General Tips
jen31889
Posts: 121
I got this from the vitatops website. It is stuff most of us already know, but thought it was a nice compilation and that somebody might pick up something they didn't know before:
Food and Diet
* Be spontaneous: Come up with a list of pre-approved foods you know are low in calories so you can avoid making too many on-the-spot decisions.
* Fast food is OK: There are low-calorie options available. Learn them before arriving at the restaurant.
* Singles only: Buy single-serving snack foods; never buy in bulk.
* Read it: Check food labels and never eat anything that contains more than 15 calories without thinking about it. That includes cookies, crackers and chips (each chip can have as many as 15 calories).
* Buy frozen and ready-to-eat: Most of us are time-pressed. Go to the supermarket and stock up on healthy, low-calorie frozen foods (e.g., Lean Cuisine or Healthy Choice), also pick up cereals (under 120 calories per cup) and low-cal soups.
* Switch: From whole milk to skim, from eggs to egg whites and from soda to water or no-calorie iced tea.
* Eat more fiber: Including fruits, vegetables, nuts, cereals, legumes and whole-grain breads and pastas. Fiber helps keep you full longer.
* Calorie Bargains: Find three or four lower-calorie versions of what you typically eat (three to four times per week) and make substitutions you can live with forever. Make sure you don't overindulge in the newly found Calorie Bargain -that defeats the purpose. For example, if you eat potato chips three lunches per week, replace them with a Calorie Bargain such as air-popped popcorn.
Vitalicious products (www.vitalicious.com) can be a great help to a person trying to lose weight, be healthy--and be satisfied. They are low in calories, yet high in nutrients and fiber, making them a perfect calorie bargain to replace muffins, cakes, and brownies. Want to know just how many minutes of physical activity it would take to burn off your favorite Vitalicious products?? Click here to find out!
Nutrition
* Calories: Calories are made up of carbs, fats and protein. Fats are most "expensive" at 9 calories per gram. Carbs and protein are 4 calories per gram. Know your calorie "budget." As a quickie guide, figure 10 calories per pound for women and 11 calories per pound for men. Then multiply that by your activity level (sedentary = 1.2, moderately active = 1.5, extremely active = 2.0). Reduce your budget to lose weight. Know the cost of a calorie and shop wisely, because every 40 calories you take in over your budget will require 10 minutes of walking to burn off.
* Carbs: Learn the good carbs from the bad ones. Good: whole grains, vegetables and fruit. Bad: starchy foods such as white pasta and rice, candy, cakes and sugary drinks. To lose weight, eliminate or limit bad carbs. Low-carb diets are not a bad choice if they work for you long term. But avoid those low-carb products that are high in calories.
* Fat: It's not all bad. You need it to make you feel full and as part of your diet. Limit unhealthy saturated and trans fats. Stick to mono- and polyunsaturated fats such as olive and canola oils.
* Protein: It can help you lose weight by keeping you full. Just make sure to limit protein sources that are bundled with saturated fat such as fatty meats, cheeses and whole dairy products.
* Lose it: Find out exactly how much you need to lose by determining your BMI (body mass index) and using that as a guide. (www.dietdetective.com/diet/are-you-really-fat.html)
Food and Behavior
* Avoid willpower: Don't think all you need is a good dose of willpower to go against your nature, which is to want sugary and fatty foods. To avoid unhealthy foods that entice you, keep junk foods out of your house. Don't go to the supermarket when you're ravenous -- eat something first. Over time, the healthy stuff tastes great.
* Forward thinking: Plan ahead for weak moments. For instance, if you know that Friday is "muffin day" in your office, come up with a healthier alternative.
* Review: Check out all menus from restaurants you frequent beforehand. Come up with three or four preselected healthy choices. Call ahead to find out how dishes are prepared.
* Form patterns: Make your new eating behaviors automatic by doing them over and over again. You shouldn't need to take breaks from your diet. If you do, you made too many compromises in the first place and your diet will not last. New eating behaviors need to be comfortable and not too restrictive.
* Excuse proof: Don't let your family give you an excuse to overeat. Make sure they're aware of your diet and don't bring unhealthy foods in your house.
* Find a reason why: It helps to know why you actually want to get in shape. For health reasons? Vanity?
* Create a goal: How long do you expect it will take to lose the weight? A healthy goal is about ½ to 1 pound per week. No need to rush.
Activity and Diet
* Combine it: Research shows that you need to combine diet with increased activity to lose and maintain your weight.
* Make it necessary: Incorporate increased physical activity into your daily life. It should be like brushing your teeth: You do it every day, most of the time without thinking. Having trouble? Try making the activity useful (i.e., something you need to do anyway), such as walking the dog instead of just letting him or her out in the back yard.
* Get motivated: Come up with an activity you enjoy so it doesn't seem as if it's a burden.
Food and Diet
* Be spontaneous: Come up with a list of pre-approved foods you know are low in calories so you can avoid making too many on-the-spot decisions.
* Fast food is OK: There are low-calorie options available. Learn them before arriving at the restaurant.
* Singles only: Buy single-serving snack foods; never buy in bulk.
* Read it: Check food labels and never eat anything that contains more than 15 calories without thinking about it. That includes cookies, crackers and chips (each chip can have as many as 15 calories).
* Buy frozen and ready-to-eat: Most of us are time-pressed. Go to the supermarket and stock up on healthy, low-calorie frozen foods (e.g., Lean Cuisine or Healthy Choice), also pick up cereals (under 120 calories per cup) and low-cal soups.
* Switch: From whole milk to skim, from eggs to egg whites and from soda to water or no-calorie iced tea.
* Eat more fiber: Including fruits, vegetables, nuts, cereals, legumes and whole-grain breads and pastas. Fiber helps keep you full longer.
* Calorie Bargains: Find three or four lower-calorie versions of what you typically eat (three to four times per week) and make substitutions you can live with forever. Make sure you don't overindulge in the newly found Calorie Bargain -that defeats the purpose. For example, if you eat potato chips three lunches per week, replace them with a Calorie Bargain such as air-popped popcorn.
Vitalicious products (www.vitalicious.com) can be a great help to a person trying to lose weight, be healthy--and be satisfied. They are low in calories, yet high in nutrients and fiber, making them a perfect calorie bargain to replace muffins, cakes, and brownies. Want to know just how many minutes of physical activity it would take to burn off your favorite Vitalicious products?? Click here to find out!
Nutrition
* Calories: Calories are made up of carbs, fats and protein. Fats are most "expensive" at 9 calories per gram. Carbs and protein are 4 calories per gram. Know your calorie "budget." As a quickie guide, figure 10 calories per pound for women and 11 calories per pound for men. Then multiply that by your activity level (sedentary = 1.2, moderately active = 1.5, extremely active = 2.0). Reduce your budget to lose weight. Know the cost of a calorie and shop wisely, because every 40 calories you take in over your budget will require 10 minutes of walking to burn off.
* Carbs: Learn the good carbs from the bad ones. Good: whole grains, vegetables and fruit. Bad: starchy foods such as white pasta and rice, candy, cakes and sugary drinks. To lose weight, eliminate or limit bad carbs. Low-carb diets are not a bad choice if they work for you long term. But avoid those low-carb products that are high in calories.
* Fat: It's not all bad. You need it to make you feel full and as part of your diet. Limit unhealthy saturated and trans fats. Stick to mono- and polyunsaturated fats such as olive and canola oils.
* Protein: It can help you lose weight by keeping you full. Just make sure to limit protein sources that are bundled with saturated fat such as fatty meats, cheeses and whole dairy products.
* Lose it: Find out exactly how much you need to lose by determining your BMI (body mass index) and using that as a guide. (www.dietdetective.com/diet/are-you-really-fat.html)
Food and Behavior
* Avoid willpower: Don't think all you need is a good dose of willpower to go against your nature, which is to want sugary and fatty foods. To avoid unhealthy foods that entice you, keep junk foods out of your house. Don't go to the supermarket when you're ravenous -- eat something first. Over time, the healthy stuff tastes great.
* Forward thinking: Plan ahead for weak moments. For instance, if you know that Friday is "muffin day" in your office, come up with a healthier alternative.
* Review: Check out all menus from restaurants you frequent beforehand. Come up with three or four preselected healthy choices. Call ahead to find out how dishes are prepared.
* Form patterns: Make your new eating behaviors automatic by doing them over and over again. You shouldn't need to take breaks from your diet. If you do, you made too many compromises in the first place and your diet will not last. New eating behaviors need to be comfortable and not too restrictive.
* Excuse proof: Don't let your family give you an excuse to overeat. Make sure they're aware of your diet and don't bring unhealthy foods in your house.
* Find a reason why: It helps to know why you actually want to get in shape. For health reasons? Vanity?
* Create a goal: How long do you expect it will take to lose the weight? A healthy goal is about ½ to 1 pound per week. No need to rush.
Activity and Diet
* Combine it: Research shows that you need to combine diet with increased activity to lose and maintain your weight.
* Make it necessary: Incorporate increased physical activity into your daily life. It should be like brushing your teeth: You do it every day, most of the time without thinking. Having trouble? Try making the activity useful (i.e., something you need to do anyway), such as walking the dog instead of just letting him or her out in the back yard.
* Get motivated: Come up with an activity you enjoy so it doesn't seem as if it's a burden.
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Replies
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:flowerforyou: Thanks for sharing! This is very interesting. I will print this one out and keep to refer back to from time to time to re-energize my motives!0
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Keep it simple is key. And i agree with some points but not others.
You lose alot of nutritional benefit when not consuming the whole egg. Eggs are great for us.
Frozen/Ready to eat is PROCESSED food- Nothing healthy there. Make your own fresh and freeze is better choice. Avoid processed foods like the plague.
1. Know your BMI/BMR and live within the maintenance and calorie deficit limits if your losing lbs.
2. Keep track of your calories. You can still eat anything you want and lose weight.
3. Your not on a diet. You've made a lifestyle change. If you consider your plan a diet you will never keep the weight where you want it.
4. Getting some exercise is always good. I luckily get 10 hours of it a day at work.
5. Again keep it simple as weight loss is not rocket science. It just takes discipline and true desire to accomplish your goal.0 -
I"ve been sticking to a 1200 calorie very healthy diet. I go to the gym for circuit training every morning and walk or jog an hour or more a night on the treadmill. I've done this for four weeks now. My workout pants went from a Large to a Small. Yet when i get on the scale, my number only has changed by like 4lbs and if I weigh myself daily the number seems to go back up. I'm completely lost! I did this same plan a few years ago and lost 40lbs from having been on Prednisone for my knee in three months and I'm having problems now trying to lose 10lbs it seems. Any suggestions? Maybe my calorie deficit is too large but again I did this before under a doctors supervision and it worked. I haven't gained a pound back in those 2 years just didn't finish losing how much I wanted to lose.0
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Thanks for sharing!
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Frozen/Ready to eat is PROCESSED food- Nothing healthy there. Make your own fresh and freeze is better choice. Avoid processed foods like the plague.
I disagree, regarding vegetables. Frozen vegetables can have more nutrients than fresh, and last much longer, especially for a single person, who might not be able to finish fresh vegetables before they go off. Tinned soups, too, can be perfectly healthy, despite being processed.
I'd say, measure all your cups and glasses. If you're going to drink anything other than water, at least you'll know how much you're getting. Same with other things. For instance, MFP will only allow me to input the amount of vitalite I use in grams, so I weighed half a tablespoon, which is about ten, and enough for two small slices of bread.0 -
thank you for sharing.0
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I"ve been sticking to a 1200 calorie very healthy diet. I go to the gym for circuit training every morning and walk or jog an hour or more a night on the treadmill. I've done this for four weeks now. My workout pants went from a Large to a Small. Yet when i get on the scale, my number only has changed by like 4lbs and if I weigh myself daily the number seems to go back up. I'm completely lost! I did this same plan a few years ago and lost 40lbs from having been on Prednisone for my knee in three months and I'm having problems now trying to lose 10lbs it seems. Any suggestions? Maybe my calorie deficit is too large but again I did this before under a doctors supervision and it worked. I haven't gained a pound back in those 2 years just didn't finish losing how much I wanted to lose.
My scale barely moved over the past two or three weeks, but my body fat dropped by .3%. There are pictures on my blog; http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/Barelmy/view/spot-the-difference-88147
If your clothes are shrinking, I bet you're losing fat and gaining muscle.0
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