Meal Prep is KEY!
10 Tips to Make Weight Loss Easier
1. Tweak your grocery list.
Don’t?keep things in the house?that tempt you. For example, I cannot buy big bags of chips, I will literally sit down and eat THE?ENTIRE BAG in one sitting so I just don’t buy them because I cannot have just one ?
2. Prep meals in advance.
People tend to eat much healthier and take in fewer calories when they eat their meals at home. When you?re the chef, you control what ingredients are used and?how big your portions are?? not to mention you probably won?t start off your home-cooked meal with a massive plate of nachos.
But when you?re too tired to cook, it can be?tempting to just grab takeout?on the way home or make a ?meal? out of potato chips. (Onion dip counts as a veggie? right? No?)
That?s where?meal prep can set you up for success?? by cooking a week?s worth of healthy food in advance, you?ll have an easier time sticking to your plan when your busy schedule gets in the way. Keeping healthy, pre-made meals in the fridge makes it a lot easier to resist filling up on junk.
3. Downsize your serving ware.
4. Rethink your color palette
Believe it or not, the color of your plates may affect how much you eat ? researchers found that people served themselves 30 percent more food when their?plate color matched the food?(for example, spaghetti and meatballs on a red plate).
That doesn?t mean you need to stock plates in every color of the rainbow, but you may want to try switching to green plates (to eat more veggies) or blue ones (since blue really doesn?t match?anything). Plus, the calming colors may help you slow down, savor your food, and notice you?re getting full?before?you?re?overstuffed.
A clean kitchen will help you want to cook and prep your food. If everything is a mess you are WAY more likely to just say ‘forget it’ and get pizza.
6. Keep fruit on the counter.
Research has shown that people who keep?fresh fruit on the counter?? and only fresh fruit ? typically had lower BMIs than those who didn?t. On one hand, this could be a chicken-or-egg situation ? does the fruit bowl actually help people lose weight, or do healthy eaters just like to keep their fruits within reach?
7. Make mindless snacking difficult.
You know that awkward back corner of the cabinet, or that top shelf you can?t quite reach? Store trigger foods there. While the best bet is to resist buying those foods in the first place, at least it?s harder to nibble mindlessly if you need to climb or crawl to get to them.
8. Have designated zones for eating…?
?and?only?for eating. If you have a bowl of cereal in front of the computer, or scarf down an energy bar on your commute to work, you probably aren?t?eating mindfully. You need to sit down and think about what you are eating AND enjoy it!
9. Make your bedroom sleep-friendly.
Sleep is?so?important when you?re?trying to lose weight. When you don?t get enough zzz?s, your?hunger?and?fullness?hormones get out of whack, and you?re more likely to reach for?calorie-laden snacks.
Set up your bedroom for?a good night?s sleep: Invest in?comfy sheets?and a?supportive pillow, use calming?rose or lavender scents, and resist the urge to check your phone in bed (the?blue light emitted by electronics?can be disturbing).
Just plan ahead so you know how you?ll handle temptation. At the office, for example,?stash healthy snacks in your desk?so you?re not tempted to cruise past the candy bowl every 10 minutes.
You won?t always be able to control your environment, but if you change what you can, you won?t have to rely on willpower so often ? and that means you?ll have plenty to spare when you?re?not?in your weight-loss comfort zone.
Eventually those healthy choices will become second nature ? but in the meantime, check out the next chapter for the best strategies to help you lose weight.