Tag: “ways to lose weight

How Water Helps You Lose Weight

2 Comments

Everyone tells you to drink more water and how you could die in a short time without it! I know what you’re thinking: “blah blah blah!” Boring, right? Hang on. It really does play a key part in weight loss. Let me explain.

Now before you start chugging down a couple gallons of water, hear me out! You don’t need that much.

Water does help you lose weight! Here’s how:

  • Two glasses of water prior to a meal helped middle aged and older adults feel full longer, research studies found.
  • Cuts out a ton of calories when you replace your regular beverage with water!
  • Guess what? A hydrated body looks leaner. Why? Because when you’re dehydrated, you retain water. Yikes!
  • I bet the magazine rack has at least one headline screaming “Rev up your metabolism with this one trick!” Well, here’s a good one. Just drink enough and your body will be able to metabolize properly. When you’re dehydrated, your metabolism may slow down. We all know what that means for weight loss!

So how much water should you be drinking?

It depends.  The suggested guidelines for water consumption used to be sixty-four ounces per day.  While it is still a good amount of water for some, others may need more. Here are some guidelines to help you decide:

Drink more when you are in situations where your body loses water:

  • in warmer climates,
  • during more intense exercise,
  • at high altitudes.

Try to be more aware of your water intake:

  • if you’re the type of person who usually doesn’t notice thirst; or
  • when you are very busy and likely to forget to drink.
  • If you talk for a living.  Water is lost though saliva.
How do you know when you’re drinking enough water?
  • The best way to tell if you are hydrated is the color of your urine.  Clear to pale yellow is ideal. Yellow to dark yellow means you need water, and if it looks like tea or beer you are dehydrated!  Supplements can also cause urine to be dark yellow. So keep that in consideration.
  • Start by drinking a half ounce for each pound of your body weight.  For example, if you weigh 150 pounds, drink seventy-five ounces of water throughout the day.
  • Avoid allowing yourself to get “thirsty”.  If you are getting a thirst signal then the body is already too low on water!

Five tips to increase your fluid intake:

1) Have a water bottle in your car, at your desk, or in your bag, and sip it throughout the day.

2) Eat lots of fruits and vegetables!

(3) Replace soda with sparking water.  If you like sparkling water, consider getting an in home soda machine. They take up very little counter space. You also save money and there are less bottles to recycle. This helped my husband Matthew go from not liking water to drinking plenty of it!

4) Add fruit or cucumber to your water for flavor.

5) Have water with every meal.

At first it may seem like you have to go to the bathroom a lot. This is normal when you up your water consumption. It is not uncommon to have to use the restroom every hour.

If you sit at a desk, this will encourage you to get up and move every hour. It also allows you to monitor your progress!

Here is a fun recipe for Raspberry water courtesy of Face Magic in Albany, CA.

Raspberry Water

  • 1 Pitcher of Water
  • 1 bag of Frozen Organic Raspberries
  • Place the raspberries in the water and allow it to turn the water a pinkish red color.  Pour in nice glasses and enjoy!

I hope this helps you with your weight loss and management program.  Please feel free to comment below or ask me a question.

I’m going to go get a glass of sparkling water!

Blessings!

Jennifer Ledford

 

 

Why Diets Fail!

Today’s article comes from deep within my heart!

Summer is practically here already.  This could be causing you or someone you know to be tempted to go on a crash diet.  Or, maybe even a “cleanse” of some kind (which is really a diet in disguise!).

Before you go down that path please consider the consequences.  Temporary, restrictive, diets have a 95% failure rate and can do more harm than good!

Have you ever tortured yourself on the latest fad diet simply to find yourself unsuccessful and frustrated?

Maybe you lost a bunch of weight only to gain it back again.  Even worse, you gained back more than you lost!

You are not alone.  As a personal trainer I have seen so much physical and psychological damage from dieting it makes me want to scream!

Some of the reasons diets fail you are:

  • Slows down your metabolism
  • Causes you to store fat not burn it
  • It’s unsustainable for most people’s lifestyle
  • When you stop starving yourself and go back to a normal calorie consumption you WILL gain weight
  • Lack of energy due to being hungry
  • Eliminates entire food groups and key nutrients
  • Can cause binge eating

Look, I get it.  You want to get thinner and you want it now.  Most of us do not want to wait the amount of time it takes to lose weight that statistically stays off for life.  The diet industry is counting on that and the marketing is very convincing!

It starts with a change in mindset.  The mindset that you are going to switch to healthy eating.  Portion control, cutting back extras, and meal planning are all considered healthy eating.  Not starvation diets or skipping meals entirely!

Last week I posted some tips on how to lose weight in the next 30 days for summer.  I decided to repost them in this article for your easy access.

1) Exercise almost every day!  If your schedule permits do one workout six days per week.  Try an interval workout 2-3 times per week and alternate with more moderate activity on the rest of the days.

Choose a fun activity on your off day like a moderate hike, swim, taking your kids or dog to the park, or a stretch and release workout.

If exercising six days per week seems overwhelming start 20 minutes per day 2-3 days per week .  You’ll still get better results than nothing at all!

2) Eat in!  Cook at home for the next 30 days and bring your lunch.  Use light recipes from sources like EatingWell, Cooking Light, and Health magazine.

3) Avoid liquid calories for the next 30 days!  Try substituting alcohol, sodas, and other higher calorie drinks with water.  Try adding lemon or cucumber for some variation.

Sounds extreme?  Cut down to half or even a quarter of what you usually drink.  You can always go back to your normal consumption if you want to.

4) Cut back on dessert!  Desserts are usually loaded with calories.  If you have a sweet tooth try substituting with fruit or one piece of dark chocolate.

Try this for the next 30 days and I know you will be pleasantly surprised.

Seems a bit overwhelming?  Pick as many things from above that you can realistically add to your schedule and implement them right away.    By being consistent you will begin to see results.

Give yourself credit for getting started and know that this is a long term plan for success!

Have any questions or dieting stories you’d like to share?  Please comment below.  I’d love to hear from you!

Blessings to you and yours!

Jennifer

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lose Weight Fast for Summer

Summer is around the corner and maybe you haven’t lost the weight that you vowed in January would be gone by now.

Rather than beating yourself up there’s no time like the present to kick it into high gear and get ready for that beach weather!

We all know that fad diets promising rapid weight loss have a 95% failure rate so I won’t even endorse that type of a program.  It’s not worth it to lose weight for a season just to have it return, or even worse gain more than you lost!

Below are some tips my clients have used successfully that you can use for the next 30 days to help you lose weight for summer.

There’s some bonus tips at the end to help you look your best when you don’t have much time to peel off the pounds.  So you want to read the entire article.

1) Exercise almost every day!  If your schedule permits do one workout six days per week.  Try an interval workout 2-3 times per week and alternate with more moderate activity on the rest of the days.

Choose a fun activity on your off day like a moderate hike, swim, taking your kids or dog to the park, or a stretch and release workout.

2) Eat in!  Cook at home for the next 30 days and bring your lunch.  Use light recipes from sources like EatingWell, Cooking Light, and Health magazine.

3) Avoid liquid calories for the next 30 days!  Try substituting alcohol, sodas, and other higher calorie drinks with water.  Try adding lemon or cucumber for some variation.

Sounds extreme?  Cut down to half or even a quarter of what you usually drink.  You can always go back to your normal consumption if you want to.

4) Cut back on dessert!  Desserts are usually loaded with calories.  If you have a sweet tooth try substituting with fruit or one piece of dark chocolate.

5) Wear the right clothes!  If you do not have a flattering summer wardrobe then go get one.  Buy a few pieces that look great on you and get a swim suit/trunks that you feel good in.

Go on line and research the best fit for your body type and the stores in your price range.

Get a really nice cover up for any areas you may be self conscious about.  This will allow you to feel less stressed and enjoy yourself.

6) Copy the movie stars!  If you are fair, consider a self-tanner or a professional spray tan before you hit the beach.  Tan skin shows off muscle tone creating a leaner appearance and can conceal cellulite as well!

Try this for the next 30 days and I know you will be pleasantly surprised.

Can’t even fathom doing all of the above?  Pick the things you can implement and avoid overwhelming yourself.

Sustainable weight loss without dieting is a journey and does not happen overnight. Give yourself credit for any progress you make before summer starts.

Above all, enjoy yourself this summer.  Never let the media tell you if you should be wearing a bathing suit or not.  Refuse to buy into that nonsense!

Please let me know if this has helped you in any way or if you have any questions on how to get swim suit ready!

Blessings to you and yours!

Jennifer