Whether it’s because of eating stress, boredom or comfort at old-fashioned favorites, many people have gained weight by 2020. Sarah Marion, Ph.D., director of syndicated research at Murphy Research in Seattle, said in an email TODAY that on any given This year, 53% of U.S. adults (18 years and older) have their C , D- or F-grade given to manage their weight; Only 17% have an A. for themselves. And according to her, 95% of adults think about weight management, at least a few times.
If you are worried about your weight and want to make some healthy changes, there is an incredible amount of advice available on how to lose weight, but really, healthy weight loss comes down to just five basic principles. Use it to increase your chances of losing weight in 2021.
1. Exercise healthy eating habits
Some diet strategies seem to have more impact than others, so if you are trying to lose weight in the next year, you should consider the following advice:
- Eat more vegetables.
- Mostly enjoy whole foods.
- Limit the amount of added sugars and processed foods you eat.
Veggies play their role by filling in more food without doing too many calories. This principle is called volumetry, and it provides the calorie deficit needed for weight loss, without concentrating on calorie restriction or feeling hungry. And it is supported by science. Studies support volume-eating for weight loss and, more importantly, maintaining weight loss. This means that these tactics help them to keep it off among people who have lost weight.
Whole foods are also fuller and more satisfying than the processed foods that replace them. Foods made with heavily processed grains, such as pizza, cut through the digestive system and leave you hungry shortly after you eat. Nearly 60% of what we eat comes from this category of less healthy foods. One small study has suggested that foods like these promote weight gain, probably because they are designed to be incredibly tasty and because they are softer and easier to chew. This makes it easier to eat, and therefore easier to eat too much.
Processed foods also have more calories per bite, which means they have a higher energy density. Additional research has found that people tend to eat the same amount of food, so foods with a higher energy density can lead to weight gain because you are unlikely to reduce your portion size if you choose these foods, which can give you a calorie surplus. .
Healthy weight loss does not have to be too complicated, nor does it have to include a laundry list of foods to exclude. Findings from another year-long study showed that the following three basic principles outlined above were more important than the type of diet (low-fat or low-carbohydrate) participants followed.
2. Notice why you eat
2020 was the year of stress and comfortable eating – two behaviors that can contribute to weight gain. If you are trying to lose weight, it is helpful to distinguish between emotional and physical hunger.
Emotional eating does not have to be avoided at all costs. Sometimes it’s soothing to take part in casual meals – and it’s perfectly healthy to enjoy a holiday meal or a traditional recipe that provides a lot of joy. However, if eating is a way to deal with your emotions or stress, it can lead to overeating, undermining your mental health and making it harder to control your weight.
The first step to breaking this habit is to identify your emotional triggers, whether happiness, sadness, anger, fear, tension, boredom or other feelings. The next step is to find an alternative to eating when these feelings arise. For example, if you feel stressed or angry, it can help to burn some of your negative emotions by going for a walk.
3. Adopt an “I have it” attitude
How confident are you that you can make healthy changes to your eating habits? Studies suggest that an ‘I have it’ attitude, known in the behavioral science world as self-efficacy, is associated with behavioral changes that promote weight loss. In one study among 246 mostly female participants, self-efficacy at baseline or building it while losing weight was strongly linked to greater weight loss. People with this skill set were able to bounce back faster when experiencing setbacks, so instead of giving up, they were more likely to reconnect, making them more likely to lose weight and maintain their results.
To promote your self-efficacy, determine one achievable change that you can make to further your goal. Suppose you decide to tackle the snack habit you have picked up in quarantine. Instead of saying, “I’m going to snack less,” you set a specific goal, such as “I will eat fruit with a snack at least three times a week.” Then decide how you are going to do it, start by adding fruit to your shopping list. While your plan is in place, you will encounter hurdles (such as running out of bananas in the middle of the week), and you will need to resolve issues. Learn to overcome
The obstacles build your confidence, which translates into other habits that you work on.
4. Address stress and sleep issues
According to the 2020 Stress in America Survey conducted by the American Psychological Association (APA), nearly 80% of Americans said the pandemic was a source of stress in their lives, and more than two-thirds said that their stress levels increased during this period.
If your excessive levels are too strong, your body pumps out cortisol, a hormone that increases your appetite and causes cravings for comfort and junk food. Perhaps this is why 86% of surveys by Researchscape International, a market research firm in Sarasota, Florida, on behalf of The Monday Campaigns, a public health initiative affiliated with Johns Hopkins, Columbia and Syracuse universities, reported that it was difficult was to resist junk food. in 2020.
Stress also demands in other ways. Researchers at Ohio State University conducted a study that suggested that stressed women burn 104 fewer calories after a large meal, and they had higher insulin levels, a hormone that promotes fat storage.
Stress also disrupts your sleep, and if you rest too little, it can thwart your weight loss efforts. In one study, participants who spent 5.5 hours in bed (compared to 8.5) experienced an increase in the hormone ghrelin, which makes you hungry, reduces the amount of calories you burn, and promotes fat retention.
You can address stress and sleep issues with tips like these from the APA:
- Create meaningful opportunities to connect with friends and loved ones.
- Practice naming three good things that happened in your day.
- Before going to bed, write down the thoughts that usually keep you awake at night.
- Keep a constant bedtime routine to let your body know it’s time to lay down.
5. Exercise, but not to lose weight
Exercise is very good, including stress relief and better sleep, but it is not as good as you would think to promote weight loss. Results from a study published in November suggest that you should exercise six times a week for weight loss exercise. However, according to the CDC, only half the amount reduces your risk for heart disease, type 2 diabetes and some cancers.
While it makes sense that exercise will lead to weight loss, it makes you hungry and eats more to make up for the calories you have burned. The study found that you need to burn about 3,000 calories a week through exercise to overcome the extra amount you eat when you exercise.
Since sweating six hours a week six times a week is not the idea of a good time, keep the idea of exercising to lose weight aside, and instead look for ways to work out to make you feel good. This will make your workout more likely to stay in the new year.