Staying tight ‘n’ toned when you just LOVE to snack ain’t easy. If I could eat an entire batch of cookies for breakfast every day without feeling like a zeppelin, let it be known that I absolutely would.
When you get your kicks from trying new recipes, discovering new cuisines, and eating out more than you care to admit, your waistline can soon start to pay the price. It’s a sad fact of life. BUT I’ve never been of the school of thought that says complete and utter restriction is the key to success.
It’s all about moderation, man. “A little of what you like every now and then will do you good” – or, at least, that’s what my nan used to say and I’m sticking with that theory.
So, in this guest post, here are some tips on how to stay lookin’ (and feelin’ – because we all know that’s the most important thing) tiptop without having to say sayonara to your favourite snacks.
Baby steps, baby steps…
A lot of the most popular diets involve cutting out whole food groups, like carbohydrates or dairy. For a lover of food, this is probably not going to be sustainable. By making a major change to your diet, you may see good weight loss results at first, but if you’re going to keep up those results, you need to reach them in a way that you can keep up.
For example, if you lose weight by cutting out sugar, as soon as you start to eat it again (which you will), you will probably regain the weight. Instead, try to make adaptions to your diet that you can maintain. Instead of cutting out sugar altogether, aim to eat less sugar. Swap some chocolate snacks for options like protein bars.
Sustainable changes could include goals like having a meat-free day a week, adding vegetables or fruit to every meal, or eating smaller portions of the food groups that other people cut out altogether.
If you feel deprived, which any food lover will if they can’t eat something they love, it will be much harder to stick to your diet and get good results. By making changes you can sustain, you will be more likely to stick to the diet and get results that you can maintain. Keep the motivation going!
Make it count
You’re a food lover, you know when food is good and when it isn’t. Save your treats for something that is really worth it to you. For example, if you’ve been invited to a birthday party, there’s nothing with having a slice of birthday cake, but only do this if you know you’re going to enjoy it. If the cake isn’t one you like very much, then don’t bother.
Some people do well cutting out all sugary treats, but for other people, this is very tough. Cutting back on the majority of processed junk foods can help, and you can still enjoy the odd bag of sweets if you find that easier.
If you buy good quality treats, whether that’s chocolate or bacon, you’ll be satisfied with less, as there’ll be plenty of flavours packed in there.
Of course, the easiest way to stop your food-loving habits from growing your waistline more than you want is to exercise regularly. Grab some cool gym leggings from Curves N Combatboots, and balance out your diet with some physical activity on a regular basis.