The biggest thing that I have learned is that you are as strong as you want to be. I've read a lot of health and fitness blogs over the past year, and I see a lot of people trying fad diets, wanting to shed pounds fast, and thinking only about the scale, and not about health. One of my best friends is a size 0, 5'5' and is the healthiest person I know. And yet she weighs 140lbs (looking at her you'd think she was barely 110lbs). She runs marathons, is strong, muscular and healthy. Don't base everything on the scale, but rather on your ability to be fit. That is not to say that numbers don't matter, but there are a battery of different scales to look at. For the average person your BMI is far more important than your weight (although this scale doesn't work well for the extremely athletic or muscular). Don't weight yourself every day, especially if you're trying to lose weight. Weigh yourself at most once a week (did you know the average adult human body can fluctuate about 2-3 lbs in a given day!!) in order to see actual change. Its also important to weight yourself at the same time every day, after the same activities (such as when you first wake up, or when you get home at the end of the day) so you have the same amount of food or water in your system.
I've also learned a lot about eating the right way too. How you feel is all about what you put in. We buy premium fuel for our nice cars, choosing that over plain old "regular" gas, and yet don't bat an eye when we shove fried food down our throats. How on earth can our bodies work at maximum efficiency and be pristine if we put nothing but garbage into them?
Lastly, learn to embrace yourself, be proud of what you have accomplished and stay motivated. Its all worth it in the end.
Here's my tips from the last year:
- Drink lots of water, and I mean lots of water. I usually drink between 3 and 5 litres a day. Yes this means I am constantly going to the bathroom, but we bathe the outsides of our bodies, so why not the insides of us too?
- Health isn't necessarily about pounds, and weight and pant size, but rather about being active, eating well and feeling healthy.
- You don't need a fancy cleanse, or diet to be healthy and shed a few pounds. I've come across everything from "The Cookie Diet" , to a guy drinking only beer and eating nothing, to a guy blogging about trying to only eat cereal for a year, to living only on lemonade mixed with cayenne pepper and maple syrup. While you might feel really awesome for about three days, our bodies need real food and real nutrients to be healthy, and no one can survive on these things forever!
- Don't limit yourself too much, but don't let yourself cheat too often either. My trick was to eat real meals, and real food. The less packaging the better, if its fresh, and home prepared, its probably pretty healthy, even if its a hamburger! If you know what goes into your food, you can control it, portion it, and make sure its good for you!
- You have to earn it! Sure you can drop 10 pounds in 10 days by starving yourself, but is that really healthy? And really what you want? Fad diets and crazy weight loss plans are no way to stick to things and get healthy.
- Try to cut out as much processing as possible. Limit pre-packaged & frozen meals (yes even those Lean Meals), as they are usually packed with salt, artificial flavours, colours and sugars.
P.S. One thing I wish I had done was take a proper "before" picture of myself. I never did because I didn't like how my body looked, but I sincerely wish I had something tangible to compare to now.
-J
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