Enjoy Healthier Foods
Adopting a new eating style that promotes weight loss must include lowering your total calorie intake. . . . One way you can lower your calorie intake is by eating more plant-based foods — fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Strive for variety to help you achieve your goals without giving up taste or nutrition.
- Eat at least four servings of vegetables and three servings of fruits daily.
- Replace refined grains with whole grains.
- Use modest amounts of healthy fats, such as olive oil, vegetable oils, avocados, nuts, and nut butters and oils.
- Cut back on sugar.
- Choose low-fat dairy products and lean meat and poultry in limited amounts.
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🍎 Health Hack: #3 of 6 Weight Loss Strategies
Set Realistic Goals
Over the long term, it’s best to aim for losing 1 to 2 pounds (0.5 to 1 kilogram) a week. Generally to lose 1 to 2 pounds a week, you need to burn 500 to 1,000 calories more than you consume each day, through a lower calorie diet and regular physical activity. Depending on your weight, 5 percent of your current weight may be a realistic goal. Even this level of weight loss can help lower your risk for chronic health problems, such as heart disease and type 2 diabetes. If you’re 180 pounds (82 kilograms), that’s 9 pounds (4 kilograms). When you’re setting goals, think about both process and outcome goals. “Walk every day for 30 minutes” is an example of a process goal. “Lose 10 pounds” is an example of an outcome goal.Â
🍎 Health Hack: #2 of 6 Weight Loss Strategies
Find your inner motivation
No one else can make you lose weight. . . .Make a list of what’s important to you to help stay motivated and focused, whether it’s an upcoming beach vacation or better overall health. Then find a way to make sure that you can call on your motivational factors during moments of temptation. Perhaps you want to post an encouraging note to yourself on the pantry door, for instance.. . .  . Pick people to support you who will encourage you in positive ways, without shame, embarrassment or sabotage. . . . If you prefer to keep your weight-loss plans private, be accountable to yourself by having regular weigh-ins, recording your diet and exercise progress in a journal, or tracking your progress using digital tools.
🍎 Health Hack: #1 of 6 Weight Loss Strategies
Make a commitment
Long-term weight loss takes time and effort — and a long-term commitment. Make sure that you’re ready to make permanent changes and that you do so for the right reasons. To stay committed to your weight loss, you need to be focused. It takes a lot of mental and physical energy to change your habits. . . . Make a plan to address other stresses in your life first, such as financial problems or relationship conflicts. While these stresses may never go away completely, managing them better should improve your ability to focus on achieving a healthier lifestyle. Once you’re ready to launch your weight-loss plan, set a start date and then — start.
🍎 Health Hack: Talk Your Way Through Stress
Sometimes calling a friend is not an option. If this is the case, talking calmly to yourself can be the next best thing. Don’t worry about seeming crazy — just tell yourself why you’re stressed out, what you have to do to complete the task at hand, and most importantly, that everything will be okay.
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🍎 Health Hack: Listen to Your Mom – Floss and Brush
“Brushing and flossing every day doesn’t just help your teeth; it may also keep your cardiovascular system healthy. A 2018 study in the journal Cerebrovascular Diseases Extra found that the worse your dental hygiene, the higher your chance of having a stroke. Doctors aren’t sure why, but it’s possible that the bacteria that infect your gums seep into your bloodstream, causing blood vessel inflammation and other problems.” Source
🍎 Health Hack: Almonds for a Healthy Heart
Almonds
One Of the World’s Healthiest Foods
Almonds are rich in healthy fats, fiber and protein, these nuts are made for more than snacking. Use slivered almonds as a topping for oatmeal or yogurt, add them to muffin recipes, or use almond flour in place of regular flour in pancakes.
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🍎 Health Hack: Walking & Weight Loss
Walking is a lower-impact exercise, meaning it doesn’t stress your joints. According to Harvard Health, it’s estimated that a 155-pound (70-kg) person burns around 167 calories per 30 minutes of walking at a moderate pace of 4 mph (6.4 km/h). A 12-week study in 20 women with obesity found that walking for 50–70 minutes 3 times per week reduced body fat and waist circumference by an average of 1.5% and 1.1 inches (2.8 cm), respectively (6 Trusted Sources). To get started, aim to walk for 30 minutes 3–4 times a week. You can gradually increase the duration or frequency of your walks as you become more fit.
🍎 Health Hack: Choose Carbs With Care
Carbohydrates are one of the main types of nutrients. Your digestive system changes carbohydrates into glucose (blood sugar). Your body uses this sugar for energy for your cells, tissues and organs. It stores any extra sugar in your liver and muscles for when it is needed. There are two types of carbohydrates: simple and complex. Simple carbohydrates include natural and added sugars. Complex carbohydrates include whole grain breads and cereals, starchy vegetables and legumes.
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TIP: STICK WITH COMPLEX CARBS
🍎 Health Hack: Hit it for 40
Was the last time you did pushups in gym class? . . . According to a new study published in JAMA Network OpenTrusted Source, pushup capacity is inversely associated with future cardiovascular disease (CVD) incidents — meaning the more pushups you can do, the less likely you are to have a heart attack or stroke. Researchers found that CVD risk was 96 percent lower in men who were able to do 40 or more pushups during a physical test compared to men who could do 10 or fewer. . . . Pushup capacity also was a better predictor of CVD outcomes than submaximal treadmill tests, a more commonly used test.
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