Most of us have had a point in our lives when we desperately wanted to lose weight, but couldn’t. Gym memberships, weight loss programs, and crazy diets are just some of the few things we resort to as we hopelessly try to shed those few stubborn kilos.
But did you know that weight loss can just as efficiently be done at home? Although it may take time, with continuous and persistent efforts, nothing is impossible.
So, worry no more, you’ve come to the right place for some efficient weight loss tips to try at home.
Also, remember that sometimes instead of focusing on how to lose weight, we can also look at the different ways we are unknowingly gaining weight, and this can help us simply discard these methods and hence give us more efficiency.
Reasons for unknowing weight gain
- Eating quickly – You end up eating more than you should in a small amount of time.
- Not getting enough sleep – Studies show that less sleep causes hormone changes which can lead to weight gain.
- Stress and anxiety making you binge eat – This makes us crave comfort food, which is usually junk food. Meditation and yoga can help overcome this and lead to a healthier lifestyle.
- Not drinking enough water – Being thirsty can feel the same as being hungry. Water has zero calories so make sure you don’t replace it with other beverages such as carbonated drinks.
- Not eating enough protein and fiber – Protein and fiber can boost your metabolism and make you feel fuller longer.
Eating too many healthy fats – Too much of these such as avocado, coconut oil, and olive oil are bad because even though they’re considered healthy, they have high-calorie content. - Not eating enough fruits and vegetables – These contain very minimal calories and are essential due to the nutrients they provide. Don’t forget to incorporate these into your diet somehow.
These are just some of the few things we do every day that contributes to weight gain. If we can slowly cut them out, we’ll eventually find our way to a fit and healthy lifestyle.
The Best 5 Tips for Weight Loss at Home
Weight loss foods and drinks
Certain foods can make you lose more weight than others. These foods are usually nutrient-rich and have lots of protein and fiber content.
Make sure you incorporate the following in your diet:
- Eggs
- Pulses (lentils, peas)
- Yogurt
- Cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, etc.)
- Baked, boiled or grilled foods instead of fried
- Berries
- Green Tea
- Citrus
Highly recommended food combos:
- Oatmeal and walnuts (breakfast)
- Bean and vegetable soup (lunch/dinner)
- Green tea and lemon
Sticking to these foods will form what is called a low calorie-density diet which is something that is known for its weight-loss ability. Studies have shown that adults who indulge in this method see a dip in their BMI compared to ones that don’t.
Exercising
Exercising plays a key role in weight loss as you tend to lose a lot of calories no matter which physical exercise you indulge in.
Around 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise should be done weekly for good results, according to scientists. This means at least 30 minutes of physical activity a day for 5 days of the week.
Both cardiovascular training (cardio) and resistance training is advised. People who take up high-intensity interval training (HIIT) are shown to have the best results as in this method more calories are lost in a lesser duration of time.
A very successful way of keeping track of diet and exercise can be through an online food tracker or journal, there are numerous apps for these reasons which should be utilized for maximum efficiency.
Intermittent Fasting
This refers to regular short-term fasting techniques and finishing off meals during a shorter time duration during the day.
Be careful to note that this method is not suitable for everyone.
Some methods of fasting are:
• Alternate-day fasting – Here make sure you only fast on alternate days and eat normally on non-fasting days.
• The 5:2 diet – Fast on 2 out of every 7 days. On fasting days eat 500-600 calories.
• The 16/8 method: Fast for 16 hours and eat only during an 8-hour window.
It is best to adopt a healthy eating pattern on non-fasting days and to avoid over-eating.
Manage Stress Levels
Some of the best methods to manage stress levels are yoga and meditation, spending time outdoors doing relaxing activities such as gardening or walking, breathing and any other relaxation therapy that might apply to you such as art, dance, and music.
It is important to keep check of our stress because although stress causes the release of hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol which ultimately leads to a reduction of appetite, continuous stress for long periods causes the cortisol to accumulate which eventually leads to increase in appetite.
Reduce sugar and carbohydrate intake
It is important to be mindful of our eating habits. Often when we’re distracted, such as when watching tv and binge eating, we don’t know how much of what we are consuming.
Some ways to overcome this habit formed due to our busy lifestyles is sitting down when eating at a table or avoiding distractions when eating, or eating slowly. It is mostly during this time that we consume sugar and carbohydrates, the two food items that will not guarantee weight loss.
Sugar filled items such as carbonated drinks and carbohydrates such as rice, bread, and pasta are some of the main reasons that people keep gaining weight without even being aware of it.
Since these foods can digest quickly, you’ll be hungry quickly and consume more. This causes glucose production, which leads to the storage of fat in the adipose tissue.
Conclusion
We can now see that weight loss at home is as simple as making a few changes to our lifestyle.
So, next time you’re worried that you’ll never lose weight even though you feel like you’ve tried every form of cardio and exercise, remember that it can be the small things such as stress levels, not getting enough sleep or excess carbohydrate intake that is hampering your process.
The best way to achieve these things is to make a long term goal by recording what you have done in either a journal or app that reminds you and shows you every day the progress you’ve made and the long journey of wellness that you’ve decided for yourself.
Remember that great things don’t happen in a single day, you need to have patience and wait for it, and in the end, you will get what you worked for!
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