Losing weight is a commendable achievement by itself – keeping the weight off is a whole other ball game.
In fact, only 20% of people who lose a significant amount of weight end up successfully maintaining their new weight. This statistic alone proves how difficult it can be.
But it’s totally doable – in fact, easier than you think. The trick is consistency and knowledge. The more you know about healthy eating and the science behind weight loss, the more likely you’ll maintain weight loss in the long run. Metabolic Factor review will help you understand how does diet works and how does affect your body.
So what are the best tips for maintaining weight for the long term? We’ve got 11 things you need to know.
Listen up!
1. Try reverse dieting
The truth is: fad diets and crash diets don’t work long-term. You might lose weight, but it will not stick.
Instead, we believe there’s one unbeatable solution to keeping the weight off after dieting – and that’s completely changing your metabolism with reverse dieting. Trust us,
reverse dieting results are like no other.
So what is reverse dieting?
In a nutshell, it’s a process that involves incrementally increasing your calorie intake to rebuild your metabolism and in turn, change the ways your body burns calories. You can basically eat more to lose more. Yep, you heard that right!
How? Well, it’s a way of teaching the body how to naturally burn fat – that way you can eat more freely without gaining any additional weight.
Amazingly enough, experts like Macros Clinic have found that the vast majority of people who try out reverse dieting find they actually lose weight. So give it a try yourself.
2. Eat smaller meals
How about eating five small meals per day, rather than the typical three large meals? The science behind this trick is that it keeps your metabolism working for longer throughout the day. It’s all about staying in control.
There are also metabolism-boosting foods you can incorporate more of in your diet, including eggs, flaxseeds, lentils, ginger, and chill peppers. Do any of these take your fancy?
3. Learn mindful eating techniques
By this, we mean listening to your appetite cues and paying full attention to when you’re feeling full. Stop eating when your stomach feels overstuffed – if you carry on past this point, you’re simply overeating (which is what leads to weight gain).
Other mindful eating techniques include practicing slower chewing, eating without any distractions, and savoring the taste and smell of your food more attentively.
4. Switch up your choice of snacks
Snacking is a big culprit for weight gain, so pay attention to your snacking habits. This doesn’t necessarily mean stopping snacking all together – it’s good to eat small, healthier snacks between meals if your belly’s rumbling.
Just make smart snacking choices. Low-fat and low-sugar options are best, like fat-free yogurt, fruit, nuts, etc.
5. Eat breakfast every day
Studies show that people who eat breakfast every day tend to have healthier eating habits overall. A healthy breakfast packed with goodness not only sets your day up nicely and encourages you to make better choices, but it also kick-starts your metabolism.
A bowl full of overnight oats will always be a much better choice than a measly cup of coffee.
6. Pack your meals with plenty of protein
Instead of packing your meals with carbs (rices, pastas, potatoes, etc.), try introducing more protein to your diet. Protein is a key component of keeping weight off, simply because it helps reduce your appetite and promotes the feeling of fullness.
High protein foods include: eggs, lean meats, dairy products, and plenty of veggies like lentils, chickpeas, or green peas.
7. Prioritize exercise in your routine (especially weight-lifting)
It goes without saying that exercise is vital for maintaining weight loss.
Not only does it increase your metabolism but it’s also a great way to burn any extra calories.
Whilst cardio is great for burning fat, lifting weights is one of the best ways to preserve your metabolic rate and build more muscle mass.
So next time you’re in the gym, ditch the treadmill and head to the dumbbell section instead for a spot of resistance training.
8. Find a peer support system
It takes a lot of mental and emotional power to lose weight, so we recommend finding a peer support system that knows exactly what it takes to achieve your goals. Keep striving with them in toe.
It’s also good to have a buddy there to provide honesty when you need it and hold you accountable if things start to go wrong. Having a gym partner also works wonders for motivation. You’re in this together.
9. Make sure you get enough sleep
Never underestimate the power of a good night’s sleep.
In fact, many studies show that sleep deprivation plays a major role in weight gain – mostly due to hormone imbalance and the likelihood of you making bad decisions around what you eat. So make sure you establish a good nighttime routine. Or just try heading to bed an hour earlier. That doesn’t sound too bad, does it?
10. Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate!
Drinking plenty of water is another important part of weight maintenance. After all, our bodies are around 60% water. So make sure you have at least two to three liters of water a day. Preferably more.
Not only does water promote fullness and reduce your symptoms of hunger, but some studies also show it helps your body burn more calories.
11. Don’t forget to treat yourself
Last but certainly not least, it’s important you stop punishing yourself by massively restricting what you eat. If you tell yourself you’re not allowed any more takeaways, the more you’re going to crave one.
And it’s perfectly fine to have a takeaway once in a while anyway. It’s okay to treat yourself to the super high-calorie food that you love the most – especially when you’ve been working so hard at work or in the gym. Just make sure you’re maintaining a balanced diet and avoid over purging.