Steps towards losing weight effectively

Strawberries

So the first step towards losing weight is to get motivated. Overcoming that low self-esteem and seeking outside support is crucial.  Although it is a huge step, you will feel the benefits immediately, once you have the support of someone who knows what you are going through.

The next important step is to be flexible. You will have setbacks, good days and bad days.  Don't lose heart.  Food addiction is just like drug addiction. Eating triggers endorphins in the brain, a chemical that induces pleasure. If you are overweight through overeating you are dependent on those chemicals, and breaking that habit doesn't happen overnight.  So don't be too hard on yourself.

Thirdly, be honest with yourself.  The human brain has a remarkable ability of ignoring the things it does not want to face, but don't kid yourself.  Start a food diary, so you can be truthful to yourself about what you eat.  Carry around a notebook and pen and to write down everything you eat. And I mean EVERYTHING. Even that little biscuit that you get with a cappuccino, write it down. At the end of the day look over the list and you’ll be surprised at how many things you actually eat on a regular basis.

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Next you need to ask yourself why you ate all those things.  Add that to the diary too.  Every time you reach out for a drink or some food, stop and ask yourself “Why am I doing this?”. Whether you are thirsty, hungry, bored, lonely, depressed, tired or stressed, write down the reason for eating.  But remember, only thirst and hunger are legitimate reasons.

Once you understand how much you are eating and why you can start to change. Put the bottle down if you’re not thirsty. Put the food back in the fridge if you’re not hungry. If you crave sweets because you’re tired get some sleep instead. If you feel the need to eat because you’re lonely or bored, why not read a book, watch a movie or listen to some music?

But remember to just cut down, never starve yourself. This is one of the biggest mistakes in dieting. Starvation makes the body go into famine mode: it interprets the lack of food as danger and responds by limiting your energy levels and hanging on to existing fat. So you must eat three meals a day.  Just make sure those meals are healthy and balanced. If you feel hungry in between meals you can top up with snacks of fruit and vegetables.

The key to dieting is moderation, not denial. Don’t try to banish your favorite foods completely. This is likely to sap your willpower, making it harder to stick to a diet. Allow yourself a bit of forbidden food every few days as a special treat.  Chances are you'll enjoy it more than ever that way.

At least as important as diet is exercise. If you’re not used to exercising you must check with your doctor before starting.  He will check your cholesterol and blood pressure. If you have a health condition, you will must talk about your diet and exercise plans with him before you do anything.

Once your doctor gives you the OK, start small. Five minutes per day will do for starters. A brisk walk around the block is fine to start. Every week increase the time spent exercising by another five minutes and add new exercises. Your goal should be to spend at least 30 minutes every day working out your body, but work up to that slowly.

To consolidate all your hard work on diet and exercise it is crucial to drink enough water. The human body is mostly water trapped inside the fragile walls of cells and water is essential for so many of our bodily processes: to flush out toxins, to cleanse the body, to cool off, to keep the joints working and to help the food digestion process. The minimum daily recommended water intake is 2 litres, taken at regular intervals throughout the day; this is how much water the body uses throughout the day.  It needs to be constantly replaced as the body loses it through sweating, urination etc.

Without enough water, your metabolism slows down dramatically.  That is, the process of breaking food down and converting it to energy takes longer - which means that too few calories are burnt and that too little weight is lost. In addition, exercising becomes less effective as the body’s energy levels diminish. Therefore, you need to increase your metabolism. Maybe with some additional helps from weight loss pills.

Water also plays an important part in digestion and elimination of waste. Not drinking enough water can lead to constipation and intestinal problems. Poor digestion means that you will not get enough energy from what you’re eating, prompting the body to crave more food. A dehydrated body sends out fake hunger pangs, tempting you to eat more food than you should.

As if that's not enough, water is also a good filler. Drink a tall glass of water half an hour before every meal - it will fill a large part of your stomach and you will feel more satisfied. It's much harder to overeat with half of the stomach filled with water.

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The Author

Doctor Duncan Steward

Duncan Steward has been involved in weight loss product reviews since the last decade and has helped thousands of people to choose the right products to help them lose weight. He recently retired to Borneo but due to his popularity in the weight loss market and his previous TV appearances, he decided to continue helping people like you to lose weight thru this website.