In the past two weeks I have lost almost ten pounds. No, I'm not eating crazy small amounts and running on the treadmill until I pass out. I'm eating smart in relation to the activities I do for the day. Here are some of the things I do on a daily basis:
When I wake up, I eat a bowl of cereal (I measure a serving size based on what the box recommends). Some of the cereals I enjoy are Frosted Flakes (my guilty pleasure sugary cereal), Quaker's Oatmeal Squares (these are amazing... they're now coming in more variations such as Brown Sugar and Cinnamon), and the bare, down to the basics "Go-Lean" cereal (a combination of granola and oats with a sprinkle of cinnamon and vanilla for taste). My tip for breakfasts are to limit the sugary cereals and find cereals with actual nutrients and natural ingredients.
Then, I watch a little bit of TV and catch up on a few Youtube subscriptions and then it's time to work out! I use the "Rockin' Body" program developed by Shaun T, the face behind the well-known "Insanity!" program. It incorporates dance moves to get you more than enough of your daily cardio. They even have a calendar of different workouts to do everyday, which I follow. If you follow the calendar, your workouts will typically be an hour long and burn plenty of calories. I love this program because you get to know the cast- a lot of them are moms or normal people who lost weight and got toned from the program... plus Shaun T is full of energy and personality and really pushes you to make the most out of your daily workout.
Sometimes I'll go on the treadmill for about 15-20 minutes. I'm careful not to overdo it because I don't want to pass out from exhaustion- I only do it when I'm comfortable and when I have an urge to run. A tip for going on the treadmill is to turn that incline up! If you can walk or run on an incline of 4, it makes it so much easier to walk and run on normal streets and tracks with no incline!
I typically have an actual "lunch" about 3 or 4 times a week. Most of the time I just have small snacks to hold me over. Some of my favorite low calorie snacks are Triscuits, Fiber One Brownies (fiber-rich foods are usually very low in calories but make you feel full longer), and granola bars. I also love to eat fruits or heat up frozen veggies!
When it comes time for dinner, I try to get a mix of all of the different food groups. My main problem in the past was that I ate SO many foods that are rich in complex carbohydrates. Yes, complex carbs are great... but not when you eat a huge bowl of pasta loaded down with butter and then eat 4 or 5 pieces of french bread along with it. Now I try to eat something that has complex carbohydrates and protein and also I try to get my daily servings of veggies.
For dessert, I make it extremely simple- either I don't eat (surprisingly I don't have night cravings anymore) or I eat fruits like cherries, strawberries, pineapples, or grapes. When I really want to treat myself I eat a 100 calorie Fudge Bar.
If you're worried about "starving yourself" just give yourself a week on a restricted calorie diet and you'll be surprised at how much your stomach seems to "shrink".
Some tips:
1. Go grocery shopping and browse all the junk foods you used to eat- You'd be surprised at how high in calories they are (and how low in actual nutrients they are!)
2. Replace white bread with wheat/whole grain.
3. Replace normal snacks with reduced fat/whole grain snacks. For example, I'm obsessed with Club crackers... But usually I get one box of Reduced Fat and one box of Whole Grain and it makes it much healthier and much more guilt-free!
4. Pick one day of the week to treat yourself (i.e. "Sunday Funday")
5. If you feel hungry, drink water/chew gum/go on a walk for 20 minutes and come back. You probably won't be hungry when the 20 minutes are over.
Hopefully you enjoyed this post and found some of the tips I listed useful! xoxo
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