TRAIN YOURSELF
You may even want to try different recipes and decide what works for you before you begin your training program. Experiment with different seasonings, try a variety of vegetables, and find which microwave settings work best for preheating food. By the time you're ready to start, you'll have the supplies you need and the confidence that you know what you're doing. Then, fix your meals in advance and freeze them. It's important to shop at least once a week. If you forget, you'll run out of good food and be tempted to cheat on your meals.
Get containers to store your food. Purchase plastic storage containers, sports bottles, a water jug and a cooler to store and carry your food. Having nutritious meals within reach during a hectic day can keep you on track.
LOSE FAT, NOT WEIGHT
What... Weight Loss is Bad Your Saying??? Yes it is! Fat loss is the KEY to long term weight loss. Weight includes Fat, Muscle, and Water. Losing lean muscle tissue causes your metabolic rate (the rate at which you burn fat) to slow down drastically. Keeping muscle and even building lean muscle sends your metabolic rate into overdrive. Building lean muscle will allow you to be able to eat more calories and still lose weight because you will need to feed you new muscles. The best way to prevent muscle loss and build lean muscle is to lift weight and eat more protein.
THE BEST TIME TO CARBOLOAD
We all love carbohydrates. They're delicious and fun to eat. But eating too much and the wrong type of carbohydrates can lead to weight gain. But there is one crucial time when you must eat carbs to HELP you lose weight and build muscle.
When is it? After you work out.
When you work out your muscles are starving for nutrients -- especially carbohydrates. So if you feel the urge to "pig out" on carbohydrates do it after your workout. It will actually help your weight loss journey.
WORLD'S CHEAPEST APPETITE SUPPRESSANT
WATER! Take your body weight and divide it in half. That's how many fluid ounces of water you should be drinking each day. Water is the cheapest appetite suppressant you will ever consume...So drink it in to be thin!
HAVE YUR CAKE AND EAT IT TOO
Try not to banish certain foods when dieting. Don't tell yourself that you can NEVER have something again because you will immediately crave it. People need to eat fats to be healthy as well, just make sure that you're eating them in moderation, and maybe try to balance out a fatty food you ate earlier in the day by choosing celery sticks over chips for your snack. Try to get yourself to think, "I know I CAN have it, but should I have it?"
EAT MORE FIBER
Fiber makes us feel full sooner and stays in our stomach longer than other substances we eat, slowing down our rate of digestion and keeping us feeling full longer. Due to its greater fiber content, a single serving of whole grain bread can be more filling than two servings of white bread. Fiber also moves fat through our digestive system faster so that less of it is absorbed. Refined grains like white rice and those used to make white bread and sugary breakfast cereals have had most of their fiber and nutrients stripped away. They turn into blood sugar (glucose) so fast that, like sugar itself, they can cause a spike in our insulin level. This tells our body that plenty of energy is readily available and that it should stop burning fat and start storing it. Eating foods with plenty of fiber will help keep our blood sugar at a more consistent level.
HAVE SIX MEALS A DAY
Eat 5 - 6 healthy, small meals per day. Men should shoot for 6 meals a day while women should try to get in 5 meals per day. Yes, you heard me right and you may have heard it before, but please take notice this time. Frequent, small, healthy meals provide a number of benefits that will help you reach the highest fitness level possible. Frequent eating revs up your metabolism due to the thermic effect of food. This is because the breakdown and absorption of food itself requires a substantial number of calories. You will feel 10x better by eating smaller, more frequent meals. Your energy level will soar and your hunger cravings will be destroyed. This is because eating 5 to 6 meals per day helps maintain a balanced blood sugar level, preventing hunger attacks. This is in direct contrast to the calorie depriving diets that send your blood sugar levels into havoc, with too many peaks and valleys. In addition to all these benefits you will never feel deprived.
EAT EARLY
The human body follows a circadian rhythm, which means that the same foods eaten at breakfast and lunch are processed differently than when eaten at dinner. Studies show that when you eat your daily protein and fat at breakfast you tend to lose weight and have more energy; however, eating the same things at dinner tend to increase tendencies toward weight gain. I suggest that you eat your last meal of the day by 7 p.m.