The internet is full of weight loss tips! Some being over complicated, so I thought I would put together 5 very basic, easy-to-understand weight loss tips without any over complicated jargon!
Weight Loss Tip 1 – Reduce Poor Food Choices
Unfortunately, the saying ‘You can’t out-train a poor diet’, is true for weight loss!
Notice in the title I said ‘reduce’ rather than stop. I believe in a very balanced lifestyle and having a few drinks and a burger every so often isn’t going to ‘de-rail’ your weight loss goals!
However, the ’80/20 rule’ is a good rule of thumb to achieve weight loss. 80% good food choices and 20% not-so-good food choices!
Bad food choices are not only generally very high in calories but also heavily processed meaning it will spike your blood sugar so that soon afterward you will be hungry, and more than likely you’ll reach for more rubbish food!
It will also leave you unenergised, meaning you are likely to exercise less!
Added to this it can really damage your gut health, leading you to health issues like IBS and more serious cardiovascular health problems!
I work with clients holistically and believe this is an extremely important tip, with benefits beyond just weight loss!
Read my article on why cleaning up your diet is more important than calorie counting for long-term weight-loss.
If you’re also considering a ‘fad diet’ read my blog on why that a ‘fad diet’ is a bad choice.
Weight Loss Tip 2 – Increase Your Daily Movement
This is so important if you want to achieve your weight loss goals. Just being active throughout the day can burn more calories than a 30-minute cardio session that evening.
People get ‘hung up on’ thinking they need to join a gym to lose weight, yes it can help, but it’s far from essential! Here is how you can get more movement into your day….
– Make sure you use the stairs at work rather than the lift
– Walking to and from the train station in the morning and evening rather than taking the car.
– Getting out for a walk on your lunch break
– Getting out for an evening walk rather than watching TV all evening
– Washing the car
– Housework
– Gardening
These are all great ways to increase your activity, aim for at least 10,000 steps daily and this will also improve your cardiovascular health, reducing your risk of various health problems.
Weight Loss Tip 3 – Do Resistance Training
Resistance training will increase your metabolic rate, meaning you’ll permanently be burning more calories!
The more muscle you have the more calories you will burn 24 hours a day whether you’re training, working, sleeping, or doing anything else for that matter!
Focus on the major muscle groups (legs, chest, back) as this will build the most muscle and therefore burn the most calories.
Weight Loss Tip 4 – Increase Your Protein Intake
Increasing your protein intake will help you feel fuller for longer. This will mean you are less likely to snack on poor food choices! (See tip 1!) and therefore help increase weight loss .
Protein also requires more energy to be digested than carbohydrates and fats, adding to your daily calorie burn.
Good protein sources include lean meats like chicken, turkey, and beef with the fat cut off. Eggs, cow’s milk, and cottage cheese. Good Vegan sources include tofu, kidney beans, quinoa, chickpeas, and lentils.
Weight Loss Tip 5 – Improve Your Sleep
Sleep is extremely important for weight loss. Poor sleep leads to an increase in the stress hormone cortisol.
This hormone encourages fat storage around the middle of your body and the breakdown of muscle, which in turn slows our metabolism.
Read my blog about how high stress hormones effect your body.
High cortisol levels also cause unbalanced blood sugar levels, leading to sugar cravings, meaning you are more likely to reach for the biscuit tin or other unhealthy food choices in a vain attempt to improve energy levels!
A scientific American Journal article describes how poor sleep is detrimental to weight loss.
Finally, the better sleep you have the more energised you’re likely to feel, therefore you are more likely to work out, and when you do, you’ll get more from your workouts and therefore burn more calories!
How Can I Help You Achieve Sustainable Weight Loss?
You can get the best of both worlds as I am both a Nutrition Consultant and Personal Trainer. I will help you improve your diet, achieve better sleep, and get you exercising in the right way to help you achieve long-term, sustainable weight loss.
You can find out more about the benefits of combining Nutritional Therapy with Personal Training if you click the link.
