Contrary to popular belief, scientists have found that crash diets work just as well as steady weight loss but keeping the weight off proved to be even harder than losing it in the first place for both groups of dieters. Thankfully, we’ve got some tips on how to stay on track once you’ve reach your ideal weight below:
Weigh yourself weekly and if you do get to a point where your weight increases by three per cent – or 5 kg, whichever comes first – then go back on your diet plan for two weeks or as long as it takes to get back to the weight you are aiming for.
Once you’ve lost weight your body subconsciously reduces the amount of fidgeting and incidental exercise you do so you burn fewer kilojoules. Counteract that by getting a pedometer, or a step-measuring app, and make a conscious effort to reach at least 10,000 steps daily.
We eat more food and therefore more calories overall if our daily protein needs aren’t met. Protein is satiating and can help to suppress your appetite. Have a palm-sized portion of meat, fish, eggs, dairy or plant proteins like beans, lentils or tofu at each meal.
(Related: 10 Foods To Help You Lose Weight)
If you are eating out of boredom and not hunger, you will overeat. A fulfilled mind focuses less on the negative and more on the solutions to problems. That means that the next time you are faced with something that might sabotage your weight loss maintenance efforts you’ll find it easier to find a way out.
Every kilo you lose reduces the amount of energy your body burns day to day. So after losing weight, you simply can’t eat as much as you did before and stay the same weight. Not to mention that whatever you were eating before was what triggered the weight gain in the first place. Don’t relax into your old habits. Eat small servings and focus your diet on low-kilojoule foods.
Have a series of ongoing goals that are realistic. This is the mindset that you have to have if you plan to keep weight off for good. Make small goals for yourself that you try to hit each week, and then keep setting them. Don’t stop. If you do, there is a very good chance that you’ll regain the weight you’ve just lost.
Our peers are one of the biggest factors that influence what we eat and how much we weigh. The link is so strong that we reportedly match our dining companion bite for bite. Until you’ve got your new habits under control, it may be a good idea to find other non-food-related activities to do with your friends.
(Related: Are Your Emotions Making You Fat?)
Knowing you are going to have setbacks is one of the most important things to remember. Don’t beat yourself up when setbacks do happen – learn from the experience. Try and spot your vulnerabilities, such as if you eat more when you’re stressed, and start developing strategies to counteract them.
If you have one cheat day, you’ll inevitably be tempted to have more. This doesn’t mean that you should never eat unhealthy food. However, setting aside a time to eat as much junk as possible probably isn’t the best idea so don’t be tempted by those delicious food pictures that people post on Instagram.
Stress is probably responsible for more weight gain than any other reason. There are healthy ways to get rid of stress than consuming unhealthy things. Exercising is very good for this. Just a brisk walk outside can get rid of stress for the entire day.
(Text by Helen Foster, Good Health (Bauer) / Additional Reporting by Natalya Molok)