Losing weight and staying healthy is not an easy task. It takes determination, hard work and dedication. But, it doesn’t have to be unattainable.
When people look for ways to lose weight, often they are faced with ideas that are very restrictive, which can lead you to not succeeding as well as you’d hoped. When it comes to losing weight, there are a number of methods that are proven to help you to succeed in 2020.
Avoid “fad” diets
It’s very tempting to choose a weight loss method that states it can help you to lose weight in a very short amount of time. There are a number of different diets on the market that make these kinds of promises. There are meal replacement shakes and “celebrity” diets where you may find yourself severely restricting a certain food group.
These diets may provide you with some fast, short-term results, but often, you find yourself putting the weight back on as soon as you start eating “normally” again. Instead, look at ways you can reduce your calorie intake and assess your meal sizes and portions. You don’t have to remove whole food groups to lose weight. By assessing what you are taking in, you’ll be able to better manage your diet and discover which foods will work best for you.
Track your food
Tracking your food in a diary can be an excellent way to truly see what you are eating. You may not realise just how much you are eating until you see it written out in front of you.
Tracking your food is easy. You can use the good old-fashioned pen and paper. Or, if you own a smartphone, you can download an app like MyFitnessPal to help you.
A food tracking app like this can also provide you with data and information about popular foods, such as calories, protein, sugars and much more. This app in particular also allows you to scan the barcode of foods so that you don’t have to manually track your meal every time.
Get some exercise
Although they say that diet is the key to losing weight, exercise will also help you to lose weight, feel better and improve your overall health. With the right exercise, you can start to feel fitter and stronger. Your improved diet will then enable you to work out with more ease.
As a guide, choosing an exercise shouldn’t be something that you find hard and demotivating. If you enjoy swimming, then try heading to the beach or your local pool. You don’t have to sign up to a marathon in order for your exercise to pay off. Even increasing your step count every day will help improve your wellbeing. Use a pedometer or smartwatch to help track your steps each day.
If you start on an exercise regime, always remember to drink enough fluids. If you sweat excessively or you’re working out during the warmer months, a good electrolyte supplement such as Ener-C Sport may work in your favour.
Don’t be hard on yourself
Staying healthy and losing weight is something that you’re likely going to be working on for the long haul, especially if you have a substantial amount to lose. Changing your diet and routine is very much a lifestyle change. Because it is such a big change, it’s important to remember that you should be kind to yourself throughout the process. There will be days when you want to give up and days where you may feel like eating whatever you want. But, it’s important to remember that you’re on a completely new journey that will provide you with great health benefits in the future.
Another important thing to remember with any change to your diet and/or exercise routine, it’s always a good idea to get the right advice. There are a lot of different opinions on the Internet on the best methods of losing weight. While we’ve offered some guidance here, one of the best pieces of advice we can offer is to talk to your G.P. Your doctor will have a thorough knowledge of your personal health needs and will be better suited to providing you with the advice you need to reach your weight loss goals. If in doubt, speak to our doctor today about weight management.