Lots of people would like to lose weight but don’t always know how to go about it. Often we find ourselves on the internet searching sites to find out more but we are confronted by a mass of information that is hard to decipher. So how do you lose weight without putting you health in danger?
Please note: If you would like to lose weight healthily we would advise you to seek advice from a food specialist. They can give you recommendations and follow your progress.
Information problems
If you would like to lose weight you often turn Google. “How to lose weight” is one of the top five questions this search engine gets asked. Once you are on the internet you realise the impressive amount of information that is available.
Often the information found on the web are false or wrong. At least this is what an American study revealed in 2014. Lots of sites are paid or directed by pharmaceutical companies that offer slimming methods.
Fashion effects can also be a problem. The majority of diets that are launched on the internet become viral thanks to bloggers and influencers. This method can sometimes be good and other times be bad, as there is a growing trend among a good part of the population. However it can have some bad consequences as these diets claim that you will lose a lot of weight. However for a balanced diet weight loss should really be between 500 g and 1 kg per week. Other than that the diet deprives your body too much and risks impacting your health.
1/ Always have a light snacks on you
Having a light meal on hand is an effective way to not deprive yourself of food as well as to not eat sugary foods. You light snacks shouldn’t be too salty, sugary or fatty.
If you have biscuits or sweets on hand you will then be more likely to have one when you think about one. However your should replace these unhealthy snacks with something healthier like a piece of fruit, almonds, yogurts or even dried seaweed for something a little savoury.
2/ Eat more fruit and vegetables and stop eating processed foods
According to a systematic British journal we should be eating more fruit and vegetables. The authors of the study confirmed that eating vegetables helped your body to stay healthy and for you to stay a healthy weight.
Whether you are following a constrictive diet or not it is often difficult to keep your weight balance. Eating a balanced diet is a good solution, according to these authors, as it is “unlikely to lead to short-term weight gain and could play a role in maintaining or losing weight”.
Lastly, try and prevent yourself from eating processed foods whether it is ready made meals, or noodle soups. These products are filled with added sugars and fatty products. It would be a shame to waste all your efforts just for that.
You can also read: Ultra-processed and frozen foods: the industry causing cancer
3/ Eat less carbohydrates and eat more fibre
Although carbohydrates are a major source of food in our diet you shouldn’t eat too much carbohydrates if you want to be in good health. Reduce the amount of carbohydrate that you eat so as to avoid increasing the amount of supplementary sugar ingested.
Reduce you consumption of :
- White rice;
- White bread;
- Plain flour;
- Added sugars;
- Sweet baking ;
- Some cereals ;
- Pasta.
Slightly increasing the amount of fibres in our diet is also a good way to keep your weight in check after being on a diet or if you are looking to lose weight. Fibers are effectively able to make us feel fuller more quickly. This is great if you have just completed a diet as we can often eat as we don’t realise we are full.
4/ Avoid added sugars
Sucrose is an essential element for our body but it is not the case for all types of sugars. Added sugars or the sugars that we don’t choose to eat and are not essential. Industries add these sugars to dishes to improve their taste.
According to the National Cancer Institute we eat on average 16.8 teaspoons of sugar per day. Reducing this amount of sugar could do nothing but good for our body.
5/ Stay hydrated and don’t have sugary drinks
Water has no calories, sugar or fat. In short it is a drink that our body need and it has always been the case. However we tend not to drink as much as we should. Remember if you feel hungry perhaps you need a drink instead of a snack.
It is best to avoid sugary drinks and instead drink clear, fresh water. Avoiding fizzy drinks but replacing them with water allows you to reduce your daily consumption of sugar and calories.
What is more, Spanish researchers have analysed bodies of research published between 1990 and 2012. This study has shown that in contract to common perceptions, drinking coffee is not harmful. Of course you shouldn’t drink too much coffee like for everything that we eat and drink. However drinking black coffee without sugar could have a positive effect on our body and especially carbohydrate transformation.
You can also read: Drink coffee for a longer life!
6/ Habits that you should adopt
Some habit can help you lose weight or help you to keep in shape.
A food diary in which you write down all your meals and snacks or a calorie counter are some methods that can help you watch how much you are eating.
Small plates is another piece of advice that is often given to people on a diet. In reality this method is only effective if you try and reduce the amount you consume otherwise this theory will change nothing. If you eat big quantities on a small plate it won’t make any difference to your weight.
It is also important that you eat slowly. When you eat slowly we can reduce the amount of calories that we eat. A Japanese study has shown that “eating quickly is positively associate to weight gain”, as researchers stated.
Lastly, remember that sleep and exercise are two important things that can help keep our weight in check. You need to therefore take care of your body and also make sure that your get enough rest.
