The 10 Commandments to Weight Loss Success
The 1st Commandment:
Get help from family, friends and me!
Getting support can help you reach your weight loss goals. So tell family and friends about your efforts to lead a healthy lifestyle. Maybe they'll join you in exercising, eating right, and losing weight. When you feel like giving up, they'll help you, keep you honest, and cheer you on -- making the whole experience a lot easier.
The 2nd Commandment:
Be a Slim Shopper
Buy only one portion of a snack like one gourmet cookie instead of a dozen.
Out of Sight, Out of Mind. Out of Reach, Out of Mouth!
The 3rd Commandment:
Stock your kitchen with healthy, convenient foods.
Having ready-to-eat snacks and meals-in-minutes on hand sets you up for success. You'll be less likely to hit the drive-through by throwing together a healthy meal in five or 10 minutes. Here are some essentials to keep on hand: frozen vegetables, whole-grain pasta, reduced-fat cheese, canned beans, pre-cooked grilled chicken breast, whole grain tortillas or pitas, and bags of salad greens.
The 4th Commandment:
Drink Water
Water has 0 calories, creates a sense of fullness, flushes out impurities and rehydrates our highly worked bodies. Limit alcohol to weekends. Alcohol contains empty calories Because our bodies don't use those calories well, they usually get converted directly into fat. If you enjoy an occasional drink, consider a compromise. Enjoy your favorite alcoholic beverage on weekends only, with just one drink for women per day, two for men.
The 5th Commandment:
Always eat breakfast.
Not eating breakfast can make you hungry later, leading to too much nibbling and binge eating at lunch and dinner. Start the day off by starting your metabolism first thing in the morning. To lose weight -- and keep it off -- always make time for a healthy morning meal, like high-fiber cereal, low-fat milk, fruit and don’t forget to add protein like low fat cottage cheese or turkey sausage.
The 6th Commandment:
Understand portion sizes.
To right-size your diet, use a kitchen scale and measuring cups to measure your meals for a week or two. Use smaller plates and glasses to downsize your portions. Split restaurant servings in half -- making two meals out of one big one. Heck, order child size entrees. Portion out snack servings instead of eating them directly from the container.
The 7th Commandment:
Eat Your Vegetables!
Eat protein, fiber and fruits and vegetables at every meal.
Protein fills a person up. It keeps you feeling full longer and preserves muscle mass and encourages fat burning. Incorporate healthy proteins like lean meat, yogurt, cheese and nuts. Fiber aids digestion, prevents constipation, and lowers cholesterol, and can help with weight. Women need 30 grams daily, - nearly twice the current national average. Good fiber sources include oatmeal, beans, whole grain foods, and a variety of fruits and vegetables.
The best "diet" is one where you get to eat more food, not less. If you eat more fruits and vegetables, you shouldn't feel as hungry because these nutrient-rich foods are also high in fiber and water, which can give you a feeling of fullness
The 8th Commandment:
Keep a food diary.
A simple pen and paper can dramatically boost your weight loss. Studies show the act of writing down what you eat and drink tends to make you more aware of what, when, and how much you're consuming -- leading you to ultimately take in fewer calories. One study found that people who kept a food diary six days a week lost about twice as much as those who only kept a diary one day a week or less.
The 9th Commandment:
Less than 100 is Great!
Nite time snacks less than 100 calories, that are low carb, low fat, low sodium and high in fiber are healthy ways to feed that late night craving. Examples are 1 cup of low fat popcorn, ½ cup of low fat cottage cheese with a handful of blueberries, pre-made 100 calorie snacks or a ½ cup low fat ice cream.
The 10th Commandment:
Celebrate success (without food).
You lost five pounds this month and exercised every other day. Time to celebrate! Rewarding weight loss success really can encourage more success, so revel in your achievements. Take in a movie, and set a new goal, determine a prize for the next milestone.
