Ten Things You Can Start Today to Kickstart Your Weight-loss Journey
- Nov 17, 2020
- 7 min read
I’m using the word weight-loss very loosely - and maybe a little bit as a click bait.
I know 98% of the Lazy Girls and guys reading this are wanting something quick, fast, and free – emphasis on the free.
It might be 3am or 3pm, but I’ve sat where you’ve sat. I’ve scrolled endlessly on the internet for free and easy tips to lose weight. I’ve paid for the diet pills and – newsflash, they don’t work! So please, stop putting gunk in your body! I know you want easy, but here’s your first tip – it’s not going to be easy and it’s not going to be fast. It’s going to be slow and it’s going to suck. You’re going to fall off the wagon, just to jump back on and fall off again.
So why on earth did I create a blog titled “Lazy Girl’s Health Guide” if I’m going to just give you a bunch of work? I titled the blog “Lazy Girl’s Health Guide” because diet, health, wellness, gym, and everything in-between doesn’t need to be hard. If you take baby steps and forgive yourself when you mess up then it might actually be fun.
Here are ten things you can start right now to kickstart your health journey. Don't worry, I didn't click bait too hard - today, we are focusing on weight-loss.
First rule of weight-loss, ignore everything and anything anyone has ever told you and just listen to this single fact.
To lose weight, you must be in a calorie deficit.
That’s it. That’s all you need to know.
Simple, right?
There are hundreds of websites and apps that will help you calculate the correct calories you need to survive, gain weight or lose weight. I’ll create a blog post with some tips and tricks on that soon.
With that fact in mind, the ten things you can start today may aide with that calorie deficit or help get in tune with your body. Here they are!
1. Do Not Eat Out of the Bag!
This tip has saved me an upset stomach more times than I’d like to admit. I am notorious for grabbing a salt & vinegar bag of chips and running to my room to watch the next episode of The Resident. Before I know it, another life is saved and the bag is empty. Suddenly, I’m insanely stuffed and full of regret. So, here’s the hot tip; leave the bag in the kitchen and pour a handful (or two) into a small bowl.
Before you even think of finding the loop hole in this hack - a small bowl! Not the popcorn bowl you use for family movie night - nice try!
Don't worry, if you finish the bowl and want some more, pour some more in the bowl. However, if you’re like me, getting up off of the couch is much more work than it’s worth and I’m usually pretty satisfied anyway.
2. Drink More Water!
Geez! I know this one is annoying, trust me, I know! Its true though, water is your best friend. Nine times out of ten, I’m thirsty but my mind tricked me into thinking I’m hungry. It’s a real thing, Google it! I also find it incredibly helpful to drink a glass of water before my meals. This fills me up a tad bit but also stops me from scarfing down my food.
3. Read the Back of the Box!
This one goes hand in hand with the calorie deficit idea. When reading the box, you can see how much you’re actually eating and what you’re eating. It helps you to make smarter decisions and proportion your food accordingly.
4. Research!
My favorite way to research is Youtube and Tik Tok! Silly, yes! I love hearing from real people; which snacks they buy, what’s low calorie and working for them, recipes and more.
Take note, this tip is strictly for food suggestions and motivation. I strongly support other people sharing what works for them (obviously, it's what I'm doing right now) – but you need to take all of that advice with a grain of salt. What works for you might not work for someone else, so why would we think that what works for them will work for us? It’s silly.
This tip suggests you to watch some videos on what other people are loving so you can go to the store and buy it to try! One of the worst things about a health journey is eating the same foods over and over again. I don’t want to eat the same salad for lunch every day, but I wouldn’t mind eating six different salads throughout the week until I find my favorite!
One of my favorite recent tik tok finds is an iced protein coffee. Here are the ingredients I like to use.
This breakfast drink has been incredible for me! I find that when I make a low-calorie breakfast, I’m always hungry two hours later. With this drink, I’m full until lunch! I can sip on it all morning and I’m totally satisfied!
5. Use Smaller Plates!
Weird tip, maybe – but it fits hand in hand with leaving the chip bag in the kitchen. See, smaller plates trick you a bit – just like bigger plates do. When you have a big plate, you feel the need to fill it up. With small plates, less food is added to the plate. If you want more, you wait a few minutes for your body to digest, then get up and get some more. The saying; “your eyes are bigger than your stomach” is more true than you think!
6. Slow Down!
Slow it down, big time! You don’t need to shovel forkful after forkful into your mouth, no one is taking your food away and it’s not going to walk off of the plate. Relax, unwind, enjoy your food. If you find that you can’t slow down, be obnoxious about it. Place the fork down after every bite – yes, every single bite.
7. Eat Without Distraction!
This pertains to your main meals, as I know asking you to eat the popcorn in the other room with the movie on pause doesn’t make much sense. However, breakfast, lunch and dinner – try your hardest to be in the moment. Be in the moment means; off the phone and away from the screen. Enjoying lunch with a friend, dinner with a spouse, breakfast with the kids – this totally helps you be in the moment. The point is to not get stuck in the mindlessness of eating that phones and television can cause.
8. Stop with the Scale!
Put it away, out of sight out of mind! Here’s a little tip I learned from the Skinny Confidential Him & Her Podcast; weighing yourself every day can raise your Cortisol levels. What are Cortisol levels you may be asking – they’re your stress levels. With heightened stress comes the likely possibility of weight gain. So, put it away. If you’re tracking your weight-loss via scale, limit yourself to once a week or better yet, twice a month. Keep in mind, there are other ways to track your progress, like how your clothes fit or measuring your stomach, arms, legs and waist!
9. Clean Out Your Social Media!
Grab your phone, tablet or computer and open Instagram right now! If it applies, you’ll also want to open Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Tik Tok and whatever other app you may use on the regular. For many of us, Instagram is the rabbit hole we need to climb our mental health out of. We spend a lot of our free time on social media – we even get most of our information from social media.
With this being said, if you’re anything like me, when you get into your motivation moods, you check all of your Instagram influencer's profiles to get a workout idea and a breakfast recipe. But, if you’re also like me, on the bad days – you look at those influencers and wonder why you don’t look like them, dress like them, or do what they’re doing.
With your apps open, delete, block, or unfollow every single person that does not make you happy, motivated or give you excellent ideas. If you’re following an influencer who is promoting waist trainers and diet pills – delete! If you’re following an influencer that is preaching about running 2 miles everyday with an hour of weight workouts in the gym and you know that’s just not your style – delete! The list goes on of course!
Below I’ve listed five of my favorite influencers that make me feel motivated and happy!
Sarah’s Day (@Sarahs_Day) Sarah and, her Fiancé, Kurt’s podcast: The Healthcode (@The.Healthcode)
Whitney Simmons (@WhitneyySimmons)
Sam Ozkural (@Samozkural)
MindSpo (@MindSpo)
Rachel Hollis (@MsRachelHollis)
10. Set Attainable Goals!
This is an incredible way to get yourself excited and hold yourself accountable! You'll want to get a super cute notebook, or even just the notes app in your phone, and set some really really small goals. I’m not talking weight loss goals or long-term achievements – you need something to get you moving today! Goals like; “go to the gym twice a week” or “thirty minutes of physical activity every day”, “drink more water”, “wash your face every night”, “put on lotion every day”, "text one friend or family member a day” – the list can go on and on and on. These goals don’t have to be fitness or health related; they can just be things you want to do to feel good about yourself. Writing down; “make your bed every day” is an incredible goal and it’s just as important and life changing as “running a mile every day”.
Don’t let anyone make you feel like your goals are too small, because those small goals quickly turn into bigger goals and before you even notice – you’re turning bad habits into good habits, while creating new ones.
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