We eat as if there is “no tomorrow” during the end of the year with the excuse that it is the “Holiday Season.” Then comes January with the “hunger games”, where we starve ourselves with three boiled vegetable to lose* all the weight.
It used to be my life. I would call them black periods and sparkling periods. My sparkling periods would be eating with excess; and my black periods would be doing diets where I almost lost the will to live.
Today I learned something, we don’t need to starve or scarify tasty food to lose* weight. We can follow few simple tips and tricks (of The Bon-Vivant Girl lifestyle) and get to our ideal weight. These points are not made for a two-day diet, but a lifelong health.
1. Eat A Bit Of Everything
I don’t believe in cutting any food group from my diet, I believe in eating a bit of everything in small quantities. Your body needs animal protein as much as vegetables. You need to know how to balance.
Instead of making researchers to figure out what you should eat more, I have a little trick. It is to have always my vegetable quantity twice as much as my protein or carb quantity. I don’t feel deprived and it helps me lose* weight without banning anything.
2. Don’t Cut, But Add Food To Your Diet
It is common sense to not eat some food if we want to lose* weight and cutting them from our diet makes us crave them. Let’s try a different approach. The tip is instead of cutting the “bad foods”, increase* and prioritize the “good foods”.
Good food is all the food that are fresh, not refined from their original state. Bad foods are the junk food and the processed food.
For example, when you crave sweet, before attacking your candy, eat some fruits and then see if you’re still hungry. You will see that with time the candy will be less appealing.
3. Reduce* The Salt, But Spice Up Your Dishes
Reduce* The Salt
The American Heart Association recommends limiting the daily sodium intake to 1500mg (0.75 teaspoons) with an upper limit of 2,300 mg (1 teaspoon).
The trick is to replace the salt with spices and herbs.
It will avoid the water retention and your dishes will taste better. With time you will discover your favorite ones, you can start with basic ones like mint and basil for your salads or vegetables; or fresh thyme and rosemary for your proteins.
4. Limit Sugar
Dr Mark Hyman has said that sugar is 8 times as addictive as cocaine and what’s interesting is while cocaine and heroin activate only one spot for pleasure in the brain sugar lights up the brain like a pinball machine.
And yet, there is an ad for a sugary product wherever we look, and we can buy it everywhere. These empty calories are bad for your health and waistline. Without giving up completely, you can increase* natural sugars and decrease* the bad ones. Add fruits in your diet and dark chocolate. Avoid sodas and opt for homemade pastries.
5. Drink Water
Stay away from sodas, especially the ones that are advertised as zero calories. They are full of sugar. Water helps our skin be clearer and our kidneys function properly, and drinking water makes us feel fuller, therefore we eat less.
Sometimes when we think we are hungry, it is just that we are thirsty. That is one of the reasons why I suggest that you drink a glass of water if a craving strikes.
The only time you shouldn’t drink water is during your meal as our stomachs need to keep a certain acidity level, which helps with digestion. When we drink water during a meal, it slows the process and can cause bloating and poor digestion.
6. Bake Your Food Instead Of Frying
Bake Your Food Instead Of Frying
Instead of dropping your food in a fryer, try baking them and you’ll be surprised to find a similar result. You can spread them on a baking sheet, drizzle it with quality olive oil and your favorite spices.
Bake them on high temperature (450 degrees). Just don’t forget to flip the veggies or potatoes so they are crispy on both sides!
7. Avoid Processed Food
Jamie Oliver says: Real food doesn’t have ingredients; real food is ingredients.
I agree with him, if you want to be healthy and lose* weight, you should avoid the processed food. Processed food is anything that has been modified from its original state.
You don’t need to go that far, avoid eating anything that has more than 5 ingredients or ingredients that you cannot pronounce. That would save you from eating synthetic and fake food, and make you lose* weight.
8. Eat Wholegrains Instead Of Unrefined
White pasta, rice and bread are what we eat normally and we think they are natural. Unfortunately, they are processed, refined and modified from their original state. Always try to eat with whole grains.
As we rarely eat them alone, we always add a spread, or s sauce, we can substitute the white ones with the natural ones without seeing a difference. This will help to eat healthier and weight loss*.
9. Swap Some Naughty Ingredients With Some Healthy Ones
Some Healthy Ones
This is an old trick but works all the time. Instead of cutting all the food that you love, why don’t you make some smart swaps? Few examples
Swap beef with fish: if you eat beef few times a week, try to replace it with fish at least one of the meals. You will save in calories and in fat.
Swap butter with avocado: when you bake substitute half the amount of butter with mashed avocado. The trick works when you want to spread on a toast as well. You will reduce* the calories and eat healthy fats. Just to give you a number, 2 tablespoons of avocado has 50 calories, 2 tablespoons of butter has 200 calories…
Swap chips with popcorn: if you opt for air popped popcorns, you will still satisfy your craving but consume less calories and fat.
There are so many swaps and even though they seem small, they make a big difference.
10. Cook More
You are the only one who knows what you think is tasty and what isn’t. Instead of eating diet food that you don’t like, why don’t you cut the middle man and cook for yourself? You don’t need to be a chef to be able to cook.
You can buy all your fresh ingredients already cut and packaged. Your only task is to put them together with the herbs and condiments that you love.
For the people a bit more experienced with cooking, I have a trick for light cooking. When I find a recipe that makes me hungry – even if it not light at all -, I try it. The first time, I use exactly the same ingredients that it is written.
My trick is to redo the same recipe with lighter ingredients. I substitute some, and avoid some others. As a result, I have some tasty light dishes.
11. Move Your Body
To lose* weight and be healthy doesn’t only happen with the correct food. We need to also add some sort of workout. Besides helping us to be in a better shape and lose* weight, sleep better, be happier, exercising helps us to live longer.
Trying to lose* weight or not, our body needs some sort of exercise. The good news is you don’t need to go to the gym and sweat five days a week, you just need to find what you like as an activity and stick to it. It can be walking, dancing or even playing tennis with a friend.
Once you chose, what you need to do is to be constant and enjoy it. Sometimes working out with a friend or partner will motivate you. I always try to walk instead of taking a car, and vary my workout so I don’t get bored.
12. Do Everything With Love And A Smile
Do Everything With Love And A Smile
Although this is the last tip, it is the more important one. Whatever you eat, drink or do you should do it with love. The food will taste better, your life will be happier, and you will lose* weight without noticing it.
Read More: 6 Things To Consider When Choosing A Diet Plan
If you follow these tips, losing weight after the holidays won’t be too painful. I am not proposing you a magical diet, what I am proposing you a lifestyle. Losing weight should not be a punishment anymore, as enjoying eating with friends and family is not a bad thing.
We just need to know to take our time, and enjoy the process.
The real goal of these tips and tricks is to fuse both black and sparkle periods and have a happy and healthy life. (In other words follow the Bon-Vivant Girl philosophy )
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