Are you guilty of overeating during the summer holidays?
Now that were back to our normal routines, here are Scottish Slimmers 20 favourite ways to stay on track to your weight loss.
Eating less processed food
Choose more fresh food, cooked whenever you have time. Get some fresh produce on to your menu. Youll feel better as you eat better!
Get Real
Losing one or two pounds a week is a realistic, healthy rate of weight loss. It took you weeks to gain, it will take the same time to lose. Have patience.
Stay away from fizzy drinks
Sugary soft drinks wont make you feel great and may not even quench your thirst. They can really be a major cause of weight gain. Go for sugar-free every time or even better, move to fizzy water instead.
Count to 10
The average craving lasts about 10 minutes. So before you cave, do something else for 10 minutes and see if your craving passes. Start a rotten job youve been avoiding declutter your mail pile, tackle your ironing mountain. When you complete that, its a great achievement and that will cheer you up too.
Go brown
Chose wholegrain pasta, rice and bread when you can. It will fill you and can really help you lose weight more quickly than the white varieties.
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Write yourself notes
To help you stay on track, post notes to yourself on the fridge and the pantry. Put up a little stop sign or make tags with questions like: Do you want this food enough to wear it? and: Are the calories worth the consequences?
Try smart swaps
Look for nutritious alternatives to sugary treats. Frozen grapes instead of sweets. Choose popcorn instead of crisps.
Give yourself a break
Nobody is perfect, so expect to make mistakes along the way. If you overeat one night, just get back on track in the morning by focusing on whats worked for you in the past.
Get support
Our motivation lasts about three weeks then we need to get someone on side to help us along the way. Get someone to do it with you or join a slimming group. Youll do better than trying alone.
Put your make up on and get dressed up even if you are not going anywhere. If you are going out somewhere special and you do your hair and make-up and put on a lovely outfit, how do you feel? Yes, you feel fantastic, so why not do that every day?
Be Active
Each week, add five minutes of activity to your daily routine until you work up to the recommended 30 minutes per day. Your health deserves half an hour a day.
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Add some salsa
If you dont like traditional veg, chop up some tomatoes, onions and a little fruit, like pineapple, to add to your meals and snacks.
Ease up on the alcohol
Remember that alcohol has hidden calories. The worst offenders are creamy cocktails, which are the same as drinking a rich dessert. If youre trying to lose weight, choose something else.
Add an egg
A little protein prolongs the feeling of fullness better than carbohydrates or fats do.
Portion distortion
Pull out the measuring spoons and cups, because its easy to misjudge portion sizes. Half of your plate should be vegetables.
Eat two pieces of fruit for every day. How you eat them is up to you, in a smoothie, baked as part of a dessert or for breakfast.
Concentrate Research has found eating while reading, watching TV or looking at a screen not only means you eat more at that meal, youre also more likely to snack later. Your brain hasnt logged what youve eaten.
Soups are so quick, easy and seasonal
Of course you can have soup all year around but autumn is widely recognised as the best time of year for a warming, hearty bowl of soup. Get batch cooking at the weekends and freeze some for a lazy day and you cant go wrong.
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Keep summer weight loss on track with Scottish Slimmers' top 20 healthy tips - Scottish Daily Record
