How to Trim a few pounds
How many articles and websites promise a miracle way for you to lose weight? We are not going to attempt to do this. I listen to my personal trainer and follow a simple formula - eat smaller portions of more nutritious foods and stay more active. Sounds simple, but many of us are too busy with work, kids, fun and don't have the time or energy for any of this.
My advice is to start small. All you need to do is burn 3500 calories to lose 1 pound. Burn 500 calories a day either by exercising or cutting food calories and you are down 1 pound a week later. Take a look at some of the ways to burn 500 calories in the box. You may already be pushing a stroller or need to wash the windows - everything counts! Here are a few other ideas to trim a few pounds.
Dress Right
This is the easiest of them all, yet few people know how to dress to flatter their body, no matter the size. You should buy the right size of clothing - not too tight and not too baggy. The trick is to buy fitted pieces. If something is not the right length or doesn't measure right all around, take it to the tailor or your local dry-cleaner that will be happy to do the tailoring for you. I recently saw 2 pictures of Janet Jackson in ″People″ magazine - one picture made her look bigger since she was wearing baggy sweats, yet the other showed her in a fitted top and pants - huge difference!
Stay Active - Work in Intervals
For most people glued to their desk chairs, this one is an effort. Yes, you can do an hour of weight training or clean the house vigorously, but will you be able to commit an hour each and every day? My trainer's advice is to do one or various activities at different times of the day - or interval exercising. Walk around the block or your work building for 10 minutes - you do need a break now and then. A few hours later take the stairs instead of the elevator. Do a few crunches when you get back home. Before you know it, you will be 500 calories less. Plus, once you start doing this, you may enjoy being active and will stay active more, which will snowball into more weight loss and better energy for you.
Examine What You Eat but Eat!
Start a food diary and write down everything you eat. Then, use any of the many available web and printed resources to learn how many calories each item was (including everything!). Also, take a look at the fat and protein content. Fat is not good for your nutrition, with the exception of healthy fats (such as in almonds and avocado) acceptable and good for you in small quantities. Protein is a great building block - check out the food labels and pick foods with higher amount of proteins. Women should pay special attention to calcium and fiber levels, critical for their bodies. Your food diary will reveal how much you are consuming and how nutritious your meals are - you will then know what you need to change. Obviously, if you learn you are consuming 5000 calories a day, you need to cut down. Start by replacing some foods with vegetables - they have a lot of fiber and will fill you up without adding too many calories. Also look at when you are eating. You should have frequent small meals - don't forget to snack (on fruits, nuts, veggies, yogurt) - and make sure you start the day well with a good breakfast. Lastly, don't worry if you want to yield to temptation, just limit the amount. Craving chocolate? Try one bite and leave the rest for another time. Eat right and you can eat well.
Reduce stress
If you need to lose weight, it could be a physical, or health, or even an emotional issue. Whatever the case, take small steps and focus on doing something good for youself. Take a walk outside, take in some fresh air, think about your future, be in the moment. This inner peace will help you lose weight and stay healthy.
10 ways to burn 500 calories in 1 hour
Try one of these every day and you will lose a pound by end of the week!
- Power walking
- Cleaning the house
- Dancing (and we are not talking slow dancing!)
- Gardening
- Weight training
- Shoveling snow
- Singles (vs. doubles) tennis
- Pushing a stroller
- Washing windows
- Cooking (as in Thanksgiving dinner cooking)
Note: These are averages and time/effort may differ by weight
