When Losing Five Pounds Feels Like Five Hundred

Sometimes losing five pounds feels like five hundred.  I know because the more weight that I lose the more weight that I want to lose.  As of today I have lost 130 pounds over a 23 month time frame.  My first year I set a 100 pound weight loss goal, and I hit it with one pound to spare.  So year one was 101 pounds.  This year my goal was to lose another 50 pounds and the first six months I gained and lost the same 7 pounds over and over.  It was sort of like the movie, Ground Hog Day with Bill Murray.  In the movie Bill Murray woke up every day and it was Ground Hog Day, and he goes to sleep and wakes up to repeat the day over and over.   A little silly in it's concept but that is a lot how I felt for the first seven months of  '2012. 


Five doesn’t seem like a huge number when it comes to throwing down a Lincoln to pay for lunch or applying the 5-second rule (I know you do it), but when it comes to losing weight, dropping 5 pounds can seem monumental.  So I have learned to keep my goals within reason.  Have a clear perspective and plan.  After all shedding weight has to be attainable.  A simple and sure way to lose 5 pounds would be to cut 200 calories per day through diet and / or exercise and in 3 short months you will have dropped those 5 pounds.  Oh but if this seems a little slower than you would like try cutting 500 calories per day and you will realize those 5 pounds gone in one short month!

So how do you accomplish this simple to say, but maybe not so simple to implement idea?  Here are a few things that you may find helpful.

Drink More Water

Research indicates that chugging H2O curbs your appetite. In fact, in one study by the American Chemical Society, dieters who drank water three times a day before meals over 12 weeks shed about 5 pounds more than those who did not boost their water intake. Water’s benefits don’t stop there: Agua also keeps you energized, so you’ll have the vigor needed to burn additional calories in the gym, on the tennis court, or wherever the day takes you. “Even being slightly dehydrated can lead to feeling fatigued,” says personal trainer Jim White, RD, owner of Jim White Fitness & Nutrition Studios in Virginia Beach, VA. And soda fiends out there can chop more than 200 calories from their diets by replacing a 20-ounce bottle of nondiet cola with some refreshing H2O.

 

Say No to a Side of Fries or Potato Chips

A 4-year study on the effect of lifestyle on weight gain revealed potatoes and potato chips were closely linked to packing on pounds, which shouldn’t come as a surprise. After all, a medium order of french fries is loaded with 380 calories, and a 1-ounce serving of potato chips adds 150 calories. Replace these greasy sides with fresh veggiespr a side salad with light Italian dressing to save yourself hundreds of calories in a week

 

Cut Down on Added Sugars

On average, Americans consume 475 calories of added sugars daily, estimates Rachel Johnson, RD, PhD, a professor of nutrition at the University of Vermont. You, too, can do the math. Eliminating added sugars could save you thousands of calories in a week. In fact, a study review published in the journal Public Health Nutrition found that the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages contributed to 20% of weight gain between 1977 and 2007. Other offenders included cookies, cakes, doughnuts, and dairy desserts. To trim hundreds of empty calories from your daily diet, check nutrition labels. “Look for anything that ends in the letters "ose,” the biochemical ending for sugars, such as sucrose, dextrose, fructose, and maltose, and the word syrup,” Johnson says. If it’s sweetened, skip it.

Beware of Hidden Calories

We’ve got to give credit where it’s due: Following reports about their high-calorie eats, many restaurant chains have begun to disclose calorie information on their menus. But while these eateries are off to a good start, a recent study from Tufts University showed that the calorie counts that appear may be incorrect. Researchers found that 19% of the foods they tested contained at least 100—and in one case 1,000—calories more than what was stated on the menu. Additionally, the biggest culprits of this calorie miscalculation were items usually viewed as healthy choices (think salads and soups). This means even diligent dieters may inadvertently consume more calories than they intend. The best way to fight back: Learn appropriate portions for common foods and skip calorie-laden condiments and dressings.

 These are just a few things that you can do to cut 200 to 500 calories from your daily diet.  Don't waste a minute thinking about it.  Take the challenge and start cutting out some of the things that are keeping you from losing the weight that you want to lose and being the healthy person you long to be.  I am not there yet, but every day I take another step closer to my final destination, and I have made the decision to not stop until I get there.