Weight loss can be a struggle for many people and popular shows like the Biggest Loser give us an idea how much of an issue weight is, here in the United States. We all know that a healthy diet and exercise would go a long way to reaching a healthy weight. But I also know that losing weight is one of the most difficult things anyone can do, and maintaining it can be even more difficult. So, the following tips are only meant to act as a guideline for weight loss and general good health. Here are 10 tips to help with weight loss and maintenance.
1. Increase your fiber
It’s difficult to grasp, how something that actually slows digestion can also help to support healthy weight loss, but that is just the case with fiber. Fiber is very difficult for the digestive system to breakdown, but it tries none-the-less! In the process of trying to break down these hard to breakdown plant fibers, digestion slows. Fiber also slows the rate at which these sugars are being released into the bloodstream. This prevents spikes in blood glucose as well as large bursts of insulin, which inevitably will cause us to store fat. Because fiber slows things down a little, it helps us stave off hunger, leaving us feeling full longer, an added bonus to anyone looking to lose weight. High fiber diets include plenty of fruits, vegetables, legumes, beans, and whole grain products Aim to get anywhere from 25-35 g of fiber/day. Increase fiber slowly and be sure to increase your water intake at the same time to help things move.
2. Eat more protein
Protein, combined with exercise, has a number of weight related benefits. When getting adequate protein, you maintain lean body mass while still shedding fat. You also build muscle faster because protein is a necessary building block for muscle. You may have heard that one pound of muscle burns 70 times more calories at rest than 1 pound of fat. So more muscle, more weight loss. (Make sure you are doing muscle building exercise: More on that later). Some healthy protein choices are fish and chicken, beans, and tofu. Whey protein in your morning smoothie is an easy and tasty way to start off a protein-rich day.
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