Permanent weight loss can be a challenge. These 20 ideas can help.Weight maintenance is much like weight loss. The principles are essentially the same: Eat healthy foods, control your portion sizes and exercise regularly. And to keep the pounds off permanently, you need to incorporate the new, healthy behaviors into your routine so that they become a natural part of your daily life.Here are 20 ideas to reinforce your healthy lifestyle and to keep you committed to permanent weight loss.
Exercise 30 to 60 minutes each day.
If time is limited, exercise for several brief periods throughout the day — for example, three 10-minute sessions rather than one 30-minute session.
Eat three healthy meals during the day, including a good breakfast. Skipping meals causes increased hunger and may lead to excessive snacking.
Focus on fruits and vegetables. Top off your morning cereal with sliced strawberries or bananas. Stir berries or peaches in yogurt or cottage cheese. Liven up your sandwiches with vegetables, such as tomato, lettuce, onion, peppers and cucumber.
Plan a family activity. Get the family together to go for a bike ride, play disc golf or kick the ball around in the yard.
Look for a distraction when you're fighting a craving. Call a friend, put on music and dance or exercise, clean the house, pull weeds in your garden, or run an errand. When your mind is occupied with something else, the cravings quickly go away.
Reward yourself. Losing weight and keeping the pounds off is a major accomplishment. Celebrate your success with nonfood rewards, such as new clothes or an outing with friends.
Walk for 10 minutes over your lunch hour or get up a few minutes earlier in the morning and go for a short walk.
Plan a week's worth of meals at a time. Make a detailed grocery list to eliminate last-minute trips to the grocery store and impulse buys.
Eat at home. People eat more food in restaurants than at home. Limit how often you eat at restaurants. If you do eat out, decide what and how much you're going to eat before you start and have the rest boxed to go.
No comments:
Post a Comment