Whether you’ve been trying to lose weight for a while or this is a new journey for you, it can be a tricky one to succeed in. Weight loss requires breaking a lot of habits that you have formed over the years, especially those related to food and activity. It can also take its toll on your mental health.
This is why it is important to plan ahead and understand what your weight loss journey will include. Thankfully, the three tips listed in this post can assist you in completing this and carry you through as your progress. Keep reading on to find out the best tips that you must remember as you lose weight.
Stick to Your Calorie Deficit
Burning more calories than you consume is an essential aspect of weight loss. Due to each person’s individual needs, no one calories deficit can be calculated and use for everyone; this would not prove effective. The number of calories someone should consume will depend on their activity levels, age, body composition, height, sex, and weight.
Most people will use an online calculator to determine how many calories they usually burn per day. However, it might be wise to consult a profession, such as a doctor or nutritionist, to calculate how many calories you should consume and what the most effective deficit will be.
To stick to a calorie deficit, you must look at your diet and exercise levels; the latter will be discussed later in this post. Healthier food choices, like switching from beef to turkey or whole milk to fat-free milk, will contain less calories. Similarly, while carbs are usually frowned upon for weight loss, you can enjoy bread and pasta if you choose whole grain options, as discussed here. These foods are likely to also be richer in nutrients, which will boost your health as well as assist you as you lose weight.
Find a Type of Exercise You Enjoy
Staying active is another vital component to losing weight. It is recommended that people complete at least two and a half hours of exercise weekly to maintain weight, so this should be increased for those who wish to lose weight. With more activity, more calories will be burned, and this can make sticking to the deficit easier.
But it can be tough to find a type of exercise that you enjoy, especially if you are usually inactive. Thankfully, there are numerous activities that you can choose from. The key is choosing something that you find fun; this way, you will be less likely to give up on it after a short while.
The easiest is walking, and this can be added to your life quite easily. You could choose to take the stairs rather than the elevator, park your car further away from your office building, or begin a new habit of walking after eating dinner. It doesn’t need to be strenuous activity.
Furthermore, if you would like something different, you might want to join the gym or try out a new sport. There are different sporting groups to join, if you want to learn and socialize at the same time. Even if you have no idea what to do in the gym, you could join a class or ask a member of staff to show you around.
Focus on Discipline, Not Motivation
While it can be easy to start working towards weight loss, this is often down to motivation. You will be more motivated at the beginning of the process, but this motivation might begin to decrease as time goes on. This is why you must focus on becoming more disciplined; it is discipline that will carry you through.
Building discipline can be tough, though. There are ways to help you become disciplined, such as:
- Creating a daily routine to meet your goals
- Celebrating small victories during your progress
- Holding yourself accountable by tracking your progress
- Setting smaller, specific goals to reach your large aim
By carrying out these tasks, you will find it easier to manage the process and meet your goals over time.
With these three tips, you will have an easier time planning and progressing through your weight loss journey. There might be setbacks, but this is normal – you will achieve your goals if you stick with it over time.
