Nowadays, we must recognize that losing weight is not an easy task for everybody. Several people live a constant struggle against the scales, and do not get as many results as they expected.

The tendency is to discourage but, did you know that there are some attitudes that you can change in your daily life that help you to lose weight in a healthy way?

As it seems really hard to lose weight, many people end up getting comfortable of being fat, and having the same habits, eating without precautions, just looking to the pleasure of an unhealthy life style. Other factor that is bad too, must of us have a busy life that include family, job, personal duties and when it’s time to work out or exercise, we put in a second plan.

Changing habits can directly influence quality of life! Start now!

Follow my tips for you to live healthier and lose those pounds that bother you.

#1 Sleep, Yes sleep!

It is simpler than you think. Sleep is extremely important in our life. An adult supposed to sleep at least 7 to 9 hours for night. This simple habit is good for our mind, heart and we can help us to lose weight.

What?!..

Yes, we can lose weight while we sleep. Sleep deprivation makes you “metabolically groggy,” University of Chicago researchers say.

Accordingly to Eve Van Cauter, director of the Sleep, Metabolism and Health Center at the University of Chicago, “There is no doubt that insufficient sleep promotes hunger and appetite, which can cause excessive food intake resulting in weight gain,” She has spent 15 years studying the topic.

In one hour of sleep, most people burn 0.4 to 0.5 calorie for every pound of body weight. For example, a 150-pound person would multiply 150 by 0.4 or 0.5 to get 60 to 75 calories used in one hour of sleep. After eight hours of sleep, that person has burned 480 to 500 calories, said Sandi Busch on his article How Much Weight Do You Lose During Sleep?.

How is your sleep?

Are you getting enough sleep to have a healthy life?

Think about it.

#2 Drink More Water

As soon as you wake up, chug as much H20 as you can!

You’ve gone X amounts of hours without it and your body it needs it first before you get into that cup of joe. It will re-hydrate you, kick start your metabolism and help all your organs start to function properly. The water in addition of helping to hydrate, has the purpose of sending the necessary vitamins for the correct functioning of some organs, such as kidney, intestine, heart and lungs.

Drinking water helps boost your metabolism, clean your body of waste, and may even suppress your appetite if consumed before meals. Also, drinking more water helps your body stop holding water and you may be able to drop water weight.

How much water should I drink daily?

The Institute of Medicine (IOM) currently recommends that men should drink at least 104 ounces of water per day, which is 13 cups. They say women should drink at least 72 ounces, which is 9 cups.

Are you drinking enough water daily?

A simple habit like this can help you to improve your overall health and lose extra weight.

#3 Look to yourself, rather than just the scale

Don’t be afraid of scales. Many people think that checking your weight daily can discourage you because people can’t lose weight fast in a healthy way, it takes time, so when they see that the scale isn’t changing they lose motivation, however, I think it’s the opposite, if you really want to lose weight you shouldn’t be afraid of checking your body daily.

The scale helps to see your improvements. Taking pictures, looking to the mirror, and checking your measures, assist you to follow your progresses. Other important thing to say is, your weight may won’t change in the scale, however, you could be gaining more muscle instead of fat, so looking to your body is fundamental to see these results, a body more defined, if you are working for it.

#4 Have breakfast and more meals

Breakfast is the most important meal and many of us end up skipping it because we are late for work or don’t have much appetite during the morning. A good breakfast, provides the essential energy for you to go through your activities during the day. By the way, this is the best time to eat a lot, after all, you will have all day to burn the calories consumed.

However, the foods eaten during breakfast should be healthy: this will increase our sense of satiety, avoiding that we eat unnecessary food.

Many people still believe that to lose weight you should skip meals or eat less and that’s a big mistake. We must have more meals during the day.

Yes, eat (healthy) to lose weight!

To boost our metabolism we supposed to eat so we can burn more calories, of course, we should be careful about what we are putting in our mouth. Fried food, sugar, too many carbs or fat are not good for anyone.

We should pick better our aliments. Chose clean food like vegetables, white meat, fruits instead of junk food. Watch out for your snacks during the day too. With a busy life style we may end up choosing the easiest option, that means processed food most of the time.

Be careful. Start to look into the nutrition label of the aliments you put in your mouth. Write down everything that you eat, It helps to track your food and see if you under or over eating.

#5 Make Healthier Choices/Consume Smaller Portions

Dieting can be stressful, confusing and annoying sometimes. Don’t feel defeated though and let that become your excuse. Try to ease into it but making the conscious decision to make healthier choices with your food on the daily. Make a few subsitions with your meals.

For example, if you want a burger, swap of the bun and make it protein style! and swap out the side of fries ( I know, I know. ) for some grilled or steamed veggies or side salad. Or if you are having pasta, cut out half of the pasta and fill up by adding EXTRA veggies into your pasta for a more filling meal and way less calories to stress about later.

If you have a sweet tooth and really need your fix, try swapping out that candy bar for some real dark (70% cocoa or more) chocolate instead! 

• A 100 gram bar of dark chocolate with 70-85% cocoa contains:
• 11 grams of fiber.
• 67% of the RDA for Iron.
• 58% of the RDA for Magnesium.
• 89% of the RDA for Copper.
• 98% of the RDA for Manganese.

It also has plenty of potassium, phosphorus, zinc and selenium…and tastes good! Also, you can melt it and dunk it with some fruit. Get creative. Your subsitions do not have to be sad or boring.

#6 Exercise

My last tip, but not the less significant, it is about the importance of exercising. A lot of people still don’t enjoy going to the gym, and that’s ok. Me personally I’m not a big gym fan, however, a sedentary life style isn’t healthy at all. We must find something that we have connection. It supposed to be fun, to give us some pleasure. Something like a boxing class, dance class, fight class, yoga, Pilates, hiking, swimming, bike or a simple walk. Yes, 30 minutes of a walk daily can help speed up your metabolism and it in turn helps the body burning fat.

Basically, find something active that you enjoy! Not something that feels like a chore. 

#7 Stop Hitting Snooze

Guilty. Most of us are. But once you challenge yourself to become a snooze buster and actually make it happen, you’ll be surprised at  how much more you can accomplish in your day! Not only are you losing productivity immediately, but you can actually cause your body to be more tired. Those extra zzz’s really aren’t worth it.

“When you hit the snooze button every morning, you’re doing two negative things to yourself,” says Robert S. Rosenberg, medical director of the Sleep Disorders Centers of Prescott Valley and Flagstaff, Arizona. “First, you’re fragmenting what little extra sleep you’re getting so it is of poor quality. Second, you’re starting to put yourself through a new sleep cycle that you aren’t giving yourself enough time to finish. This can result in persistent grogginess throughout the day.”

Start ditching that snoozer now. Plus….that annoying sound is awful enough the first time it screams in your ear, ya know?

I hope these tips help you somehow to improve your life style.

Conclusion

There you have it! Start today by implementing a few of these simple habits into your daily life and watch the lb’s start to disappear. What are you waiting for?