Can I Lose Weight with Diet Alone? and 5 Steps to Setting Successful Weight Loss Goals
Lose Weight with Diet Alone? and Weight Loss Goals
The short answer is yes, you can lose weight with diet alone. The truth is, that diet is the main determining factor in whether or not you will lose weight. Many people think they need to devote hours a day to exercising if they want to lose weight, but the truth is that if you want real, lasting weight loss, all you need to do is change your diet.
Here are some small diet changes that anyone can make to start losing weight without making any other changes:
1. Cut Out Soda
Even drinking just one can of soda a day can increase your chances of being overweight by up to 65 percent, according to a study done by the American Diabetic Association. By simply cutting out the soda that you’re drinking and replacing it with unsweetened green tea or plain water, you can lose weight without even trying, and save money on sodas to boot.
2. Eat More Protein
You should be getting between 25 and 30 percent of your daily caloric intake from protein. The best way to make sure you’re doing that is to cut out half the carbs on your plate and replace them with a lean source of protein. Getting more protein in your diet will help you feel fuller for longer so you won’t need to eat as much at your next meal.
3. Eat on a Schedule
When you set up an eating schedule for yourself, you’re much less likely to over-eat during meals because you’ll be eating before you get too hungry. The best schedule to set up is 5 – 6 smaller meals spread out throughout the day, about 2 – 3 hours apart. Set alarms on your phone if you need to, and you’ll soon find yourself losing weight without trying.
4. Snack Right
When you’re looking for something to snack on, it’s usually junk foods that are easiest to grab, so keep yourself from falling into this temptation by providing plenty of healthy snacks for yourself. Keep fresh fruit like apples, bananas, and oranges on the counter where you can see them, and bagged veggies or yogurt at eye level in the fridge where they’re easy to see and take with you.
5. Quit Pre-Eating
Many people fall into the trap of eating before they actually eat, especially if they’re cooking a big meal and frequently taste test it as they go. These little tastes add up to hundreds of extra calories that you’re not counting since they’re not in your actual meal. To avoid pre-eating, have a big glass of water on hand while cooking or baking and drink that instead of sampling your food before dinner.
6. Satisfy Your Cravings
Often, when you have a craving for something, it can be hard to know exactly what you want, so you end up eating a bunch of things until you find something that finally satisfies it. Take a few moments to identify what exactly you’re craving, then look for a healthy version of that to satisfy you. Most cravings fall into one or two of the following categories: sweet, salty, crunchy, or creamy.
If you want to be successful in your weight loss, the first thing you have to do is set realistic goals that will help you keep your weight loss on track and keep you motivated. However, if you set unrealistic goals that you’re not able to reach, it will quickly become discouraging and you may find yourself giving up long before you reach your goal.
So, here are 5 steps to setting successful weight loss goals.
1. Make Your Primary Goal be Health
When your overall goal is to live a healthier life, it’ll be a lot easier to feel successful as you work to make better eating choices every day. This will also help you stay motivated since you can evaluate yourself at the end of the day to determine what you can to better the next day to keep reaching your goal of being healthier.
2. Do Some Research
Before you set your main goal, you’ll want to spend a bit of time doing research to determine what a realistic goal is for you. Ask other people who have already lost weight how long it took them to help you determine how much you can expect to lose and how long it might take you. Then, you will be able to set up a realistic goal for your own weight loss.
3. Set Your “Big” Goal
This is your total weight loss goal and could take you several years to reach. However, it’s important to have this big goal so you know what your target weight loss is. Add a timeline into your goal, whether it’s one year, two years, or five years. It’s important to give yourself plenty of time to reach that goal so that you don’t feel rushed, but also keep it a short enough time to keep you focused and on track.
4. Set Up Milestones
These are little goals along the way that will help you reach your big goal. You’ll want to set these up the same way you set up your big goal: after doing some research and with a timeline. These will be spread out every month, every few months, or even every year.
What’s most important to keep in mind when setting up these goals is that weight loss is typically easier at the beginning and then takes longer as your body’s metabolism changes. So, you may be able to lose 10 pounds in the first month, but will need 3 months to lose the last 5 pounds.
5. Set Up Rewards
For reaching your big goal, set up a big reward, whether it’s buying your dream car or going on your dream vacation. Getting to your ideal body weight and to a point where you can live a healthier life is a big deal and should be celebrated, so don’t be afraid to go all-out.
For your smaller milestones, these should also be celebrated, but in smaller ways. Just make sure that the rewards you set up are activities or anything non-food related, since rewarding yourself by eating junk food contradicts the whole point of a healthy lifestyle!
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