Tricks To Help Treat Yourself To Weight Loss

We have all sorts of excuses for not losing weight. Yes, they are out there and we blurt them out to anyone and everyone, but particularly to ourselves. There is a quick and easy way to squash these excuses and to get healthy.

One of the first things is to switch plates. Rather than using those large dinner plates and piling it high with food, choose a very pretty salad plate. You can find a special small plate just about anywhere. Make sure that you find it esthetically pleasing and it will work for you.

If you take your lunch to work, purchase a small lunch bag rather than one you could pack a 20-pound turkey in. Also, get some smaller sandwich bags to portion out your food. Bring bottled water to work if your place of employment does not supply this. If you are without anything to drink, you will be more prone to hit the vending machine for a high-calorie soda or even a diet soda, which is also bad for you.

Always prepare your fruits and vegetables when you get home from the market. Take a few minutes to wash them, cut them up if needed and put them in sandwich bags and place in the refrigerator. So, when you get hungry, you won't grab that very convenient snack cake, but will, on second thought, grab a baggie of carrots, celery, or even apples. Remember, it is all about convenience, so definitely take that time to prepare your fruits and veggies.

As far as preparing meals, if you take time to prepare the fruits and vegetables and even meats you buy right when you get home from the market, your meal is almost cooked! Think about it, if you know you're going to make a meal and you need your onion sliced, garlic sliced, or chicken cut up into pieces, why not go ahead and do that and not wait until the last minute? This is to make it easier on you so you can make the transition to healthy eating in a snap.

Take advantage of farmer's markets. These places have a slew of fruits and vegetables that are locally grown and are cheap!!! I went to my local farmer's market last weekend and spent $22 and got 4 full bags of fruits and veggies. Also, you may want to check out private or locally owned markets that are much smaller than the big grocery stores as they may buy from local growers and will also sell produce cheaper.

If you're worried about your newly purchased produce spoiling, you can always freeze it. Yes, you can cut up bananas and freeze them, along with strawberries, peaches, blueberries and vegetables. I usually freeze my fruits that I use in smoothies and vegetables like fresh green beans that I may not use until later in the week. Again, you have to take a few minutes and prepare this produce. It may take time, but it will benefit you in a healthy way and financially (as you won't be throwing all that food away that you didn't feel like chopping up that ended up spoiling).

Grow your own food and herbs. I have to admit, I do not have a green thumb so this was previously not an option for me, but I'm learning. You do not have to have a large yard to do this. You can grow herbs with little effort and you don't need a large space for growing tomatoes and other veggies. There are a multitude of videos and books on growing produce, so don't let this frighten you as it has me for years. I'm going for it this year and plan on having a wonderful small garden.

If you have to have chips or other convenience items in your home, which are tempting to you, split up the item in small sandwich bags in small portions. This keeps you from mindless eating, i.e. taking a bag of chips and sitting in front of the TV and you empty the bag without even realizing it. If you have that big bag of chips portioned out into smaller bags, you will only grab one bag and that's it; that's all you get. Remember, you are not giving up something you love to eat, but cutting down that portion size.

When beginning on your weight loss journey, do not cut out everything all at once. Keep it easy for yourself and for your body to adjust. If you're used to drinking a 2-liter bottle of soda everyday along with high-fat foods and snacks and you cut all that out, eating only carrot sticks and a salad with water to drink, you are not going to stay on that diet very long. So, keep it simple for yourself. Just cut out or cut down on one thing at a time and when you've mastered that, then move on to your next step. Remember, keep it simple and believe in yourself.


For more information about this subject and author, Wil Scott, please visit http://www.believepositive.com.

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