It is much easier to lose weight if you and your friends do it at the same time. By making simple changes to your lifestyles, you and your friends can avoid the all-or-nothing approach to dieting and lose more weight than you ever thought possible. These 3 weight loss tips will help you lose weight and are great for you and your friends to do together.
1. Load Up On The Veggies.
If you want to lose weight fast you need to eat more good foods and less poor foods. Good foods include things like fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and lean meats or other pure protein sources. With every meal that you have with your friends, make sure that you include two portions of vegetables. Green, leafy vegetables like spinach, broccoli, kale or cabbage have lots of fibre, vitamins and minerals and will fill you up and reduce your yearnings for high calorie foods.
Foods that are fried or processed are generally poor quality foods. When food is deep fried, it increases the amount of calories in that food. Processed foods often have lots of extra salt and sugar to improve the taste. Also, if you’re at your friends house for a buffet remember the rule of portion control. Use a smaller plate and don’t eat next to the food table as you’ll eat more. Take what you want and then sit somewhere else.
2. Get Moving More!
Everybody knows that exercise helps you to lose weight quickly. But when you’re exercising alone, it’s easy to make excuses and skip your workouts. But if you exercise with a friend you can keep each other motivated. You don’t have to spend hours in the gym but you do need to get moving. A 15-minute walk after lunch at steady pace of 3mph can burn approximately 60-70 calories. That equates to 300 calories over a 5-day working week. Also, simple things like parking a little further from work, getting off public transport one stop early or taking the stairs and not the elevator can make all the difference.
3. Drink Less Alcohol.
When you get together with friends, it often involves eating, drinking alcohol or both. Alcohol is very high in calories and causes you to feel hungrier so you eat more. Have a glass of water between each alcoholic drink. This will slow down your alcohol consumption and help you to feel full. You can combat unhealthy snack foods by bringing your own healthier choices or hosting a party with a health-conscious theme. The sensation of hunger and thirst are very similar so if you feel hungry, try drinking a glass of water first. You may just need to hydrate your body.