WEIGHT CONTROL: Ten Tips For Successful Weight Control
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A Fact Of Life . . . To Lose Weight, You Must Eat Less And Exercise More.
Start by reducing your portion sizes and look for ways to include physical activity in your daily routine. Use the stairs, park further away from your destination. |
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Take It One Step at a Time.
Write down what you eat for 3 days. Identify your "problem" foods or eating times. Choose one habit you will change for a healthy lifestyle. Remember, gradual changes are more likely to be permanent ones. |
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Anticipate Tricky Situations.
Have a strategy for handling difficult eating situations before they occur. For example, eat only in one location in your home - the kitchen. Always sit down while eating and put food on a plate. Learn to say, "No thank you". |
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Good Nutrition Keeps You Feeling Good.
Eat a wide variety of foods that include plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean meats, poultry, seafood, and low-fat dairy products. |
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Fats are the Bad Guys.
Foods such as butter, margarine, oils, mayonnaise, cream, and fatty meats are concentrated sources of calories. Don't add extra fat to your foods. Bake, broil, or boil your foods and switch to lower-fat alternatives in cooking. Read product labels looking for foods which provide less than 3 grams of fat per serving. |
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Exercise for Success.
Physical activity increases the number of calories that you burn, speeding your weight loss. It will also increase the strength of your heart and all of the muscles in your body. More muscle mass means you need more calories which helps for long-term weight control. |
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Throw Out the Scale.
You don't have a number stamped on your forehead which states how much you weigh. Use your clothes as a guide for weight loss. If you must, weigh yourself once a week, on the same day, first thing in the morning. |
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Get Real.
Set short- and long-term goals for your weight loss that are realistic. You must eat 3500 calories less to lose a pound of body fat. This is best accomplished by eating 500 calories less each day to lose one pound a week for safe and permanent weight loss. |
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Reward Yourself.
Once you've set short- and long-term goals, give yourself rewards not related to food when you reach those goals. For example, go out to a movie or buy a new outfit. |
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Start Every Day Out Fresh.
Everyone has a bad day now and then. If you've overeaten today - don't blow it forever. Get up the next morning with a clean slate and you're back on your way to losing weight again. |
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| Use this checklist as a guide to help you choose low-calorie foods: |
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Fresh and canned vegetables (asparagus, beets, broccoli, carrots, cucumbers, green or wax beans, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, water chestnuts) |
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Clear broth soups (chicken or beef broth, bouillon, vegetable soup) |
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Pickles, dill and sour |
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Low-calorie condiments (vinegar, flavored vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, fat-free salad dressings) |
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Low-calorie desserts (flavored gelatins, angel food cake, sugar free/fat free puddings, fresh fruits) |
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Calorie-free beverages (coffee, tea, diet sodas, flavored waters, club soda) |
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| ALWAYS READ THE NUTRITION FACTS ON EACH PRODUCT LABEL |
