Each week make small changes, and stick to them – small changes over a long period of time make a big impact!
Plan to gather information about your eating. It is always useful to understand behaviors fully before attempting change, and food patterns are no different. Recent studies show that keeping track of eating can double weight lost, most likely by making dieters accountable. So, take a good hard look at what you are eating by writing down every single morsel of food you eat for two weekdays and one weekend day. Be honest – did you eat 2 cookies or 3? Did you finish the crust from your son’s peanut butter and jelly sandwich, or grab a few fries from your spouse’s plate? Jot it all down!
Keep track as you go along through your day - don’t try to remember everything you eat at the end of the day because it won’t be accurate. In addition to what you eat, write down the time you eat, how much of each food, any details about preparation or extras like salad dressing or ketchup. Also write down what you drink since liquid calories tend to add up quickly. Finally, it is also helpful to write a few words about how you were feeling as you ate, and how hungry you were when you began.
After you have completed three days look over your food record to give you clues about your eating style. Are you a grazer or a nighttime overeater? When are you most hungry? Use this information to help you plan your eating better to avoid pitfalls such as, for example, skipped meals, which can lead to over eating later at night. If you want more help understanding your eating style and making changes, use your reward for a private session with Registered Dietitian.
“Failing to Plan Means Planning To Fail”
This is certainly true in many areas of life. Businesses need financial plans in order to survive and prosper, and so do individuals to avoid spending money they don’t have (income versus expenses). In the same way, we all need a plan to budget the calories we take in from food with the energy we expend with exercise and daily activities. If you are watching your weight, plan ahead and budget your calories to reach your goals!
To do this, start by knowing your BMR, your body’s Basal Metabolic Rate, which is the amount of calories you need each day for basic life functions. A quick estimate of your BMR is your weight multiplied by 10 - 11. Then add calories for your daily activities (see below).
Now you know how many calories you need each day to stay at your current weight and you can plan your eating. If you eat more calories than your body needs, you will store the extra calories as fat and gain weight. If you eat fewer calories than your body needs you will lose weight. Be careful not to eat too few calories by going below your BMR or your brain will signal your metabolism to slow down to protect against starvation. One of the best ways to keep your metabolism in high gear is to start eating when you wake up and every 3 – 4 hours throughout the day, small healthy meals and snacks. Also be sure to strength train to increase your muscle mass because muscle burns more calories than fat. This allows you to eat more calories and stick to your daily calorie budget! Plan ahead for special meals or treats by increasing your work out to account for the extra calories. Remember your plan is your road map to success!!
Nutritional tips;
Step 1: Figure out your daily calorie needs
Begin this mission by weighing yourself. You will use that number to figure out how many calories your body needs to support your energy expenditure.
If you do less than 30 minutes of vigorous activity daily:
multiply your weight in pounds by 13-15
If you do 30 - 60 minutes of vigorous activity daily:
multiply your weight in pounds by 16-18
If you do 60 – 90 minutes of vigorous activity daily:
multiply your weight in pounds by 19-21
Step 2: Allow for weight loss
Now subtract 500 calories from the number you calculated in step 1 to allow for moderate weekly weight loss. The result will be your target number of daily calories.
Step 3: Proper spacing of your daily calories
Finally, think about how to evenly space your fuel throughout the day for maximum energy and minimum hunger. Ideally you will eat 5 times daily with 3 meals and 2 snacks. No matter what your total daily calorie target is, make sure to eat at least 300 calories at breakfast in order to wake up your metabolism. For a healthy and well-balanced breakfast pick one from each of the following categories:
Proteins
Eggs – 1 whole + 1 white or 2 whites or ½ cup Egg Beaters
Peanut or other nut butters – 2 level tablespoons
Yogurt – non-fat Greek is preferable, ½ - 1 cup
Cottage cheese – non-fat is preferable, ½ - 1 cup
Lean sausage or vegetarian sausage – 2 – 3 ounces
Canadian or turkey bacon – 2 slices
Low fat cheese – 1 – 2 slices
Whole Grains & Cereals
Whole grain bread, toast, pita – 1 piece or 1 small
Whole grain English muffin, bagel – 1 small
Whole grain waffle – 1 small
Low fat whole grain muffin – 1 small
Low-sugar whole grain cold or cooked cereal – ¾ - 1 cup
Fruits & Vegetables
Fresh fruit – 1 medium piece or 1 cup
100% fruit juice – ½ cup
Cooked vegetables – ½ - 1 cup
Salsa – ½ cup
Raw vegetables – 1 – 2 cups
Make sure immediately after you workout you have a recovery meal/drink with protein and simple sugars, e.g. chocolate milk, yoghurt with sugars, special sports recovery drinks)
Each part of fitness are equally important (goals, resistance training, flexibility, cardio vascular, nutrition, rest, mental (visualization) etc.). All they have in common, they should be PLANNED and NOT by IMPULSE. In each category try to make small changes every week that stick and don’t try to make the changes too big and overwhelming. Sometimes less is more! The important part is; stick with the changes and when all these small changes put together over a longer period of time, they become they key to your success!!
