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Unfortunately, a lot of people take extreme measures, often unhealthy ones, to lose weight. Examples of extreme weight loss measures include crash diets that can hurt your health, as well as risky weight loss surgeries. You should never lose weight at the expense of your overall health and well-being. Luckily, you don’t have to! Here are some tips that you can follow to help you slim down in a healthy way.
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Reduce Your Carbohydrates
Many people view weight loss from the perspective of limiting their calorie intake. However, even more important than limiting your overall calories, is limiting your intake of carbohydrates.
However, that doesn’t mean you should eliminate carbs altogether. Instead, you should follow a process known as ‘carb cycling’ where you go three to five days with minimal carbs. Then, you replenish your carbs to keep from starving your body of glycogen. Glycogen is needed to boost your metabolism and burn fat. On days when you are limiting your carb intake, replace them with foods that are higher in protein.
Try Intermittent Fasting
One of the biggest weight loss mistakes that you can make is to “starve” yourself by fasting for long periods of time. Instead, you should use intermittent fasting to help you lose weight.
Basically, intermittent fasting is about changing when you can eat. Most people fasting will give themselves an eight-hour window during the day when they are allowed to eat. Then, they must fast for the remaining 16 hours. Since intermittent fasting keeps you from eating whenever you want, you are less likely to consume a lot of extra calories.
Make Sure You Get Enough Sleep
Most people don’t realize that a lack of sleep can indirectly lead to gaining more weight. That’s because when you don’t get enough sleep, your body will produce higher levels of a hunger hormone known as ghrelin – which makes you want to eat more.
Therefore, one of the keys to successful weight loss is getting enough sleep each night. Adults should get around seven or eight hours of sleep every night.
Exercise After Waking Up
One of the best times to engage in some light exercising is after you wake up in the morning. For instance, you could go for a brisk walk, swim some laps, or ride a bike. You just need to do some type of cardio activity for about 30 minutes. It doesn’t need to be intense, just enough to break a light sweat.
Do a Few High-Intensity Workouts Each Week
If you want your workout sessions to help you lose weight, the key is to do a few really intense workouts throughout the week. For instance, you could do a really intense workout for just 15 minutes three times a week. Then, your remaining workouts could be composed of light exercises like power-walking or jogging. You can find examples of high-intensity workouts on the Internet.
Eat Foods That Help You Burn Fat
Did you know that there are actually certain foods that will help you burn fat? Here are some good fat-burning foods that you should include in your diet:
- Avocado
- Blueberries
- Broccoli
- Chicken Breast
- Greek Yogurt
- Onions
- Spinach
You can find more examples of foods that burn fat online.
Drink Plenty of Water
Most people don’t drink enough water. However, your body needs plenty of water so that it can stay hydrated and metabolize fat. In addition to keeping you healthy, drinking a lot of water serves another important purpose when trying to lose weight: drinking water makes you feel full. Therefore, you should drink a full glass of water before each meal so you won’t feel like eating as much.
Keep a Food Journal
Lastly, keeping a food journal can help you stay on top of your weight loss goal. Start by writing down everything you eat and drink during the day. Then, take a look at your food and beverage choices.
Find the unhealthy things that you are consuming and replace them with more healthy choices. For example, if you typically drink a soda with your meals, start drinking water instead. You should also use your food journal to track your daily calorie intake to make sure you aren’t still overeating.
Conclusion
In short, weight loss should always be about making you healthier – not just thinner. Start by consuming fewer carbs and changing when you eat. Make sure you get plenty of sleep and exercise. Engaging in just a few high-intensity workouts every week will help you burn more calories. You can also eat foods that will help you burn fat.
Drinking water before and during your meals will make you want to eat less too. Record everything that you eat in a journal to make sure you are eating healthy.
