I love this app. I worked for Weight Watchers for a time, and have been on that program for many years. MyFitnessPal succeeds where Weight Watchers and other similar apps fails. One of the reasons I love this app is that it allows you to look at the quality of food and nutrition you are getting. The other reason I like it is you can link it with other fitness trackers—Fitbit, Garmin, and Nike+ to get an accurate calorie burn.
2. Change up your fitness routine.
For the last six weeks, I have been doing the minimum amount of running. I had been using MyFitnessPal app to track my food intake and calorie burn, but it still wasn’t cutting it. I added resistance training to my workout routine. My weight didn’t move, but my measurements were going down.
3. Rethink when you eat and how much you eat.
The biggest change I instituted after I got back from the funeral was when and how much I was eating. Instead of eating three meals a day- a meal at breakfast, lunch, and dinner- I added meals. It seems strange, but I was not eating enough food for breakfast or lunch, and by the time dinner came around I was so hungry that I was not careful about how much I ate. Now, I eat a small breakfast. About two hours later, I eat a small snack; two hours I eat another small meal for lunch, and about two hours I eat another small snack. Finally I eat a 400-800 calorie dinner*. I limit alcohol to the weekends, and I don’t eat food after 7:00 PM. Eating too many calories has the obvious effect of causing you to gain weight. Eating too few calories also may cause your body to hold weight. The body goes into something called starvation mode. It will slow metabolism, and your body will hold onto weight despite eating less.
People, especially Americans, are chronically dehydrated | 4. Change the kinds of foods you eat. Besides changing how much I eat, I changed the types of foods I eat. I added more fruits and vegetables to my diet. The snacks I eat between my meals are now fruits, vegetables, or lean proteins. I didn’t completely remove the foods and drinks I have always loved, but I decided to cut back on these types of foods. I eat them during the weekend, when I relax a little and enjoy the occasional dessert, glasses of wine, or steak. |
People, especially Americans, are chronically dehydrated. We are either drinking diet sodas, sodas, or coffee, instead of water, or we just don't drink enough water. One simple thing you can do to lose weight is drink water with nothing added to it. Drinking water helps you lose weight. Just like eating enough, the more you drink, the more you increase the likelihood you’ll lose weight. When you are dehydrated, your body holds onto salt to maintain the water necessary to function. The additional salt water in your body causes water weight. By drinking more water, your body flushes the salt out, and you lose weight.
Of course, in most cases weight loss is a complicated endeavor. There can be a lot of other factors at play, and there is no one size fits all approach. In most cases the easiest solution is the correct solution. If you try these five steps, you may see a slight drop in your weight, or you may not. As I tell most of my friends, or clients who seek my fitness advice, before you start any diet or exercise program, please consult your doctor. If you are experiencing any prolonged pain that is not associated with general soreness from starting a new exercise regimen, please consult a doctor before continuing with your program. I will not say how much weight I lost, or what specific exercise program I am doing, because the results I see may not be the same results you will see.
* I eat a 400-800 calorie meal for supper based on the number of calories I burn throughout the day. The calorie intake is calculated by MyFitnessPal. This caloric intake may not be appropriate for all people, and again I urge you to consult a professional nutritionist and fitness trainer to assist you in building an appropriate diet and exercise plan. If you are interested in obtaining more specific fitness advise please visit: http://buffchickrunning.wix.com/buffchickrunning1
Many Kind Regards,
Jodi Vetter
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