Losing weight and keeping it off is more than a magic pill—unfortunately. Eating right and exercising regularly are a crucial aspect of health and wellness. When you experience difficulties maintaining your weight loss goals, consider the following tips for staying motivated and on track.
The first rule of thumb is planning. We cannot get anywhere without a little investment in preparation. The same goes for losing weight and living a healthy lifestyle. Instead of living life on the edge, find a little stability in your eating habits. Meal planning, schedule workouts, and self-discipline will help you stay on track.
When you plan your meals ahead, you don’t feel rushed to make dinner plans. Once a week sit down with the family, or make an executive decision, and determine what will be eaten each day for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks.
Snacks can be a serious challenge. It’s one thing to stay on track in the morning, but what happens when your hearty breakfast wears off and you’re hungry again? Often times, we give in and reach for a quick snack. If you fall prey to junk food, be realistic with yourself and keep healthy snacks around—in your desk, in your purse, in the car, etc.
When hunger strikes and you have nothing close by, temptation comes in and tries to make you believe that your only option is fast food. Don’t buy it! Literally. Avoid this situation by keeping healthy snacks around.
Along with planning your meals, track your meals. A food journal has been proven to help people lose weight. This can serve as your accountability partner. Just make sure you review your meals after each day. You want to look at the amount of calories you’ve consumed, how many of those were nutritional calories, and alternative foods you could eat instead of the fat-infused snacks.
Once you’ve eaten for the day, you might want to crash right away. Make sure you have planned out your last meal of the day in conjunction with bed time. This way, your body can digest its contents properly.
However, make sure you get plenty of rest. If you are sleep deprived, your hormones are altered and your appetite increases. Use this one as an excuse to get a nap it!
During the day, keep moving. A sedentary lifestyle can be detrimental to your wellbeing. Even if you have a desk job, make sure every couple of hours you are up and moving. Stretch your arms and legs, do some jumping jacks, walk around for about five minutes. Just keep your blood flowing and eye lids open!
After a long day of work, you might not feel very energetic, but a 30 minute workout can work wonders for your body. Just make sure it’s not the last thing you do before bed! Stay active and eat healthy and you will undoubtedly see weight loss results. But more than that, you’ll notice changes in your mood, energy level, and hormones.
