Truly effective weight loss

Truly effective weight loss

I’m pretty sure we as people have all been there. Looking in the mirror and said “I could lose a bit of weight” some of us have a chronic weight issue, others just a little too much sweet toothing. What EVER! It doesn’t matter. We’ve all had days, weeks, months.. or even years like this.

I’ve never been terribly over weight but while I was busy getting certified for childrens services; I spent a solid 4-8 hours a day at a computer, usually with a hot chocolate and a biscuit every hour on the hour. Or pot noodles. Why? Because it was easy. Convenience was ruling my days. And I was still eating 3 large meals per day.

At the time I had a three year old in a hip Spica cast after he broke his leg and a one year old with digestive issues. Food was comfort, food was entertainment, food was grounding. I was eating my feelings. I knew it but I couldn’t stop, I wasn’t ready.

I got to 75kg. This is the heaviest I have ever been in my life including when I was pregnant.

I can already hear some people muttering 75kg isn’t that bad! I weigh 80, 90, 95 maybe 100kg or even 120kg.. maybe you’re even heavier? It doesn’t matter the goal is the same.

Fad diets don’t work. Neither do pills. Not that I’ve tried them. I don’t need to try them to know they won’t work. Why?? Because to maintain any weight range you have to live it. Every day. Pills and protein powders and fad diets don’t work because they are temporary fixes. No, If you want true, lasting and manageable weight loss then the change needs to be permanent.

Permanent weight loss involves a complete lifestyle overhaul. And it requires a person who wants it desperately.

I am not selling anything. This is not some infomercial where they feed you little bits and tease you only to tell you to buy their product. Like everything else I publish I am going to include everything, free of charge, because reader, I love you and I want to you to have what I worked hard to get without having to look for as long as I did. So without further ado.. what I did to lose weight. I’m half way there now. I’m still on the journey and we can do it together if you want to..

FIND YOUR VICES: vices are anything that interrupts daily life, makes you sedentary or is loaded with sugar that you have on a regular basis- regular means more than twice per week, if you enjoy milkshakes everyday- it’s a VICE.. ditto for sitting at the computer all day on social media. Find those vices and write em down. These are some of mine:

·         Hot chocolate

·         Face Book

·         bread

·         anything with cocoa in it ie: vegan knock off Oreos or chocolate milk.

·         Fried foods.

·         Pizza

·         Pastries and hot cinnamon doughnuts.

·         MacDonald’s fries.

·         Juice

·         “healthy junk food”

I love all these things. Passionately. They were my friends but they weren’t being very good to me .

Slowly so as not to shock yourself too much, ditch each one. And as you ditch each one replace the vice with a good habit. Become a “swapper” not a “stopper” when I felt lonely instead of getting on Face book I’d write in a journal quickly, call a friend and arrange a food free meet up.

To quit social media you will need to gain a social life. Not easy if you have a baby but you CAN and SHOULD look to socialize your child. A play-group once a week and a play date with another kid from said play group should help take care of this. And do something different each time ie the park one date and the beach or pool the next. Mix it up and you’ll find yourself exercising to boot as you keep up with your little one. Wash the car, go for a walk on a nature trail, play fetch with a dog! LIVE!

Set small achievable goals. Yes you want to get all the way down to a certain size but if you put 15kg as your goal you know what will happen?? You’ll start zealously for the first week, weigh yourself, see that you are still nowhere near your goal and likely shout “oh what’s the POINT! I am NEVER going to be smaller!” and throw in the towel. Rather set 5X 3kg losses and celebrate each little win with a fun activity that is completely food free. Notice what I said there? Food free? That’s because and listen very clearly I will only say it once:

FOOD IS NOT A REWARD!

Got that? If you go and get all self congratulatory and “reward” yourself with one of your vices or even a “healthy” food. It gives the same message. You are living to eat, food is love and you want to be adored. It will BACKFIRE stay off your vices until well after you’ve reached your final goal. And FYI well after your goals is about 6-12 months depending on how addictive your nature is. And when after you have reached your goal and maintained it for a good amount of time give yourself ONE “cheat day” per month once every 2 or 3 months is even better. Mark it on the calendar that on this cheat day you can have ONE of your vices. Just one mind you. And you’ll probably find you won’t even like it. It may even make you sick.

Which brings me to the importance of cheat days.

While you are on your weight loss journey you DON’T get cheat days. It ruins your efforts.

BUT when you’ve already achieved your goals having the odd cheat day is okay. I scheduled mine for once every 2 months and when that day comes around I already know what I’m having!

On a cheat day you can have one of the things you don’t normally have; just one, and it has to be food.  

The purpose of these cheat days is to make sure you don’t feel too deprived.

So what DO you eat? Pretty much the diet I’ve used can be summed up in three words: Protein, Fibre and carbohydrates. In that order. That means LOTS of protein, SOME fibre and LOW carbohydrates and all the carbs are low GI for slow release of energy.

JUST EAT REAL FOOD; was it ever alive? Did it come from something alive? Does it have 5 or less ingredients and you can understand the ingredient label? If it does have lots of ingredients just run each one through the rest of these questions. Most importantly could you theoretically make it at home yourself and would your great great great great grandma recognize it as food?

And here’s the sciency part,

Protein doesn’t break down into sugar. They leave you feeling full for a long time and their great for brain development and concentration. Protein won’t go on your backside anywhere near as fast as foods that break down into sugar.

Fibre from fruit and vegetables helps keep you full, makes you regular and while it does break down into sugar the fibre in it helps to clear the food from your body before it has totally broken down into sugar and contains essential vitamins and minerals that your body NEEDS your mother was right; eat your vegetables. ANY diet that says you can’t have fruit or vegetables is a fad diet and isn’t worth the paper it’s written on.

 

Carbohydrates do break down into sugar. Simple carbs release sugar in the greatest quantities and at the greatest speed. These sugars release INSULIN and insulin makes us suddenly get the meanest case of the munchies. And too much insulin can even lead to scary things like diabetes complications. Moderate your carbs.

When and how do I eat these foods?

BREAKFAST:

I like to have my breakfast fresh so I committed to WALKING the 3km to the local supermarket to buy the fruit for myself and the boys EACH AND EVERY DAY. Before we leave I have some protein such as an egg or a few mushrooms. Bacon is also a popular choice. It doesn’t matter if you’re an omnivore, a vegetarian or a vegan. I DON’T CARE what you eat. There is a protein option for you. Eat up. Then walk for about 5-6km. When you come home eat your fruit. 2-3 pieces. Try for 1-2 pieces that you know you like and 1 piece of fruit you’ve never tried before. Can’t know you love it til you try it!

LUNCH:

This is the best time to have the bulk of your simpler carbs. I find that if I have carbs too early or too late I want to snack on.. more carbs! Grains are probably the poorest choice for carbs but will do in a pinch. Aim for oats or quinoa as these won’t be so bad for sugar release. A better choice is a salad maybe with baked vegetables like pumpkin or sweet potato. Add lots of carrots, olives, pickles, onions, cucumber, tomatoes, spinach ect to your salad and top with a light dressing to jazz it up. Also add a bit of protein in the form of meat or mushrooms or tofu. The protein should make up about a quarter of your lunch.  

TEA/DINNER/SUPPER: Whatever you call it. The best way to finish up your meals for the day is yet again high protein low carbs moderate fibre. Meat or meat alternative + 3-5 different raw or lightly steamed vegetables with a nice dressing is bring but great for you. I personally shook things up so that every second day I had a nice risotto or casserole or home made burger etc. It equated to 4 nights of “meat and veg” and 3 nights with something a little edgier. It made meals bearable.

SNACKS: need something to tide you over til meal time? When I feel a little nibbly I cut up some carrots, cucumbers, capsicum or celery and dip them in light sour cream. OR I make a dairy free fruit smoothie by putting different fruits in the blender with some ice and add one banana per serve that I am making and push puree. The banana gives it a bit of a creamy texture. Better yet there’s nothing wrong with just eating the banana or fruit whole. Single serve chicken or Tuna tins are great for a protein hit if the next meal is hours away. Sometimes I eat corn thins with butter but I avoid doing this too often.  

And lastly:

Get moving!

As mentioned before I walk 5-6 km per day but it doesn’t stop there. Clean your house, go for a swim or ride a bike! Meet friends for an aerobics class..

Because permanent weight loss is a way of life. Not a diet.