MHL 1. Crowd out strategy
When starting a weight loss journey, don’t try to cut out the foods that you already have in your diet as this will only cause you frustrations and resistance to change. This will inevitably lead you to get back to your old eating habits as quickly as you ditched them in the first place. Try instead the Crowd out to Crowd in strategy. Now what does this mean? Simply, you just need to start adding more healthy choices in your day to day life, and by doing so you will begin to notice the positive changes in your energy levels, mood and how you feel physically overall.
Gradually, you are going to be willing to have more of these healthy foods in your day and on the contrary ditch some of the other less healthy habits. One simple example is drinking more water. If you are the type of person who enjoys having a soft drink like sodas during the day, say you want to increase you water intake every day, this simple yet effective change will make you feel more energised and less tired. Why? Because water not only keeps your body hydrated but it also allows absorption of nutrients in the blood boosting your body to function optimally. Because you’re feeling already better, you are going to gradually phase out your soft drinks and increase your water intake.
We all have to start somewhere. So try to think of 3 healthy things (for example adding more vegetables in your plate, incorporating more fruits or healthy bites…) that you can incorporate in your eating habits and commit to experiment with them during a week. Begin to notice how you feel emotionally and physically, keep note of it in a journal daily as this helps create awareness of the things that work for you. When you feel ready, challenge yourself to add more and start building a momentum.
2. Diets are not one size fits all
There are so many diet theories out there Keto, Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Atkins, Paleo, Vegan, Vegetarian, Pescatarian, you name it. Some of them are or have been popular, became forgotten and came back as trendy through the past decades. The simple truth is that these diets have been designed in a way that is very prescriptive about the foods you may or may not have.
Now, building on the concept of bio-individuality which is the idea that we all have different needs, are conditioned by different inherited culinary traditions and environments, metabolise nutrients differently; all of which is resulting in our bodies and psychologies to respond differently to these diets. For some of us, these diets will work just fine and for many of us they may actually cause us more harm than anything. This leads us to another key concept that “one’s food can be someone else’s poison” based on our body’s needs which vary from one person to another as I mentioned above.
Another important factor to take into consideration is that these prescriptive diets have been designed outside of your remit that is to say in a way that doesn’t take into consideration your personal preferences when it comes to the foods that you enjoy eating as part of your cultural / traditional diet. Consequently, chances are you are not going to stick to it because a lot of it may be boring or simply too unfamiliar to you. Best is to experiment by yourself for yourself. See what works for you and what doesn’t based on your personal needs and food preferences.
3. Eat more Whole Foods and less Processed Foods
A general rule that works best when you are on a journey to loose weight is to eat more whole foods and cut out or minimise processed foods. A lot of people struggle to distinguish the two. Think about whole foods as the food that look like you just picked it straight from nature in its original true form for example a whole apple, lettuce or fish. Whole food is food which has not undergone any transformation or processing other than maybe being packaged in a plastic film before ending in your shopping cart.
Processed foods on the opposite, are foods that have been transformed with chemicals, hormones, preservatives and all sorts of additives that often make these foods more palatable, high in added sugars and trans-fats. Simple examples of processed foods include ready-meals that can be heated in the micro-wave, pizzas, instant coffee sachets, bags of crisps and so on. As mentioned above, processed foods often are high in sugar and fats, they are also calorie-dense yet not nutritious foods ,so you got the point here, they are not doing you any good other than feeding you in the cheapest and quickest way possible.
So try to eat more whole foods and less processed foods using the approach of crowding out we covered in the first section. Again set yourself an objective each week to incorporate a whole food meal a couple of times each week, notice the changes on how you feel physically and emotionally. Likelihood is that you are going to feel a difference in energy and in the numbers on your scale if you stick to the goal. Same as before, keep track of it in a journal and challenge yourself to increase the frequency of eating whole food meals each week and gradually ditch the processed foods. As you keep doing it, numbers on the scale will go down automatically whilst your energy and mood levels increase drastically.
4. Diversify foods that you eat
You should aim to get protein, carbohydrates, and fat at every meal. This will create optimal blood sugar levels and may stave off cravings and brain fog. Some examples of great protein sources include grass-fed meat, fish, tempeh, and legumes. Top-notch fat options are avocado, olive oil, nuts, and seeds. When reaching for complex carbs, try whole grains, like farro, brown rice, or buckwheat, and vegetables, like sweet potatoes, Brussels sprouts, or artichokes. The more the food you eat is varied and colourful the more nutrients you get, the more optimal your nutrition gets.
One of my best tip is to incorporate fibres in your the food that you eat as fibres contribute to make you feel fuller for longer, therefore reducing cravings.
Once again, you will feel the difference in your energy levels, focus at work and performance when you work out.
5. Meal Planing
When you plan in advance which foods you are going to have and when not only can save you time trying to figure out what to eat at the time but will definitely help you make the healthy choice the easy choice. Indeed, when life gets busy and you are back to back and you have very little time to think about what’s for lunch or dinner, inevitably the healthy choice takes to back seat to whatever is easiest and convenient to have which too often means grabbing a sandwich and a bag of crisps or whatever you have on hand. You got it, it’s a recipe for disaster and your scale won’t thank you for that.
One quick healthy meal to have for breakfast is overnight oat. You make it the night before, you leave in the fridge to sit overnight and there you have it ready to eat first thing in the morning. This way you save time on your morning get-ready routine and make the healthy choice the easy choice, plus overnight oats are very fun to make as you can get very creative with it.
You can pack your lunch bag with a pre-washed salad and top it up with a tin of mackerel or sardines, shredded carrots and beetroots, sprinkle a few seeds like flax seed or chia seeds, season it with a mix of apple cider vinegar, Dijon mustard and a table spoon of olive oil with a pinch of salt and black pepper.
Try make a list of what you eat, then make a meal plan for the week that you can tackle in advance where possible. This will save you time, remove the pain of figuring out what to eat in a last minute.com and save you money on your grocery shopping as you will buy exactly what you need for the week.
There you have it my 5 tips to lose weight fast in less that a week. If you implement these 5 easy tips I guarantee you that you will notice results on your scale within 7 days. Try it and let me know in the comments down below how you are getting on.
If you struggle with your weight and need some nutrition guidance or build accountability, I can assist you in your journey as a Health and Nutrition Coach. Just click on the link to book a free consultation.
