One question I've been asked a lot in the past few months is, "How have you lost weight? What's your secret? What diet are you doing?"
All I've really said is, "I'm not on a diet. I am just trying to live a healthier lifestyle."
It seems the simplicity of that answer takes some people by surprise. You often expect results to come with a long list of rules and strict dieting and killing yourself at the gym. That may work for some, but it didn't work for me. What worked this year started with a mental change. For once in my life, I didn't want to look better for other people or to live up to some unrealistic expectation society often tries to place on us women. Instead, I was tired of feeling tired and bloated. So I changed...for MYSELF. I became simply strong because I wanted to be, and it would not have happened without a change that first started in my mind and lead to healthier eating and exercise habits.
I say all that knowing I'm still not quite "there." I'd like to lose a little more weight and tone up some more, and I definitely still have moments where I eat way too much; but overall, I've changed drastically in this past year, and being asked how I've done it made me decide to really reflect on it.
It all came down to taking my journey one day at a time with "strength" in mind for each choice I made mentally, nutritionally and physically.
I decided this morning to write it all down in detail as I reflected on the year, so I could let friends read it when they asked me what I did. I decided to share it on here, too, as (hopefully!) an inspiration to you! So keep in mind, I'm by no means a nutritionist, psychologist or trainer (YET!)... this is just what I did this past year that worked for me personally. Always check with your doctor to make sure you're doing what's best for YOU. :)
SIMPLY
STRONG
How
I Lost 25 Pounds Without Dieting or Following a Complicated Exercise
Program
MENTAL
STRENGTH
Strength
is more than a physical attribute, but a mental one. Gaining mental
strength is the foundation on which physical strength is built.
You've got to believe you can
do something before you can
actually do it. You've got to believe you're worthy
to make those positive changes in your life. You've got to see the
healthy, happy person waiting to be let out on the inside
for that person to appear on the outside. You've got to love yourself
enough to work hard for a healthy, strong body everyday. That can
only happen when you allow yourself to see the beauty that already
exists within you and know the only person you're wanting to be even
better for is yourself.
You
have the power to create a healthier you one tiny step at a time –
you just have to choose to use it. It won't happen overnight, but it
will happen sooner than you think if you never give up. You just have
to stay focused on the positive even on the bad days, keep your
long-term goals in mind when you face temptation of any kind, and
never let a setback take you all the way back.
Love
yourself as you already are so you'll treat your body like it
deserves.
NUTRITIONAL
STRENGTH
Feel
deprived at the thought of not eating a cookie or cupcake? I get
that. Missing out on sugar means you'll miss out on having less
energy, fewer nutrients, and a weaker immune system. Eating that
piece of fruit instead might do something crazy -- like give you an
energy boost and a decent dose of vitamin C while actually making you
feel satisfied and full! ;)
To
be nutritionally strong, you've got to ask yourself if treating your
taste buds to something seemingly delicious for a couple minutes is
better than treating your body to something that will make it feel
amazing for the rest of your life. You can't think of eating healthy
as deprivation or a diet or something that causes you to miss out on
fun. Focus on what you can eat rather than what you feel like
you can't.
The
occasional dessert or piece of pizza won't hurt you. You can eat it
whenever you want – just don't do it every day. You've got to make
the healthy choices more often than the not-so-healthy ones and
really think about why you're doing it. I like to study up on the
health benefits of different fruits and vegetables, because it always
makes me want to eat more of them, rather than waste my
calories on foods that don't benefit my body.
So,
to feel healthy and lose weight, it's really very simple: Eat healthy
and not too much.
On
average, people burn 2,000 calories a day – the more active you
are, the more you burn. Just like if you sit down a lot, you're
probably burning fewer. You can search for calorie calculators online
that tell you what you burn naturally everyday based on your weight,
age and activity level. Eat 500 calories less than that to lose about
a pound a week. I wouldn't recommend eating much less than that, and
NEVER eat fewer than 1,200 calories. Slow weight loss is lasting
weight loss.
You
can have one bad meal a week – not an entire binge day – without
losing progress for that week. Just listen to your body – eat
slowly, stop before you feel full (it takes about 15 minutes for your
body to send a “full” signal), and think before you eat. Focus on
your meal – not the TV or other distractions. Being mindful of what
you're eating is key.
Always
eat breakfast and make it your biggest meal of the day to supply
energy throughout the day. Dinner should be your smallest. It's best
to eat every three hours – a small 200-300 calorie meal. You'll
figure out what works best for you, but eating small meals frequently
is typically best for your metabolism.
Drink
lots of water. Hydration is important, and I've learned it's easy to
think you're hungry when you're really thirsty.
Know
your weakness. I tend to overeat chips, popcorn, and ice cream. I
can't have that easily accessible or I'll eat too much of it. It's
about having good-for-you foods nearby and not-so-good-for-you ones
out of reach most the time.
Finally,
keep it fun. Try something new once a week. Play with spices. Make
eating healthy as fun as possible. I like taking a craving for an
unhealthy food and making it as healthy as possible – like
pancakes. Instead of using flour, I mix up two eggs and a mashed
banana and it tastes just as good! There are all kinds of
substitutions you can do like that one.
All
it comes down to is burning more calories than you're eating and
making healthy choices without allowing yourself to feel deprived.
The tips and ideas for doing this are endless, but you've just got to
play around with it to find what works for you. Every body is
different and needs different amounts and types of food.
PHYSICAL
STRENGTH
Finally,
exercise plays such an important role in overall health and weight
loss. If you don't exercise much, start with a 15-20 minute walk down
the street or on the treadmill at an easy pace three times a week.
Work yourself up a couple minutes each week as you start intensifying
the pace. Just listen to your body – it'll tell you when you need
to slow down or if you can go a little faster. It's good to get your
heart rate up, but don't overdo it if you aren't used to much
activity. Once you feel comfortable with that, try biking or dancing
or other fun forms of cardio to switch it up so your body doesn't get
comfortable with the same kind of exercise. Your goal should be to
work up to getting about a half hour of moderate cardio in 3-5 times
each week.
Strength
training is also very important. You burn more calories at rest the
more muscle you have. Start with one session a week and work up to
2-3 each week. You can focus on full-body workouts or breaking it
down into individual muscles groups (abs, arms and legs). The
possibilities are endless. You can use weights and machines, or
simply use your bodyweight. Plank, pilates and yoga workouts are easy
on the joints and great for building lean muscle – a great starting
point if working out is new to you. I safely learned a lot of new
things by getting a personal trainer for a few months and taking
fitness classes.
No
matter where you're at with physical strength, it's important to know
you DO have the time for exercise and to actually take the time for
it. Schedule it into your day like the necessity it is. Make it a
priority. Even if you break it up into a 10-minute walk here and
there throughout the day, all that matters is you make the effort and
move your body – a little bit of exercise is better than none at
all.
Switch
things up and don't be afraid to try new workouts – classes, DVDs,
programs in books. You've got to make it fun and you'll only find
what's fun for you by trying new things.
Most
importantly, only compare yourself to yourself. It doesn't matter if
someone you know can run six miles every day without breaking a
sweat, and you sweat after two minutes of walking. Someone will
always be faster, stronger and fitter than the healthiest person you
know. You've got to be encouraged by your own progress – like being
able to walk an extra minute than the day before or simply putting
one foot in front of the other and trying your hardest when it's the
last thing you want to do that day. No one ever really wants to
workout when first starting the journey to better health, but even on
my weakest days I have NEVER regretted a workout once I accomplished
it. Try each day just to be a little stronger than the person you
were yesterday. Weigh yourself and take pictures at the start of your
journey and every month after to see your progress and get the
motivation you need to keep going. You are worth it!
WHERE
TO FIND...
INSPIRATION:
Instagram
hashtags for fitness, searching quotes online, reading magazine
articles about healthy transformations, health documentaries on
Netflix
RECIPES:
Pinterest has TONS of clean eating, healthy recipes to try out –
quick & cheap or more involved & more ingredients – you'll
never get bored looking there! You can also find ideas through clean
eating hashtags on Instagram or, of course, in magazines and recipe
books.
WORKOUTS:
Again...Pinterest is loaded with them! Also, check out online
versions of Fitness & Women's Health magazines. Bodybuilding.com
explains how to do strength exercises at the gym. YouTube has great
Zumba workouts to follow. If you want a specific workout program, a
personal trainer would be beneficial.
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