the key to sticking to a healthy lifestyle

I used to eat whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted it, because I used to have a faster metabolism. This style of eating doesn't exactly always work. Without even realizing it I gained 15 pounds! I was ashamed and about 3 years ago I decided I wanted to lose the weight, and keep it off. It wasn't easy, but by gaining knowledge about healthy diet and exercise, I have now lost over 20 pounds since my unfortunate realization 3 years ago, and I've even decided to major in dietetics in my college studies.


Decide to make the change

So many Americans make new years resoultions each year to lose weight. Unfortunately, 92% of those new year's resolutions won't be kept. When they decide to make resolutions, they think they have to have a perfectly clean record, and if they mess up once, the whole resolution is off, and they can go back to their old ways. In order to begin your healthy lifestyle, whatever it may be, you have to decide to make the change - which means you want it enough to STICK WITH IT! No, for many it won't be easy, but when you trip and fall on a slick surface, do you get up, or do you just lay there and let people walk all over you? It's the same with a healthy life; you need to pick yourself back up and keep at it or your old ways are going to walk all over you.


Make smart decisions

When starting a new healthy lifestyle, many people go on new or well known diets, or count their calories religiously for the time they stick with their new plan. Yes, some diets may work, but many don't. The key is to eat everything in moderation. You don't have to pull out your weight watcher's book of points to check and make sure it's okay to eat - just use your common sense! If you have bad feelings about something you're eating, then you're probably going to feel bad about eating it afterwards too. Contrary to popular belief: food doesn't always fill up our desires. What we can do though when we come across a delicious looking brownie is this: don't walk away! Crazy huh? Actually not. cut it in half and take time to enjoy it! Depriving yourself of the foods you want for too long is going to result in you ditching your new lifestyle, but don't eat a bunch of junk food and then not leave enough room for nutritious food, just because it doesn't throw you over your calorie quota. If you eat junk food, chances are, you'll feel like junk! try eating fresh fruit or vegetables as a snack, you will be SO surprised how much it can actually fill you up, and make you feel good too!


Give yourself some credit

Don't forget about yourself! Spend a day just for you! Do things you love doing as a reward for making it this far! but, DON'T reward yourself with food! Sure, sweets are alright in moderation - don't push away your cravings - but don't reward yourself by spending a day eating junk food, just because you've made progress in your new lifestyle! For one: you will feel guilty about it later, and two: Your body will take a toll too! It's getting used to being nourished with good nutritous foods, and loading up on the processed sugars is going to make you groggy, and irritable, and the next time you hop on that workout machine, you'll feel it! Spend a day relaxing: take a nice bath and paint your nails, or go shopping: get some new clothes for the new you! It's good to have a day to realize that you're doing a good job, because changing your habits is tough!


Exercise is still important!

Numerous new diets are all about "eat and lose without exercise!" But don't let this fool you - get off your butt! If you want to change your life, it's about making good choices, and in reality, how often do those diets work anyway?! I know, so many of you are probably like, ugh, I HATE exercising! but you don't have to hate it! find something that you love to do, or maybe it will find you. I used to HATE running with a strong passion, I could barely run a half mile, but I decided to give it a try, and even though I hated it, I found that when I ran I felt SO GOOD about myself afterward! If we look into the scientific realms, we find that this is because exercise decreases the stress hormone cortisol (which if too much is being produced can cause weight gain - so try not to stress!) and increases the release of natural endorphins - which are our body's natural feel good chemicals. The best way to release these chemicals is to get cardiovascular exercise - not only will it make you feel good, but it's the best way to burn fat all over your body. So find a type of exercise that you enjoy doing. Mix up your schedule too, you don't have to stick with just one thing! Go buy one of Jillian Michaels' work out videos, go for a walk or a run, try out the elliptical, or go for a swim - whatever makes you feel good! and Yes, you probably will get sick of it sometimes, and it's okay to take a day off, but don't give up on the exercise, especially if you don't like exercising around people - you don't HAVE to go to a gym. you can still burn calories doing household activities, and the best gym you can get is right outside your front door - the great outdoors! Just remember again - use your common sense about fad diets. The best way to start a healthy lifestyle and stick with it is to just go plain old fashioned. You'll probably feel better about yourself too!


Stick with water

Our bodies are made up of 55 - 75% of water, so in other words we NEED IT! Water helps in weight loss by flushing the body out, and it can also curb appetite - when you feel hungry, but you just ate, don't run to the fridge. Many people confuse thirst with hunger. Drink a large glass of water; you'll be surprised how full you feel! It also speeds up your metabolism which aids in digestion and will keep you regular. Many foods need water to be absorbed properly, like fiber for example. With new healthy lifestyles, many people just rush over to the whole grain breads or high fiber cereal instead of the processed sugary cereals and the white flour bread (which is GREAT!! keep it up! white flour is bad for you - go for the whole grains!) but - without water, fiber can have the opposite effect of what it's supposed to do for your body. Your body doesn't digest fiber, so it helps move other foods through digestion, but without water, it can actually slow digestion down - so drink plenty of water when eating nutritious foods! The benefits are limitless! Another thing to remember - don't drink your calories! just ONE 12 oz. can of mountain dew has 170 calories and a whopping 46 grams of sugar! that's more sugar than you should consume in an entire day! On top of that, one can is probably not going to even fill you up! Instead of filling up on this - make a fruit and yogurt smoothie - it will probably have less calories and will definitely fill you up more and it actually has good nutritional value. If you don't have time to make a smoothie, it's simple as this - just drink water! you'll feel fuller, and you'll improve your overall health while not denting your new lifestyle!


Have a positive attitude!

If you think you can't accomplish something - guess what?! you're going to fail. If you tell yourself you can reach your goal, you have a world of possibilities resting in the palm of your hand. I never thought I'd accomplish what I did, but I just got tough with myself, and told myself I could do it, and I did it! Also with having a positive attitude, it doesn't mean babying yourself, ex: telling yourself when something gets too hard it's okay to quit. How do you think the greatest athletes in history got to where they are today? That could be you! But if you let yourself slip away from your goal because it's "too hard" then I'm sorry, but you won't. One of the hardest things in changing your lifestyle is DISCIPLINE with yourself. too many people are too easy on themselves, and that's why they give up. Don't let that be you - you'll feel SO much better when you push through a tough workout, or stick with a snack of veggies rather than a bowl of ice cream. You can do this!


Eating Out

When you go out to eat, don't let the menu deceive you. Just because it says "salad" in the description doesnt mean it's that healthy. Most often salads at restaurants are HUGE and have a lot of extra little things mixed in that make the calories skyrocket! Plus, if they come with the dressing on them already, there's an extra few hundred calories right there! in just TWO tablespoons of ranch, there's 140 calories and a ton of fat! Do you really think you're going to get full off two tablespoons of ranch? Chances are no. So if you decide to get a salad, ask for the dressing on the side, and go easy when pouring it on. Veggies can be filling on their own, so enjoy their natural taste. Also, with other items, don't feel like you have to be glued to the Items with weight watcher's denotes next to them. Order a half order of what actually sounds good to you, and listen to your body, don't just scarf it down. Drink plenty of water during your meal, you'll get full faster, and beware of the desserts too, they may look sweet, but their nutrition facts are DEFINITELY sour! If you know you'll be going out to eat during the day, eat lighter during the other meals of the day.


Don't give up!

So, in a perfect world, if you follow the tips I'm giving you, you aren't going to fall off track of your new healthy lifestyle, but we're human, and most likely it's going to eventually happen! But when it does, don't get down on yourself! Use it as an excuse to try harder instead of kicking your new healthy lifestyle to the curb! Show your body who's boss! It happens to EVERYONE! so when you find yourself snarfing to the bottom of a bag of chips, or if you just indulged on a few too many sweets, it's OKAY! tomorrow is a new fresh day, to start over. Remember, we can't stop time in this life, we have to move forward, so don't dwell on the past, it won't do anything for you. You CAN do this! You're going to feel so much better about yourself if you do, so keep that in mind!



Thank you SO, SO much for any of you who took the time to read this! I know it's long, but it's simply the best way to be healthy and improve your life. No drawbacks or hidden side effects. It will not always be easy, and you'll often find yourself in between tough decisions, but when you're in a pickle, always remember your goal, and where you'd like to be. Keep at it and you'll find the results are so fullfilling! you'll boost your confidence, lower your stress and you'll transform your entire life! You CAN do it! even if you've failed in the past - pick yourself back up. The best things in life aren't going to be handed over to us, and plus, we appreciate things more when we have to work for them. Best of luck!