Moderate Your Way to Weight Loss – and Keep It Off!
For many people the idea of losing unwanted pounds is a daunting prospect. If you fit into this category you probably have the idea that weight loss runs hand in hand with denying yourself the pleasure of eating what you want, feeling drained physically and / or exercising to the point of exhaustion. Either exercising or dieting can lead to weight loss, but if you want to lose weight and keep it off it could be time for a change of lifestyle for you.
I know - you've heard that before. A "change in lifestyle" doesn't sound much more pleasant than "losing weight" but it can be. In the past you've probably been told that "moderation is key", and it is usually said in a negative context: "stop drinking so much", or "stop eating so much junk food". In this way moderation is usually meant to say that you should stop doing the things you enjoy so much.
When you apply moderation as a positive influence in your life it can hold the key to lifestyle transformation that is comfortable to implement, and weight loss that is gradual and maintainable.
It can be difficult to moderate your negative habits, but it can often be quite easy to apply moderation to positive habits, ones that would be difficult to pattern immediately if applied excessively. You may need to cut sweets out of your diet, but you find the idea of cutting them out completely unsustainable. Taking up running will certainly cause you to lose weight - but it can be dangerous of you take on too much too soon.
Despite all of the current marketing hype surrounding miracle diets, it's a pretty well-established truth that your ability to lose weight depends upon balancing your caloric intake with expenditures - it boils down to diet and exercise. Dramatic changes in either can produce weight loss, but those changes are difficult or impossible to maintain.
The key is to implement positive change very slowly - so slowly that it is barely noticeable - and then increasing the change when and if comfortable. Here are four changes that you can make in your daily routine that can be implemented gradually, and that will lead to a healthier and slimmer you:
1) Drink lots of water. This is an easy change that can have a big impact on the amount you eat. Just keep a sixteen or twenty ounce water bottle with you during the day, and see how many times you can drain it and fill it back up again. You should try to consume about a half-ounce of water per day for every pound of body weight that you have. That's a lot of water, but you don't have to try to drink that much the first day: start slowly and just pay attention to how much you drink. If you monitor how much you drink, the amount will go up naturally without much effort on your part. Water is a natural appetite suppressant; you need it for proper hydration and for your body to function efficiently.
2) Increase your amount of physical activity. You've heard this one before, it's one of the most important things you can do to lose weight, andit is the most important step to practice with moderation. Most people fail in raising their levels of activity because they get too aggressive - they try to make big changes too fast. If you set a goal that is too difficult to maintain you are certain to fail. Start by just taking the stairs when you can rather than the elevator - walking is very relaxing and one of the mos beneficial habits that you can build into your life and build upon to lose weight. When you're at work - go for a walk. At home? Go for a walk! Start with short ones and grow them when time permits, and when you feel up to it. Walking can become one of the best parts of your day - and it will help you lose weight.
3) Get more rest. Clinical studies have shown that there is a close correlation to lack of sleep and weight gain. Those deprived of sleep tend to opt for high calorie foods, and the hormones that regulate appetite and that full feeling you get right after a meal get all out of whack if you haven't had enough sleep. Shoot for eight hours of sleep per night. If you can't find enough hours in the day, get as close as you can to that number. Your body needs rest in order to maintain a healthy balance, and sleep will help keep your appetite at bay.
4) Moderate your diet. This, of course, is one of the more difficult steps for many, but there are tools that you can use to ease this process and again - you don't have to do this all at once. You've already begun to drink more water, which will help suppress your appetite. Over-the-counter appetite suppressants can also help you to curb eating between meals as you adjust (over a course of weeks) your diet to include healthier foods. Choose a mild appetite suppressant and use it to supplement the steps above. As for particular foods, nutritionists agree that the more natural your food base is, the greater the positive influence in your diet will be. Choose natural foods when you can, don't try to change your diet overnight, and gradually moderate your caloric intake to match your level of activity.
If you implement the steps outlined above ever-so-slowly but consistently in your day-to-day activities you will bend your lifestyle in a sustainable way to a pattern that will help you lose weight and keep it off. Done correctly, it should take you the rest of your life to implement these steps, as they represent a journey rather than a destination. Go slowly - moderation is key and you will find that you not only lose weight but you feel better as well for years to come.
