Dear readers, you may have all noticed that the weather is getting warmer. With regards to that matter, here’s a gentle reminder from Mother Nature, summer is coming! Of course, it’s good news, however, the winter season may have altered our silhouette somehow. Today, our goal is to start a kick-ass program to get back in shape before the tanning season.
Rule #1: Clean up your kitchen
It’s time to clean up your kitchen. Some items need to disappear! Indeed, after a long and stressful day, it’s harder to keep up with the good resolutions if comfort food is just around the corner. As a start, let’s get rid of them once and for all. Everything processed and non nutritious should disappear: Chocolate bars, cookies (even diet cookies), chips, candies, frozen fries, pizzas, dehydrated soups, mashed potatoes, and heavy sauces (mayonnaise, sweet and sour sauce, ranch, cocktail…), corn flakes and so on…
Rule #2: Don’t buy diet foods you don’t need
It‘s also very important to stack your kitchen with the right foods. Avoid buying diet foods that you don’t usually consume, because you’ll end up adding calories to your diet by introducing more foods, rather than decreasing your overall intake. For example: No need to get diet biscuits, and desserts if you don’t usually snack on sweets.
Rule #3: High water content foods
Buy plenty of high water content foods. They will be your perfect ally when you feel like snacking. In other words: apples, oranges, strawberries, or any watery fruit, carrots, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, broccoli or cauliflower (super filling), and low fat plain yogurt of course! These items will give you the impression of being full when, in fact, you have actually consumed a very low calorie food item, hence they are ideal for hungry dieters.
Rule #4: Drink up and don’t get bored
If you are not a big fan of water, try innovating by having sparkling water lying around (flavored and/or non-flavored). In addition, always have some homemade flavored water in your fridge. It’s very simple to prepare: Add some fruits, lemon, mint, or even cucumbers to a bottle of water, and keep it in your fridge. It will lightly flavor the water, without adding any calories.
Rule #5: Proteins to handle smaller portions
I’m not telling you to go on a high protein diet, not at all! But if you decrease the amount of pasta, rice, potatoes, and bread you consume on each meal, and add a bit of a lean protein source, you will be able to decrease your portion’s size without being very hungry. For example, add up some turkey slices, or low fat cheese, or a boiled egg to your breakfast, and eat ½ the bread or toast you usually consume. For lunch and dinner, add more lean meat or chicken to your stews, or some tuna or light cheese to your salad, and decrease the rice, pasta or potatoes you usually eat. And snack on individual light cheese portions, or low fat yogurt instead of having cereals, chocolates, or cookies. This way, you will curb your appetite, and be able to eat less easily.
Rule #6: Go to the gym
This is no secret, you have to move to burn fat, and you have to lift/exercise to build muscles, i.e. have a sexy toned body. So forget about watching TV after work with a bag of chips or even carrots. Now is no time for compromises. Pick an activity that interests you (there are so many diverse sports activities around you: dancing, spinning, running, swimming, yoga, Pilates), and start exercising! The results will be worth it! If you don’t really know what to do, enroll in a class, or ask for the help of a trainer. You can drag a partner with you, that way, you will have someone to share this activity with, which will make it even smoother, and will be some kind of “fun” time with your buddy. And for the loners, some sports are ideal, such as swimming, or running outdoors. All you need is to empty a few hours per week, and dedicate them to sports. I promise you, it will be worth it. Look around, and you’ll notice that bodies you envy are those of sporty people…
