This will be my last set of dieting tips for a this year. I hope that you have found at least some tips helpful over the past few weeks. I’ve also saved a really good breakfast recipe (pictured) for the end. So without further adue here are my final tips:
Keeping a Record
I’ve been keeping a record of my weight lost for the past few occasions when I’ve been on a diet. For me I have a spreadsheet on my computer that I put my current weight for that date and it converts it into a nice little graph. Hopefully you will see a gradual steady decline and as it displays the day/date you can see when, and if, there is a a little blip when you’re weight goes up and identify what might have gone wrong. Another great way of actually seeing your progress is taking a picture of yourself when you start and every week during your diet. This is a great motivation tool and you can better see your progress visually rather than just numbers on a scale.
Ask a Friend
This is one of the best tips I can give, dieting and weight loss is so much easier if you have a friend or someone in the family to share the journey with you. Not only can you motivate each other but there will be an element of friendly competition. There will be some days when one of you won’t be in the mood to do any exercise or want to have an unhealthy snack. It is at this time when the other person can give you some support and spur you on.
Treats
Make sure you have a treat at least once a week. Not only does it give you a reward for doing well but it will stop you having a massive blowout of eating “bad” food when you come off the diet. This treat can be a snack, favourite meal or even a meal out. Just be sensible and don’t ruin all that hard work you’ve done.
Goals and Motivation
I think it’s quite important to have goals but try and not make them too rigid such as “I must lose x many pounds in x weeks”. If they are too rigid and strenuous you are more likely to lose motivation and give up. Try and start with something small and achievable like “I want to lose some weight in the next month” and grow from there. For me the goal is to fit into some clothes I bought a couple of years ago, I haven’t put a time frame on it as I know it will take some time and don’t want to put extra pressure on myself.
Cooking Shows
Now this tip isn’t for everybody but it worked for me and I’m not sure why. Watching cooking shows really helps me not be hungry and I also like to make a list of all the foods that I’m looking forward to eating when off the diet. As I said this isn’t for everybody, most people will be more hungry when watching cooking shows but give it a try, it might work as well for you as it did for me.
Finally here is one of the breakfasts I’ve been having recently. I used an orange for this recipe but it works just as well with clementines or grapefruit.
Breakfast: Orangey yoghurt with walnuts and cardamon
(Serves 1)
Half an orange
250g of natural yoghurt
3 cardamon pods
Small handful of walnuts
Start by removing the seeds from the cardamon pods. To do this lightly bash the pods with a rolling pin until they split. You should be able to remove the tiny black seeds and add them to a pestle and mortar. Crush until you have a fine powder. In a hot dry pan toast the walnuts with half of the cardamon powder. This should only take a minute or so. Meanwhile remove the orange segments from the orange half (I like to do this with a grapefruit knife so I can retain the juice left in the orange half). In a bowl add the yoghurt and stir in the orange juice if using. Top with the segments, toasted walnuts and sprinkle with the remaining cardamon powder.