Dieting isn't always the best approach to achieving your health goals. I said what I said and meant it too. In fact, dieting may be doing you more harm than good. That's why I'm here to explain the real reason why dieting isn't working for you, and to also offer you better ways to help you eat healthier, find time for exercise, and live a healthier life. So, if you're ready to make a change and take control of your health, keep reading.
Why Diets Don't Work (From A Nutritionist)
First, let's get some real talk happening here, diets just don't work. Yes, I've tried them. I also write them, as a nutritionist and practitioner, but the hard truth is 99% of the time, dieting sets you up to fail. It might not be right away, and yes you may see some success, but over the long term, dieting is the fastest way to ruin your health. Facts.
So what do you do it, if you don't diet? Great question! If you're not seeing results despite your efforts, it could be because the restrictions aren't suited for your body or its unique needs. It could be that its just the wrong approach for your desired goal. If you're not eating enough, your body may have gone into starvation mode, slowing down your metabolism and making it 10x harder to lose weight. Calorie restrictions, carb counting, and the avoidance of entire food groups, could all be causing more dramas than if you just ate healthier and exercised more.
So, let me share with you some very simple, but high effective ways from a Nutritionist, to ditch the diet and just refocus you attention on the healthy habits that will bring about a shift in both body weight and how you feel every day.
How To Lose Weight Fast Without Dieting
Breakfast Matters: always start your day with a healthy, wholefood breakfast that includes plenty of protein and dietary fibre, and a smaller amount of healthy fats. This will help you keep full, feel satisfied throughout the morning, and avoid that mid-morning crash. If you struggle to eat in the morning, have a small protein-based snack such as one homemade bliss balls, a hard-boiled egg, or a small shooter-sized portion of a protein shake.
Focus On Lots Of Produce
Aim to eat at least 5-7 servings of high-fibre fruits and vegetables each day. If you're struggling to fit them in, try adding them to smoothies, sauces, soups, or salads. Some great examples are avocados, beans, berries, broccoli, capsicums, celery, figs, all types of dark, leafy greens, lentils, or pineapple.
Go Wholefood Based
You really can't go wrong by eating more wholefoods. These are foods that are as natural as possible, plucked from the ground, bush, tree, or the ocean and farm. Wholefoods aren't processed in any way, other than to clean them up a bit or cook them in your kitchen. Add more wholefoods into your diet, such as whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds. These foods are rich in fiber, vitamins, and minerals and will help keep you full and satisfied. Steer clear of any and all refined gains, processed foods and sugary drinks, which directly contribute to weight gain and other health problems.
Small Burst Exercise
Prioritise and make time for exercise, even if it's just a short walk or a few minutes of stretching. Exercise helps boost your metabolism, reduce stress, and improve your overall health. Small burst exercise is a highly effective way to trim down quickly and is easy to fit into even the busiest of days. A 2-minute race up and down the stairs, jumping jacks beside your desk, squats while doing the laundry or a few leg swings while cooking all add up - and quickly. If you practiced this a few times a day within a few short weeks, you'd see a tremendous difference in how you look and feel. Check out my fitness freebies here.
Make Sleep A Priority
Aim for at least 7-8 hours of sleep each night to help regulate your hormones and support healthy weight loss. This is especially true for women's bodies. Your hormonal system, and any imbalances, dictate how easily you can slim down, maintain a base weight or plump up. So, keeping your hormones in check, is a great way to support natural weight balance.
Sleep also regulates your appetite. Even just one night of missed sleep can wreck havoc on your hunger the next day. So, if you're a new mum, are constantly woken up by feedings or littlies, a shift worker or struggle to get a good night's sleep, expect to feel peckish. A lot.
Drink 3 Litres Of Water
If you did nothing else but drank more water, you'd notice a big shift. Not just in your appetite, but also in your energy, your mood, cognitive function, and even your body weight. Keeping hydrated also helps to promote healthy digestion and good gut health.
In many cases, when you reach for a snack as a pick-me-up, you're not actually experiencing hunger but thirst. So, a fantastic health habit to get into it to have a glass of water before ever reaching for a snack or latte. You can enjoy hot, warm or iced water, infuse it with with fresh fruits or herbs, or try herbal teas to help curb unnecessary snacking. Having a herbal tea 20-minutes before main meals, is a great way to help reduce your appetite naturally and improve you water intake.
Practice Mindful Eating
Learning to pay attention to your hunger and fullness cues is an act of mindful eating that can help you better manage your weight and food intake. If you tend overeat, snack a lot from stress or just want to lose weight, then becoming more mindful is a loving way to do it.
Mindful eating is all about being more present in the moment and really dialing in to your body's needs. And let's face it, who doesn't want to be more loving to themselves, right? If you turn to food when you're stressed, then becoming more mindful will help you break those habits. Start first by accessing if you are in fact truly hungry or not. If you believe that you are, then really savouring the food you choose. Hopefully, its wholefoods and not a quick sugar fix. Notice how the food makes you feel. If you need a little extra help, there are plenty of resources on emotional eating and mindfulness on this blog to guide you on your mindful eating journey.
Dieting isn't always the best approach to achieving your health goals. By making small changes to your food choice and overall lifestyle like eating a healthy breakfast, choosing more wholefoods, and making time for exercise, you can and will achieve your health goals and a healthier, happier you!
Healthy + happiness,
Emma Lisa xx
HEALTH & NUTRITION PRACTITIONER
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