Here are some tips on avoiding those pesky extra kilos.
As Bryan Hoare has mentioned in a previously, weight loss or weight gain comes down in general to basic mathematics. You need to burn the same amount of energy that you put in. If you burn more, your weight goes down (in a general sense, since there are other physiological and psychological factors that can play a part).
We can do 2 things; exercise more to burn those extra calories, and recognise what you are fueling your body with and be ‘smarter’ in how you do it. The first one is easy. The second – well, that’s where I come in!
As much as I don’t particularly like the calorie counting method, it does come in handy every now and then. Firstly, we are not setting a daily calorie level but rather recognising how many calories are in certain winter foods or drinks. How many of these we are consuming extra to that of our ordinary diet? How should we adjust the rest of our day? How can we make smarter choices?
Step 1 – Eat smaller portion controlled meals frequently (4 – 6 times per day).
Step 2 – Learn a little more about the types of foods you put into your body and what effects they have, looking at things like the Glycemic Index (GI), complex or simple carbohydrates, animal or vegetable or sources of protein, effects on blood sugar level responses etc. This will help to educate you in the long run to help you to be more self-aware and self-responsible. There are many great general information books around to help you with this all available at most bookstores.
Step 3 – Avoid all extra sources of simple sugars, which can come from things like fruit juices, sugar from your coffee/tea, “crap” snack or processed foods, and so on.
By coupling these steps together you will see an overall drop in caloric intake from your normal daily diet throughout the day, with an increase in caloric burn.