Small But Super Helpful Habits
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ellen_couliez wrote: »no patatos/bread/pasta and rice
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Eliminating those truly helps0
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I find all of those foods fit well into a healthy, balanced, calorie-appropriate diet, so that would not have been a helpful hint for me.0
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Cutting out bread potato pasta and rice would have made me crash and burn and fail
Instead I eat them all, and everything else, consciously as part of a rounded healthy diet with treats and no bad foods and I've lost more than my original goal and been in maintenance since February0 -
What a great collection of helpful tips! I love them! I have not read all the pages yet, so I hope my helpful tips are not all redundant.
I have a system to get all 8 glasses of water easily every day. I use 2 large plastic cups I saved from convenience store when I bought fountain drinks that are each 32 oz cups. I fill them both up with filtered water from my Britta filter pitcher each morning. I leave one out on the counter to drink from first and put the second in the refrigerator. I have a cup of coffee with breakfast but after that I will not drink anything else until those cups are empty. They do fit in the cup holders in my car and I take them with me when I go out. It has gotten so easy to finish the water when the cup is right there where you can see it.
Secondly, there are very few things I love that I have eliminated completely. Tracking really has helped a lot with this. I do stay very tight to my calorie allowance, weigh food, and log everything, but I will still eat things I like ice cream, have an occasional beer, dessert, or even potato chips..... however, I do eat a smaller portion when I do. I measure out 1/3 cup of ice cream, always eat half a restaurant meal and take the rest for the next day, refrain from drinking a second beer, share a cookie with my grandson. If I want more than 1/3 cup of ice cream, I tell myself, I can have it tomorrow if I want it then. Sometimes I actually say that out loud. For some reason that helps.
Yes, eat a lot of vegetables! I view a few of MFP member's diaries and notice that many of them do not eat vegetables at all. They are so good for you and low calorie. Try some new ones and you will probably find you like some you have never tried before.
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Flavored seltzer water. Lime or lemon (obviously no sugar or fake sugar added). Zero calories... you quickly get used to it, and it's a lot better than plain old water. A 12 pack is about $4 bucks.
I mention it specifically because you said you were a bit of a sodahead. I've seen this as a successful switch for a few different people (including me) and a soda-centric family of 6...so it does work!
I find I can do soda water with lemon or lime slices and im usually happy I just have to make it. Sometimes I'm really looking for the cold caffeine hit of a Pepsi max or diet coke. But I really need to cut back on the bubbles0 -
Don't leave the house without some type of healthy snack pre-portioned out. My favorites are string cheese, grapes or apples, greek yogurt, and nuts.
It makes eating right a lot easier when you are ready for battle.[/quote]
What a great idea!0 -
amusedmonkey wrote: »Make a distinction between foods you WANT to eat, and foods that you eat just because they're lying around. It's amazing how many calories I saved doing that.
I'm not a big fan of doughnuts for example. I don't mind them but I don't crave them or think they're particularly tasty. In the past when someone would bring doughnuts I would take one (or two) just because it's right there sitting on the table and I happen to be passing by. Now I rarely, if ever, eat them. The other day I forgot, took a bite, and the taste instantly reminded me that I would much rather spend my calories on something else.
What a fantastic idea!0 -
What a fantastic idea!0
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Since I got my fitbit I'm moving a lot more when I'm chilling out at home. Right now I'm on holiday from work so wrapped in a blanket watching TV and messing around on my iPad. Every time the adverts come on I get up and jog on the spot, do some star jumps or some dancing etc. I can get an extra couple of thousand steps in during an hour of watching TV.
I'm only done reading up to page 3 so probably I'll be repeating what others have said...But my favorite little tips (which I used to do a lot when I was on WW and need to re-start now that I'm back on track again) are:
-- park in the far corner of the parking lot. Added bonus from this is that everyone else is circling like vultures near the close-in spots so you'll just pull in casually, walk calmly to the entrance and not have to fight with anyone. (this is my Costco parking lot, omg...)
-- stairs instead of elevator, if you can.
-- weigh everything in grams, then set the serving size to 1 gram and you can enter your food absolutely accurately (just got this great tip from someone here a few days ago)
-- if you're going out to eat look at the menu online before you go so you can look over everything ahead of time. That way you can choose something that fits into your calorie goal rather than choosing quickly because you don't want to keep everyone waiting while you try to decide.
-- get some sort of step tracker that measures how far you are from whatever goal you set up. I'm using a Nike Fuelband at the moment, and it shows progress to goal by a series of dots along the side. They start red and gradually move in shade towards green at the end. When you push the button it shows you where you are toward the goal and it shows the green dot that represents the end goal. I find that if I'm pretty close to the goal I'll walk around the house or even go outside and around a few blocks just to get those last few dots. lol
-- if you hate exercising (I do!) try to find someone to go with at least some of the time. I find that walking or that darned elliptical go SO MUCH faster if I have someone to talk to.
-- eat protein for breakfast rather than cold cereal with skim milk. Okay, this one is *my* little tweak which may or may not work for you. But for me that cold cereal would wear off suddenly mid-morning, causing me to get that shaky must-eat-everything-in-sight low blood sugar hunger. But if I have protein for breakfast I can go till lunch, and at lunch I'm hungry but it's just an ordinary kind of hunger.
Off now to keep reading from page 4. lol
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I choose just one thing "unhealthy" to splurge on a day. Like usually my morning coffee, my coffee only has 5 calories but I use my sugar & sweet creamer. Oatmeal to fill me up in the morning, very light lunch, & mostly meats & veggies for dinner. I'm trying to watch my calories in my beverages though because I get a lot of empty calories from soda but I'm just starting out as well.0
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I've taken to doing twelve bodyweight squats each time I use the bathroom at home. Two weeks ago I could barely keep my balance with arms extended now I do deep squats with arms folded against my chest.
Small steps in a greater journey toward fitness.
Thanks for the reminder, this might seem strange but it works.0 -
Water only. Makes a huge difference!
Park at the back of the lot at Publix.
Wash my own car.
Dance while rinsing dishes.
Read more about nutrition (from a reliable book) to help with food choices (or at least know why I suck, lol)
More planks, leg lifts, six inches
What books do you suggest?0 -
I look for one healthy new recipe to try each week. I also am trying to do one new physical activity a week (or on really bad weather days break out the Just Dance 4 game on Play Station). Great thread!0
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Keeping my water bottle next to my keyboard at my work desk. Every time I start feeling a little hungry, I take a swig, and eight times out of ten I was just thirsty. The other two times, the water takes the edge off the hunger.0
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paperpudding wrote: »I have a problem with drive thrus, especially if I'm on a trip. Now, I put my purse in the trunk. Problem solved.
Now that is a handy hint.
Further to this, don't take money to work if you don't need it. Take your lunch from home and you can't buy anything else if you don't have money.
Or if you need money,take only the largest note - that way it is there for emergencies but you won't want to break into it just to buy a chocolate bar.
Love this idea! Thanks!0 -
Bring lunch to work
WEIGH EVERYTHING!0 -
When I start to feel hungry, I drink a glass of water and wait 10 minutes to sees if I was actual hungry or just thirsty or bored.
I always keep my water bottle next to me. You're more likely to drink it if it's there and you see it.
Drink coffee and tea plain with nothing added.
Meal prep or at least prep snacks and easy grab and go food for when you are in a rush.
Don't keep food you can't control yourself around in the house.
Just say no thank you. If someone asks you if you want something and you second guess yourself about it, say no thank you and the temptation is gone because the offer is gone.
Eat looooooots of veggies: volume eating for the win, never hungry.
Skip the salad dressing, my secret is mustard and some kind of hot sauce (hey don't knock it til you try it )
Every little decision you make every day counts and soon it will just become a habit and you won't even have to think about it.0 -
stop using artificial sweeteners. They are harmful to your body and cause cravings. Stevia is a natural 0 calorie sweetener. In things like potato salad, sandwiches use more mustard and less mayo as mustard has no calories. Use an exercise ball at your desk if you can.0
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1. Take a couple of dumbells to work with you and leave them under your desk. When no one is looking do a couple of sets.
2. I've been cutting back on the amount of TV I watch. If I'm watching TV I am now on the treadmill. It makes the time go much faster and I'm not sitting around snacking.
3. After work when i get home at 5:30 I sit down to eat dinner at 6:00pm. I start my workout by 7:30 and done by 8:30pm. Then shower and go to bed. Keep your daily routine busy. No time for snacking.0 -
Eat quinoa instead of rice. Quinoa has about the same density as rice but has less calories, more protein, and tastes good. Add some chia seeds to it, if you'd like, to keep you fuller longer. You can eat it for breakfast with eggs, for lunch, and/or dinner.0
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I love this thread/topic!
My biggest things have already been mentioned; water, bringing snacks with me, etc.
But, when I was at my most successful, I found that adding an evening walk with my husband and the dog helped a lot. I would exercise some time during the day (unless it was a rest day) and then walk in the evening. I wasn't speed walking, my heart rate wasn't high, but just getting in that movement before bed helped with my digestion and ultimately weight loss. Plus, I just felt better, and it was quality family time.0 -
Oh yeah, and green tea.
Any herbal tea, really. But I am always really tempted to eat in the evenings, and what I got in the habit of doing was having a mug of hot tea before bed, and it not only helps me relax but it helps me stay satisfied.
In my head, I feel like green tea made my metabolism quicker, but that's probably just me. lol.0 -
A lot of water.... If you don't like the taste of water, try adding some fruits and herbs to it. My favorite is making an entire pitcher of water with sliced cucumbers (1 whole cucumber), sliced lemon (1 whole lemon), 1/3 of a ginger root shaved, and some mint leavs. Leave it in the fridge over night and by morning, the water is infused with a great taste!0
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Watch less TV. Clean one part of your house every day.0
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I do low carbs...eat only 100-150 grams of potatoes, rice, pasta, sugar, and white bread.0
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Liftng4Lis wrote: »Pre-log every morning.
That is a good idea! I'm going to try that this week and see how I do. My biggest problem is that I don't eat what I plan to. Maybe if I prelog that will help me stay on track.
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What helps me a lot is drinking cinnamon water in the morning. Before eating anything in the morning I drink my water. In the beggining it was nasty but now I'm used to it ! I just infuse cinnamon sticks in a teapot with water. Cinnamon makes you lose weight
Another thing is walking. Walk as much as you can! It makes a big difference in the end. I live a 10 min bus ride from the subway, but I walk instead of taking the bus and it takes me just 10-15min more. Even if the distance seems HUGE, often it's not so you might just try and walk (:
Good luck!0 -
mgcarrillo wrote: »I'm pretty new here, and I'm trying to start making small changes to my eating and activities that will add up in the long run to a healthier lifestyle. I wanted to ask people here with more experience than me, what small changes have you made in your life that made a huge difference to your weight/fitness/general happiness? For example, I've always hated coffee, so in college and grad school I usually drank soda for caffeine Now I've begun substituting black tea for my daily soda, and it's definitely making a difference, both to my weight and to how my body feels. What are some other small but crucial steps I could take to ease myself into this whole awesome-but-slightly-scary health thing?
I've recently started a new diet (not a crazy starvation diet) where I basically cut out artificial sugar. It's a lot easier than what people think. You can still get the sugar from fruits and honey so you don't get freaky cravings!
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