How often have you triumphantly lost weight, only to accumulation the weight again? A lot of people struggle with this dilemma most of their lives.
What Causes Yo-yo Dieting?
It may seem that cutting drastically on your food intake will bring quick results. Sooner or later, however, your body prepares itself for fewer calories coming in. Your body will adapt to this lowered calorie intake by conserving energy and metabolic rate (the way your body burns food for energy). The weight loss that was earlier attained starts to slow down or stop. Most individuals struggle to maintain their diet at this point. And the weight slowly starts to creep up again.
What's worse, the decrease in metabolic rate causes their body to survive on fewer calories. Another problem with quick weight loss fad diets is that the body becomes more efficient with each dieting event. This stringent calorie restriction causes a decrease in muscle tone. Familiar signs are sagging buns and flabby upper arms.
Suggestions to Yo-Yo Dieting
Instead of hoping for a rapid weight loss, take a more long term sustainable approach. Your goal should be for a modest weight loss. I you plan on decreasing caloric intake, do it gradually. Depending on how much you have to lose, two hundred up to a 500 calories decrease a day would be commendable. Do not think of your diet as a temporary measure, but a healthy living plan.
Incorporate additional movements such as taking the stairs or parking far from the entry way into your daily life to increase your level of physical activity.
Eat smaller meals throughout the day instead of skipping them especially breakfast. This will prevent you from overeating later on.
Emotional Overeating
What if your problem is not consistently crash dieting? Could you be a habitual eater? Do you have to have that butter-laden popcorn when you watch a movie? Perhaps you are an emotional eater. Do you skip meals when stressed and overeat when bored?
Overcome emotional overeating
It's time to examine what is causing you to use food to solve your emotional eating habits. Find an alternate to eating. Try taking a walk to clear your head. Invite your friends to a game of miniature golf on your birthday. Have healthy snacks at your place of work. You can grab these instead of the junk in the vending machine.
Manage your hunger by eating small meals frequently. Do not go hungry. When you go hungry, you could make poor choices or overeat. Do not eat to 100% fullness! Yes, you can train your body to be satisfied at 60% capacity. It's okay to leave food on your plate. YOu are not helping poverty ridden countries by cleaning your plate.
You know what junk food can do to you. Therefore, just get rid of them. Instead stock your kitchen with whole-grain breads, vegetables and fruit.
Corny or not, do things to remind you of your goal. Put up a sign at your desk that say: A year from now, you may wish you started today. Maybe put a refrigerator sign that says: When I cheat on my weight-loss goal, I am cheating on me.
Lastly, do not fall off the wagon. It's okay to overeat as long as you get back on track right away instead of punishing yourself and feeling miserable.