Just a Number: Living the Healthy Life

ditzyFlip

Hi, everyone!

I just thought I'd share a conversation that a friend and I had over messages in another site. :> It helped boost my morale, and I hope it does the same for you too!

Riena's advice:
a) Don't stop eating. Not eating at all can cause serious health problems, including to your heart. I know you know, but it can't hurt to remind you anyway. XD And I know skipping meals can be tempting, but it will just make your body panic so that it holds onto everything you eat

b) Take healthy but tasty snacks with you to work, like FiberOne snacks (They have some tasty things, like brownies and chocolate peanut butter bars), nuts, and fruit. That way, you're less likely to reach for junk food, because you've eaten something satisfying (and are also less likely to eat something later, as long as what you eat is a good source of fiber and/or protein) and because you did not have to force your way through something that didn't taste good in order to be "healthy".

c) Splurge items are okay to buy sparingly. You should splurge on occasion, because total restriction is the fastest way to quit a diet. It's how you eat them that makes a difference. Spread it out over time. Put it somewhere more difficult to reach, only pick up one at a time, put it back, walk away, eat it slowly and savor it. If you're still craving it, get another one, but go through the motions every time, so your brain has more time to register the taste, you're less likely to mindlessly snack, and you'll at least lose a couple calories by having to get up and get it.

d) In spare moments, run in place (kick ups and high knees), stretch, and jump up and down to get your heart racing for a few seconds. It's easier to get extra excercise in that way. I do it after I go to the bathroom, after I brush my teeth, at gas stations and rest stops on road trips, when I'm watching tv, pretty much any time when I have a moment I'm not doing anything particularly useful. It burns calories, increases your metabolism, and makes it easier to get up and go for your full work outs.

e) Wear higher waisted jeans, like a couple inches below your belly button. Less muffin top no matter what size you are, and they're in style now. Helping your ego can do wonders for weightloss.
i.e. This instead of this


But honestly, I think the biggest piece of advice I can give, is to not stress about losing weight. It's easy to do, and I do it too. But every time I do, I invariably gain weight. I stress, which is so bad for your health and your waistline that I can't even begin to tell you. I also start looking at calories and fat content, rather than just is this good for me? They've done studies that foods are a lot less tied to those things than we think. Chips, for example, will make you gain more weight per calorie than most other foods. When I look at what I eat in terms of weight loss, I start rationalizing. "Oh, it's only a hundred calories. I can cut that out other places." But cutting out a slice of cheese does not have the dietary equivalent of cutting out the same amount of chips, even though cheese is also traditionally high in fat.

Instead of thinking in terms of a diet, think of it as making a healthier lifestyle. That doesn't mean cutting out yummy stuff, because I know I would be pretty upset if I had to give up chocolate. What that means is you make little changes you can keep up, expanding upon them over time, so that you feel satisfied and can still lose weight. Things like switching to wheat pasta/bread, vegetable oil "butters," eating chicken sandwichs when you get fast food instead of cheeseburgers, trading soda for tea, lemonade, or water, things that are healthier, though not necessarily lower in calories, and that you can keep up over time. If you eat something bad, no worries. A slice of cake won't kill you. Just don't do it every day. Weight loss will come as a byproduct of being healthier, with all the added bonuses of healthy foods, and you're less likely to gain it all back later.

Wow, that was a lot. lol. Hope at least some of it helped!

EDIT: One other thing. Try not to look at your actual weight so much, but rather pay attention to how you look and feel. If I went by weight, I would be sorely disappointed. But I just fit into my skinny jeans, so I'm ecstatic. Weight is very deceiving, and really, it isn't what matters anyway.

EDIT EDIT (Will it ever end? Probably not): I don't know how many salads you make at home, but I find that adding a tasty protein helps, like pieces of chicken, bacon, cheese, and/or flavored nuts (honey-roasted are my favorite) helps me feel more satisfied later, so I'm less likely to reach for snack Or lose my mind completely

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myopus

Thanks for sharing!
Stress is a huge factor in motivation for sure. There is also a lot out there on stress-related cortisol levels and possible gain or management correlations.