In today’s society many of us want to lose weight. When I say weight I mean fat! As fat loss and weight loss sometimes may not correlate. I could lose about 2lb of weight in a couple of days just by reducing carbs in my diet (My body composition may not even change). Anyways, back onto the title. Is weight loss easy? The scientific answer is yes. Scientifically weight (fat) loss is very, very simple. It’s primary school maths, It’s calories in – calories out. If you consume less energy than you expend then fat will be used as an energy source and therefore you will reduce the size of your “fat” cells. If you do this over a period of time then you will continue to lose fat. Remember all calories count (even the ones in alcohol unfortunately!).
If it’s this easy why aren’t we all running around looking like elite athletes. Psychologically being in a calorie deficit is hard, especially if you want a social life. When ever we are out we are surrounded by pastries, burgers, fast food, alcohol etc. These are all things that we enjoy and will start to crave (especially around Christmas). Below I have complied a few things we can do to combat this:
Know how many calories you consume a day
A lot of people have no clue how many calories they consume a day. With technology this has become easier than ever. A great app to use is “My Fitness Pal”. With this you can see how many calories you are consuming a day just by scanning or typing in your food. It also tells you what nutrients you are consuming and if you are deficient in any. Remember this is an app and may not be 100% accurate with its calculations as it doesn’t know your individual needs, but it’s a great place to start.
Exercise on the days you know you have social occasions
This is something I come across all the time. Most people socialise, drink and eat rubbish on the weekend. However they do not exercise on these days. The whole idea is to be in a calorie deficit. GET UP AND DO SOME EXERCISE! Don’t let that 1 day let you down, you will be right back where you started on Monday. Hit the gym hard on the days that you will consume a little more calories than usual. This will help massively as it may even balance out so that you consume the same amount of calories out expend on that day.
Eat before you go out
If you eat before you socialise you are less likely to give in to them cravings. The amount of times I have gone to the cinemas on an empty stomach and seen all the chocolate and just said “one bag won’t hurt”. Added to that bag of chocolate was nachos and a large coke. There I will have consumed between 1/2 – 3/4 of my daily calorie allowance. If you eat before you go out you are less likely to give into these cravings.
Choose healthier places to socialise
I understand this always can’t be the case. The amount of people that I see arranging nights at pizza & burger places when they are trying to lose weight baffles me. There are loads of restaurants that serve healthy dishes. The majority of them will serve either chicken, steak, veg etc. Pick healthier options when socialising.
Toughen Up!
You know this is what you have to do so let’s not hear the excuses. My favourite one is “I don’t have time”. As if it’s a lot quicker to eat a bag of crisps than to eat an apple (or any other type of fruit). It’s hard I know, but let’s just get it done you will feel better for it, I promise. If time is an issue then prepare your food for days in advance. Also don’t listen to your work mates/friends/family that are very negative when you are trying to lose weight. Most of the time they are like this because they aren’t happy with themselves. They don’t mean to be negative, however it maybe a subconscious reaction. Dig deep down and don’t eat rubbish.