Warmer weather is finally kicking in and you're ready for it.
Sunscreen (check)
Floppy Hat (check)
New swimsuit you've been working out all winter for (check)
What happened?
What do you mean you STILL can't fit in it?
Have you stopped losing weight?
Picture this: As dedicated as a soldier, you stayed with your chosen regimen/diet path to the bitter end. Only problem is that the bathroom scale's numbers are suddenly NOT going down.
What's going on???
You were losing weight at one point, but now you seem to have hit a wall. Days or weeks can go by with next to no movement on the scale. It can become very frustrating.
All that hard work and no results. It's a difficult puzzle.
Everything happens due to patterns. If you can figure out the pattern, you can solve the puzzle.
This series of patterns can help you figure out your shortcomings:
Sunscreen (check)
Floppy Hat (check)
New swimsuit you've been working out all winter for (
What happened?
What do you mean you STILL can't fit in it?
Have you stopped losing weight?
Picture this: As dedicated as a soldier, you stayed with your chosen regimen/diet path to the bitter end. Only problem is that the bathroom scale's numbers are suddenly NOT going down.
What's going on???
You were losing weight at one point, but now you seem to have hit a wall. Days or weeks can go by with next to no movement on the scale. It can become very frustrating.
All that hard work and no results. It's a difficult puzzle.
Everything happens due to patterns. If you can figure out the pattern, you can solve the puzzle.
This series of patterns can help you figure out your shortcomings:
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Pattern 1:
Overeating.
This is a simple pattern with an even simpler solution.
Most of us underestimate the amount of food we eat (and of course, we underestimate the number of calories we consume in a day).
By visualizing what a serving size or portion of food looks like, you can better estimate the amount of food you eat at each meal. When it comes to weight loss, you need to take in fewer calories than you burn each day.
Visualize:
A sensible portion of meat is about the same size of a deck of cards.
A portion of carbohydrates (1 cup) is the size of a tennis ball.
Pattern 2:
"Under" eating.
I know I just told you about overeating, but there is also the pattern of "under eating" that you should be aware of.
So, just what is "under eating"? Let me explain:
In most westernized countries it's customary to eat three meals a day. This is fine if you're eating balanced meals. Although, we all know that this type of meal is a rarity.
So, here we have a series of meals that aren't always the healthiest that we eat daily & to top it off, we're not eating frequently enough. What happens to your body is an accumulation of body fat & a loss of muscle tone.
Your metabolism needs to be re-charged.
However, for sustained weight loss, you'll want to eat more frequently. It's generally recommended that you consume a minimum of 5-6 smaller meals each day.
Sounds crazy doesn't it?
There is however a method to this "madness". In general, your body gets the signal that food is abundant, and there is no need to conserve energy. This, in turn causes your body to burn calories more frequently. Fairly sneaky, but it definitely works.
Let me restate that:frequent, smaller meals increase your metabolism. This makes your body burn more calories while digesting your meals. Another benefit is that you begin to stabilize your blood sugar levels before they get the chance to drop. By stabilizing your blood sugar levels, you're not as hungry. This helps to decrease your chances of overindulging at your next meal.
Isn't that great?
Pattern 3:
Liquid calories.
Smoothies are great and can be very tasty.
They can also be very fattening.
This is a very common problem among those attempting weight loss. There are a few factors you should keep in mind when relying on these liquid meal replacements.
- Many liquid diet shakes on the market and basically all fruit smoothies have inordinate amounts of sugar in them. This causes an immediate surge in energy followed by a huge crash due to the release of insulin to control the blood sugar rise. This dramatic shift in blood hormone levels (particularly insulin levels) is something you want to avoid, both for general health reasons and for weight loss.
- Most weight loss shakes have minimal fiber. Fiber is one of your most precious allies when you are dieting. It helps you feel full and may inhibit the increased insulin levels associated with high sugar consumption. Again, most fruit smoothies contain only trace amounts of fiber from fruit pulp.
- The amount of calories that can be concentrated into a shake or smoothie is far greater than the equivalent volume of actual food. A 16 oz fruit smoothie may contain as many as 600 calories, and will not fill you up all that much!
To put this into perspective for you, eating 600 calories of fruit is the visual equivalent of eating nearly an entire bowl of fruit all at one time! (DO NOT EVEN THINK ABOUT TRYING THIS AT HOME OR ANYWHERE ELSE!!)
Okay, so now I've given you the tools needed to knock out the fat & rock that new, hot body you've been working toward.
What are you going to do about it?
"Your Health Is Your Wealth!!"