Not everyone can do “DIETING” and those who can are always starving themselves to lose weight.
Dieting has been forever demonised by those who don’t do it the right way and thereby in turn scaring the sh@# out of people who want to see a change in themselves- lose weight, gain weight, gain muscle, whatever the goal is.
What does it mean by DIETING? “Dieting is the practice of eating food in a regulated way to decrease, maintain, or increase body weight, or to prevent and treat diseases such as diabetes and obesity.” This is what Wikipedia says.
“If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” ~ rightly said by someone in the most minimal words. Planning your meals ahead of time is very essential if you want to implement healthy eating habits. If the ingredients are missing, you won’t be able to cook the required recipes. Arrange for a trip to grocery store at least once a week and stock up the things needed.
If you want to know about how to really lose weight easily, then continue reading further.
Okay, okay i agree it seems intimidating when you hear (read) this (eat every two hours) but its important! “oh my god, how can I eat itna sara (this much)?” This is the point. See, when you eat itna sara (this much), your portion size gradually decreases and hence overall you either eat the same quantity or mostly less in the whole day. Eating every two hours is important because when you do so, you’re already full by the next meal (because of your previous meal) and hence, you eat less.
Also, the stomach feels secure that you won’t starve it and so it performs its functions at its full efficiency and oh, did i tell you that when you eat every 2 hours, your stomach doesn’t store fats in fat cells (as triglycerides) and in fact uses it up to produce energy because you are giving it small meals = low calories = weight loss? Well, now I did!
Hey, I didn’t say eat BIG MEALS every 2 hours, NO. Eat 2-3 BIG meals and 5-6 SMALL meals in a day. Small Meals could be like: 1 Cheese block, Fresh Coconut water, 20-30 Peanuts (or a handful), Bhelpuri, 2 Dates, 1 Katori Cucumber and Tomato Salad, 1 Katori Curd, Nuts and Seeds, 1 Peanut Butter Toast etc.
As Cliche as it may sound, but Yes, you should always carry your “dabba” when you go out. If Akshay Kumar can do this, you can do it too.
Carrying your dabba with you has multiple benefits like firstly, you won’t be forced to eat outside food (no matter how healthy it is, bahar ka kana is bahar ka chana).
Secondly, you or someone in your family is cooking it so be ensure that it is hygienic, and is cooked with clean hands and good ingredients and oils.
And mostly, you know what you are eating, you have properly portion sized it according to your needs. Furthermore, some of you may complain about your travelling job. The ONLY way out is to carry food with you which you can like nuts (almonds, walnuts), a piece of fruit or Nariyal Pani is available mostly everywhere.
Fruits & Vegetables are super important and rich in nutrients. Why are they important? Because they have lots of fibre in there, can be used to beat up your Sugar Cravings and are also rich with various micro nutrients. Also, they are low in calories and make a perfect snack!
How and When should you eat your vegetables?
You like them raw, eat them. You like them cooked, eat them. Just eating them is what matters. Eat loads of green leafy vegetables like spinach, cabbage, cauliflower etc. Eat what is available locally and please don’t go after “exotic vegetables” simply because they are grown and suitable for people living in those “exotic areas”.
What is the right time to eat fruits?
WHENEVER THE HELL YOU ARE COMFORTABLE EATING THEM. However, it is recommended to eat it the first thing in the morning, within 30 minutes after waking up as they help in increasing your blood sugar levels and thereby increasing your energy and hence your metabolism speeds up (simply means flatter stomach). And also, you then don’t depend on other stimulants like tea, coffee or a cigarette for that matter. Also, eat them as raw as possible- without touching the knife, without chopping it; simply by just peeling and eating it or by directly taking a bite. This so, because when you peel your fruit, they oxidise (by coming in contact with air).
{Okay, but please don’t soup or juice your fruits and vegetables. It just ruins the nutrition they hold. When you juice it or smash and soup it, it loses the fibre and its true essence. That’s what I recommend. I have linked a few articles below so that you can read and decide for yourself.}
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/juicing-good-or-bad#whole-fruits-and-veggies
https://food.ndtv.com/food-drinks/fruit-juice-versus-whole-fruit-which-one-should-you-choose-1781956
Take small steps every day- make small changes like PORTION CONTROL, SMALLER DINING PLATE. Start by using a small plate. A smaller plate means less food. Most of the times what happens is that when we have a bigger plate we tend to fill it more than we actually need. So, a smaller plate helps to lose weight!
Next, you can start by doing portion control simply by taking half of what you want to eat. READ THE NEXT POINT.
Another small step that you can take is by simply starting to eat your dinner 2-3 hours before your bed time.
PS: You cannot be perfect from Day 1. It will take time to make habitual changes, so keep it realistic and keep it simple. 🙂
Eat half of what you feel you want to eat. Suppose you feel the need to eat 2 rotis, take one and finish it. Still feeling hungry and want another roti? Take half of the one roti. Still feeling hungry? take half of the half. What this does is, it helps you to eat slowly and thereby consciously. It also helps in reducing your portion size and decreasing your overall calories.
Also, after eating one serve wait for 10 minutes before you take another. Chances are, you won’t feel the need to take the second serve. 😉
Sleep is the most important and the most UNDERRATED aspect when it comes to weight loss, fat loss or muscle gain. IT IS A NECESSITY and not a choice. Your body needs a good sleep of around 7-9 hours. Sleep is when your body rests and repairs itself. And you know what? YOU BURN CALORIES WHILE SLEEPING! Yes, you read it right.
Don’t engage yourself into sleep patterns wherein you are sleeping for just 4-5 hours, no, trust me, you won’t be able to achieve your goals. Sleep is important for every cell, organ, tissue, joint, nerve etc. of our body. You can also take 30 minute power naps in a day but ensure 7-9 hours of sleep in day. Getting too little sleep triggers hormonal changes that lead to an increased appetite. Also, sleep deprivation will cause your body to have more cravings for foods high in sugar and fat. And, if you’re tired often you won’t have the energy to work out. So be sure to get enough sleep everyday.
Also, make sure to have quality sleep while ensuring good conditions like a soothing music, lavender candle, cosy socks etc. And hey, ditch the alarm, let your body rise up itself. You’ll feel empowered.
When we eat unconsciously, we simply eat too much! Consider the following menus we routinely eat when we eat out. In just one sitting we can easily cross 1000+calories: A Mc Donald meal, Indian Buffet, or any 3 to 4 course meal in any fancy restaurant. For some people, it could be an intake for almost the entire day!!
When we eat slowly and consciously, while using all our senses- eyes, nose, skin, tongue and ears- our taste buds can savour the flavours longer, our food is assimilated efficiently and effectively. Also chewing our food will help our body to digest it properly.
Another important thing is to fill our plate right in a way that no food group is eliminated. Make sure to fill 50% of your plate with Carbs, and rest 25% proteins and 25% fats. No hard and fast rule though, but an ideal plate. NO, CARBOHYDRATES ARE NOT BAD.
Another important guideline is to TRACK OUR FOOD everyday and to TRACK IT RIGHT. Tracking your food is extremely important. Make a set of 1 katori, 1 bowl, 1 tbsp, 1tsp and always use the same to measure your food. This ensures correct tracking of your food. Write down whatever you are eating, whenever you are eating. Track you weight everyday for the first two weeks so that you can look back and see what i working for you and what isn’t. You can also Meal Plan for the week as to what will you eat and when will you eat. This will help you plan the grocery shopping ahead of time.
Use various fitness tracking apps like HealthifyMe or Myfitnesspal. Here is a code for you to use on HealthifyMe-
Join me using my code TAN4S2TAP and earn ₹ 150 credits. https://hme.app.link/A9w3weX8gaB
Another Cliche point, but yes it is important! 70% of our bodies are made up of water ( a nutrient) . So drink enough water, yaar. A human body can survive without food for 5 weeks but without water for only 5 days. So? DRINK THAT WATER. It is mostly recommended 1litre water/ 20Kgs. Do the math and drink water. On an average, 2-3l water everyday is good. Also, you can take reference from the colour or the odour of your urine-as far as it is transparent and odour-free, you are good to go. 😀
More the water, more is the urine= cleaning of toxins (detox) because kidney does that= you will lose weight. (No, No detox juice will help you as much as drinking water will.)
Yes this is my last point, but not the least important one. Don’t eat Junk Food too much. Junk simply means FAST FOOD like Pizza, burgers, fries, deep fried items like samosa, pakodas etc.
Now, why no? Because they have a lot of added preservatives, trans-fat, sodium, MSG, etc. Also, they are just empty-calorie meals which offer no nutritional value whatsoever. Don’t eliminate them completely but indulge into your favourite food only twice a month, at the most.
If you really want to eat, cook it and eat it. But, don’t order takeaway or delivery. Simple, No to FAST FOOD.
I can only recommend, it’s you who has to follow. Make sure to adopt these guidelines and TAKE ONE STEP AT A TIME. When we talk about Fat loss, weight loss, muscle gain, CONSISTENCY is what matters. NOT GIVING UP is what will get you results. So, just be consistent and keep showing up every day, every week and every month. Eat your fruits, Sleep well, drink water and see your life changing. 🙂
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