The Small But Poderoso Steps for Easy Weight Loss

Let’s face it. We want to go full-force when it comes to losing weight. But often factors beyond our control get in the way of shedding the pounds or keeping them off for good. We need an easy weight loss plan, but with the best weight loss results. Losing weight doesn’t just depend on how much ejercicio and cutting back you do; how you do it is just as important. Las Fabulosas culled easy-to-implement tips from three experts on how to go about losing weight.

Porciones

1. “Eat small meals every 3 hours,” says Jenny Patrizia, author of Big Taste, Little Money: Healthy & Delicious Family Meals For Under $10. “We are meant to graze. It keeps our sugar levels at a balance and therefore controls our hunger.”

2. Serve your meals on salad plates. “It helps with portion control and caloric count,” adds Patrizia. “It also helps you stop when you feel full and keeps you from over eating.”

3. Aim for 80 to 90 grams of daily protein (pending you have no kidney problems). “Protein requires more energy to digest than carbohydrates,” says Lauren Minchen, RDN, CDN, explaining that we burn more calories by simply digesting the protein. She also suggests eating adequate protein, particularly when losing weight, to decrease the amount of lean muscle mass loss.

Ejercicio

1. For easy weight loss, build a body that loses for you. According to Minchen, adding weights, two to four times per week, to a thirty-minute ejercicio schedule, makes mujeres lean and toned. “Many women refuse to participate in weight training because they are afraid that they will bulk up,” she says. But, unlike men, they do not produce the testosterone levels, so they won’t become bulky. “One pound of muscle burns an extra 40-50 calories per day,” she says, adding that more calories burn at rest when you add lean muscle tissue. So choose ejercicio that helps your body help you!

Scheduling

1. One of the best weight loss tips is eating to lose weight. Start your day by eating desayuno within an hour of waking up. According to nutrition expert Manuel Villacorte, MS, RD, it is the most important meal that drives your entire day. Having a healthy and complete breakfast “determines how much you’re going to eat at 4:00 p.m.,” says the San Francisco-based author of Eating Free: The Carb-Friendly Way to Lose Inches, Embrace Your Hunger, and Keep the Weight Off for Good. Villacorte also points out that a sound breakfast keeps ghrelin, a hormone that “controls our hunger and drives our appetite,” in check.

2. According to Villacorte, combining carbohydrates and protein at every meal gives the “optimal blend of nutritional elements to fight cravings, control hunger, gain energy, and stimulate fullness.” Carbohydrates, for example, lower ghrelin, help with brain function, and decrease cravings. Protein, on the other hand, “increases your metabolism and helps keep ghrelin down.” Villacorte suggest a salad with chicken or fish for lunch. “Add a carbohydrate such as quinoa, garbanzo beans, lentils, or brown rice,” he says. And for a snack, have “an apple and a piece of turkey, low-fat cheese, or a hard-boiled egg.”