New Year’s Tip: Weight Loss Can Be a Piece of Cake
After spending the holidays feasting on luscious
dinners, desserts and the occasional extra glass (or two) of wine, your
New Year’s resolution may involve shedding some pounds. If so, the best
way to hit your goal is to think small, says Stephanie C. Barthmare,
Med, LPC, a pyschotherapist at Methodist Hospital’s weight management
center in Houston, as reported by HealthDay News. Here’s how:
• Plan to lose just a few pounds. Doing it a little at a time will keep
you from being overwhelmed—and it will keep you on track for keeping
the pounds off.
• Be specific about how you plan to lose
weight, and have realistic expectations of what you can do each day.
Also, include detailed directives, such as “no pre-dinner snacking” or
“take a 10-minute walk every afternoon”.
• Gradually stop
eating bad-for-you foods. For example, start by cutting down your
intake of soda from three a day to one for the first week, Barthmare
said. “And then maybe [the] next week eliminate cheese from your
sandwiches.”
• Create a vision of your goal. Think about
fitting into smaller-sized pants than you currently wear or doing an
activity you don’t do now.
• Keep it balanced. Going cold
turkey on foods that don’t fit into your diet plan may work for a few
days (or weeks), but when you start thinking about what you’re giving
up, it’s highly likely that you’ll return to old and unhealthy eating
habits, Barthmare said.
“When you don’t come up with a plan to
lose weight and the process is torture, you are setting yourself up for
failure,” Barthmare said. “By refraining from one behavior that you
know is potentially causing weight gain, you will begin to accumulate
small successes, and these positive actions and resulting good feelings
give you the momentum to keep going and eventually reach the goal you
set for yourself.”
Think about it. With these few tips, you’ll be out of your holi-daze and reaching your weight-loss goal before the year is up.
Want another free weight-loss tip? Drinking water could help you reach your goal. Click here to learn how.
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