Sticking to a diet or exercise regimen can be difficult.
You start out excited about the latest diet trend or exercise routine. At first, everything looks great and you probably lose a few pounds at the beginning.
Then, your scale stops moving and the thought of exercising in the morning makes you want to go back to sleep. Finally, you give up altogether and fall back into old (bad) habits.
Exercise is useful because it helps us burn calories but it isn’t necessary, and neither are diet pills. If you want to know how to lose weight without exercise or diet pills, read on.
The below seven tips will produce sustainable results every time.
1. Breakfast Is The Most Important Meal of The Day
Many people skip breakfast to cut down on total calorie intake for the day. But did you know that this is the most important meal of your day?[1]
Breakfast is the best way to start your day and a meal packed with vital nutrients will keep you energized. It will stave off hunger and help you burn fat.
Eating first thing in the morning will also kick-start your metabolism and keep it active all day.
Choose your breakfast wisely though. If it’s packed with fresh foods lean proteins, whole grains, and fiber, you’ll full and energized.
2. Boost Your Metabolism with Caffeine
Adding caffeine to your diet is a good way to boost your metabolism. Caffeine has been used for ages to manage weight because of its thermogenic properties. [2]
With caffeine, you will feel energetic and your body will be thrown into a fat burning mode. This is not to say that you should load up on caffeine all day.
One or two cups a day will give you all the benefits that you need without the jitters.
3. Stay Hydrated to Lose Weight
There are many benefits of drinking more water. It can help you lose weight and is especially useful if taken before a meal. This way, you eat less and not feel any deprivation.
One study discovered that drinking a liter of water before a meal reduced hunger and helped the participants eat fewer calories.
Over a period of 4 weeks, 44% more fat was burnt by participants who took water when compared to those who didn’t.
Also if you swap out sugary drinks with water, you’ll experience more weight loss overall. Learn more here.
4. Increase Your Protein Intake
Most popular diet these days call for more protein. This doesn’t mean that carbohydrate is your enemy. But increasing your protein intake will help you build muscles and maintain it.
Lean muscles are an essential component of effective metabolism and fat burning. The good thing about proteins is that it’ll keep you feeling full for longer.
The key is to choose proteins that are low in fat and yet able to supply your body with the required amino acids that it needs.
Lean sources of protein like skinless chicken, lean cuts of beef, non-oily fish, etc., are a great way to pack on the proteins and leave out the fats.
5. Sleep Well and Avoid Stress
We live in a stress-filled world. What many people don’t realize is that sleep and stress can affect their weight and appetite.
There are appetite-regulating hormones in our body called leptin and ghrelin. When disrupted with lack of sleep, they cannot properly regulate our food intake or body weight.
Another important hormone is cortisol. It can get elevated when we are stressed out and disrupts our bodies proper functioning.
Cortisol controls our blood sugar levels, regulates metabolism, and helps reduce inflammation. Disrupting the regular functioning of these hormones can increase food craving and weight gain.
Another reason to sleep well and stress less is to stay healthy and avoid medical conditions like high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes. [3]
6. Eliminate Unhealthy Foods And Sugary Drinks
This is the first thing you want to do when you adopt a healthy lifestyle.
Getting rid of unhealthy foods and drinks can be hard especially if you’ve lived and eaten that way for decades.
Sugar may be the worst ingredient in our diets today!
It is found in everything that we enjoy. But did you know that sugar is responsible for the increase of many modern diseases?
It’s easy to load up on sugar without even knowing it. So you must endeavor to stay away from beverages and foods that are sugary.
There are also other unhealthy foods that are not made of sugar. The trick is to look at your meal and do a mental calculation of the total calories.
If you discover that the carbs or fat percentage are tipping the scales, swap out the offending food with a healthier protein or veggie alternative.
In the last few decades, portion sizes have increased. So cutting down on your portion sizes and spreading your meals throughout the day will also help you lose weight.
7. Be More Active
I know the question on your mind is how to start burning fat without exercise, but being active isn’t exercise at all.
You should look at your everyday activities as an excuse to burn a single calorie – at least.
Walk up the stairs instead of taking the elevator.
Park farther away from your office so you’ll get an opportunity to walk.
Stand while watching TV instead of sitting.
Go shopping instead of ordering online.
Everyday activities that we must do can be used to our benefit. Being active will not help you burn hundreds of calories, but one calorie here, and five calories there will add up over time.
Conclusion
Many simple lifestyle changes can help you lose weight easily. Knowing how to lose weight without exercise boils down to your diet and lifestyle.
You don’t have to try all the above tips at once. Start small and work your way up for sustainable results. Losing weight should be viewed as a long-term lifestyle change and not a quickie attempt at crash dieting.
Remember always to keep track of your calorie consumption. Read the nutrition labels on foods that you purchase so that you can gauge how many calories you take in at each meal.