10 Ways to Lose Weight without Calorie Counting

The simplest and most effective way to lose weight is to begin slowly, making drastic changes to our diet or daily routine are hard for us to adjust to and confusing for our bodies.

In order for us to lose weight safely, and effectively it is important to ease your body into healthy lifestyle changes allowing them to become a natural and sustainable part of your lifestyle.

Suddenly rushing into a physical exercise regime can leave us with tired, aching muscles, and if you are really unlucky an injury. The same is true with our intake of food, our bodies are used to a set amount of food and calories, just stopping this suddenly can leave us feeling hungry and make us prone to snacking and bingeing. People often talk about having a fast or slow metabolism, which refers to how quickly our bodies burn the calories we eat every day. Your metabolism is something you can change, or train if you like. If you tried to run a marathon without training, no one would be surprised if you failed. So why is it we go on a diet and expect our metabolism to suddenly adapt?

Simply take the time to look at how you live and feel about yourself and start changing who you are.

1. Use a smaller plate – this will help you reduce your portions size. It is built into us to try and clear our plates when eating; therefore if you put less food out even if you clear your plate you will have eaten less.
2. Drink a glass of water before you eat – many times when our body is telling us it’s hungry we are actually thirsty. So re-hydrating your body before you eat any meal or snack will ensure that your body has the fluids it needs, which will help digestion and improve your energy levels. Also the fluid in your stomach will help fill you up and will help you feel fuller from eating less food.
3. Go a walk after meals – even just a ten-minute stroll will help your digestion, get your body into calorie burning mode and boost your metabolism. I’m not talking about a power walk, just set yourself a gentle pace. Walking is a low impact exercise and one of the few that it is safe to do after eating and it has many long-term benefits.
4. Eat a healthy breakfast – many people skip breakfast completely or have something quick like a cup of coffee and a slice of toast. Eating a high fibre breakfast with a glass of water or fruit juice will set your body up to the best possible start for the day. If you are not a big fan of high fibre cereal experiment, there are many cereals to choose from, and many of them actually taste better with chilled low fat milk, as opposed to full fat. If you want extra sweetness add fruit.
5. Chew gum – the act of chewing actually convinces our brains we are eating and can make us feel full, even though we have not swallowed anything. This can also be applied to eating; thoroughly chewing your food makes it feel more filling, rather than rushing though you meal.
6. Bulk up your meals with salad - reducing your portion size and adding some healthy, crunchy salad to your plate will help lower the calories on your plate quite dramatically. Salad is also easier for our bodies to burn and convert into energy, while meat can take quite some time and make us feel sleepy.
7. Have a healthy desert – if you are concerned decreasing your portion sizes will leave you feeling hungry, have a desert. Eat some fruit or a yogurt after your meal to help fill up your tummy, and help your body adjust to your new eating regime. If possible wait half an hour before enjoying your pudding. This will give your body time to start digesting your dinner and give you a little energy perk.
8. Try healthy alternatives – when you would normally cook with meats try replacing them with Quorn or other meat free alternatives. For high flavour foods like curries, lasagne or casseroles meat can easily be replaced with its meat free counterparts. Alternatively reduce meat content and use vegetables as a substitute. Experimenting with different seasonal vegetables is a great way to liven up any meal.
9. Have no food zones – if you tend to snack while at your desk or in the lounge while watching television, declare these no food zones. Food can become associated with activities leading us to believe we are hungry, when really it is just a bad habit. Make sure you really want to eat by making a conscious effort to get up and stop what you are doing.
10. Put a mirror on the fridge door – this forces you to look yourself in the eye before you eat. The simple act of seeing yourself makes you accountable for what you are doing. While you’re looking at yourself take the time to smile and remind yourself how well you are doing.