So you’ve set out on a weight loss journey and you need help figuring out where to start. First ,I believe it’s important to start by   understanding the basis of weight loss and gain. Simply put it’s all about calories; they are units of energy. Everything we eat has calories, and the energy they provide allows us to carry on with our daily activities.  This is good but too much of a good thing is always bad; so when we eat more calories than we burn, we gain weight. We gain calories from eating food, we burn calories from movement or physical activity. The more we move the more we burn. The basic rule is if we burn more calories than we eat, we lose weight. So how do we use this to help in weight loss?

Increase physical activity – The more you move, the more calories you burn. You need to focus on moving. Take every opportunity to move whether it’s walking around the office every 30 to 45 minutes or choosing the stairs over the elevator or escalator. These little choices may seem insignificant but will matter in the long run.  

Add more greens to your diet – Greens are very low in calories, so you can eat a lot of greens without fearing overdoing it on the calories. According to healthline.com 11 ounces or 300 grams of cucumbers is approximately 45 calories. I like to exaggerate to make my point, so 1kg or 2.2 pounds of cucumbers is only about 153 calories. I am not telling you to eat 2 pounds of cucumbers but I’m sure you get the point.

Choose foods high in protein – Foods high in protein are more satiating, which means you won’t get hungry soon after you eat. The longer you’re full the less you end up eating and the less you have to make “good” decisions and fight cravings. Protein also has muscle-building, fat-burning, and bone-strengthening benefits so it’s a win/win.

Drink more water – Water has too many benefits to ignore, it’s usually free, and most of us don’t drink nearly enough. According to Harvard Health Publishing, water helps with : 

• Transportation of nutrients and oxygen to cells.
• Digestion
•  Normalizing body temperature
• Preventing constipation

Water can also help with satiation according to the National Library of Medicine. So drink more water people.

 Reduce consumption of junk food –  junk food is tasty but high in calories and low in actual nutritional content. This is the exact opposite of veggies. 50 grams of Lay’s original potato chips is 280 calories. A chocolate glazed donut according to Tim Hortons should contain 190 calories. So you might eat this and be hungry in a few hours and have to eat again.  It just isn’t conducive to the weight loss goal. I am not saying you have to swear off them forever but lowering your intake or staying away from them as much as you can will  go a long way.

These steps are some small things you can do to help start your body transformation. They may seem insignificant but they can go a long way to helping accomplish your weight loss goals.

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