut Down on Alcohol
A standard glass of wine contains as many calories as a piece of chocolate. Over a period of time, drinking excessively can easily contribute to weight gain.
Get More Active
Being physically active is key to sustainable weight loss and keeping it off. As well as providing numerous health benefits, exercise can help burn off the extra calories you cannot lose through diet alone.
Look for physical activity you enjoy and can fit into your routine.
Our Weight Loss Service at The Right Spinal Clinic
Our body needs fats for cell growth, energy, and temperature regulation. However, too much fat in your body contributes to becoming unhealthy and brings about a lot of severe health problems.
Studies show that almost 70% of Americans aged 20 and up are considered overweight. Moreover, one-third of those are severely overweight. The more body fat you have, the higher your risk for diseases and issues such as:
- Higher mortality rate and blood pressure
- Heart conditions, type 2 diabetes, and kidney diseases
- Specific types of cancers (colon, breast, liver, pancreatic, uterine, esophageal)
- Stroke, Osteoarthritis
- Mental illnesses such as depression and anxiety
- Difficulty in breathing
- Low-quality of life
- Higher medical care costs
Achieve Your Weight Loss Goals at The Right Spinal Clinic
Live a healthy lifestyle by losing excess weight.
Start your path to a happier and healthier you by scheduling your first weight loss appointment with us. We carefully tailor the most ideal treatment plan suitable to your needs.
Call us now at (813) 392-2164 to schedule an appointment! We also accept walk-ins with NO WAITING TIME!
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