‘Eat less, move more!’ The basic principle of the weight loss tips seems so easy, doesn’t it? People who are actually on their way to a healthier body and better physical form know that it is still a long journey. You are likely to be confused, have questions, doubts, and second thoughts and just feel unmotivated. Is there something to help out?

Check out these useful weight loss tips that will help you stay on track and not lose your focus.

  • Balanced meals

Make sure that you are aware of your daily needs in calories and macronutrients. If you don’t meet them, you are likely to have cravings for sweet, fatty or salty food, fall into a diet-binge cycle, or just not lose weight as fast as you would like. That’s why it is so important to make all your meals filling and healthy.

Let your breakfast be the most filling meal of your day. Start the day with an intake of 500-700 calories that come from proteins, carbohydrates and fats. Try to eat three times a day and have two snacks in between those. Don’t avoid products that are great sources of healthy fats like nuts, avocado, salmon, olive oil, and flaxseeds. Stick to complex carbohydrates like grains, oats, quinoa, beans, and lentils. You don’t have to leave on salad and kale only—losing weight healthy doesn’t mean starving yourself.

  • Don’t miss your ZZZ’s

If skipping a workout means an extra hour of sleep—skip a workout! Yes, we mean it! You’ve probably heard that many recent studies have proven that sleep deprivation can lead to over-eating but did you know that having not enough sleep can also lead to losing your muscles instead of body fat? Even if you stick to your meal and workout plan, sleeping less than 6 hours on a regular basis will make your body use the muscle tissue for restoration, and not the fat you’re actually trying to get rid of. Right amount of rest is as much important as the right amount of physical exercises.

  • Think realistically

Right about to start their weight loss journey, people are very likely to make ‘big’ promises to themselves. ‘I will never eat sweets and pastry, I will cut my consumption of saturated fat, and I will never ever buy a bucket of ice cream when I feel unmotivated’. Those are great commitments but who can stick to them? This super hero person has not been born yet.

Instead, make a room in your meal plan for the food you really like and enjoy eating. Let 80% of your daily calorie intake come from healthy, filling meals but save those 20% for your favorite ice-cream brand, casual pizza party with friends or a glass of wine to wind down on a not-so-good day. It doesn’t mean that once a week you should go crazy and binge-eat everything you see. On the opposite, having your favorite food on the plan will help you not to put excessive pressure on yourself.

  • Don’t use working out as an excuse to eat more

A common misunderstanding is that exercising will make you burn so many calories that you can eat more food and still lose weight. That is no true. A workout in the gym or an hour cardio session can burn around 400-600 calories but a regular home-cooked meal is about the same. However, a regular restaurant meal, pre-cooked foods and especially unhealthy snacks like chocolate bars, potato chips and whipped-cream lattes with caramel toppings are very likely to ‘cost’ more.

It can in many cases be a key weight loss tip for men because they tend to feel hungrier once they’ve started working out in the gym. Men often chose to ‘eat like a pro’ and ‘fuel’ their body with protein bars and shakes, sometimes eating as soon as they enter the changing room. It’s important not to trust advice coming from professional athletes who need a big calorie intake to maintain those huge muscles. Us, mere mortals, just need a balanced diet.

  • Find a healthier alternative to the ‘comfort food’

Many people fail their dieting plan when out of the sudden they find themselves crawled in the bed with a box of chocolates, bucket of ice cream, family pack of cookies (the list can go on and on)? A bad day at work, comparing yourself with a ‘perfect’ Insta blogger or PMS-ing can result in overeating trying to soothe or wind down.

Bad days and diet ‘failures’ are still going to happen, no matter how much you want to avoid them. Be prepared! Sit down with a paper and a pencil and make a list of alternatives to comforting yourself with food. A peaceful walk in the woods, a boxing session, or an evening out with your bestie?.. Come up with ideas that fit your personality.

This can be one of the most important weight loss tips for women, as many of them feel a lot of social pressure of being skinny and constantly dieting as if it were a natural thing to do! However, losing weight, changing your eating habits and maintaining a new form is not easy, even those glossy magazines would like to trick us into thinking exactly the opposite. Don’t put even more pressure on yourself for not making it in a ‘perfect’ way. It’s a bumpy road for everyone, and it’s supposed to be this way.

We hope that these weight loss tips will help you lose those extra kilos quickly and safely! Feel free to call or visit our Brandon clinic in Tampa Area to have a free, thorough consultation with our certified weight loss coaches.