The 7 Golden Diet rules to Prevent Weight Gain

The journey to effective weight loss and being in better shape both physically, mentally, and emotionally is a great journey filled with many obstacles that you must overcome to achieve your goal. The good news is It Can Be Done. In fact, it is being done daily by thousands of people.

Realizing this, we take to the gym, we change our eating habits to healthier food choices and we persevere, knowing that if we can just stay the course for a bit, we should reach the goals we have set for ourselves. Amazingly one day you get up, step on the scale and the scale turns to a smiling emoji, corners of the lips turned up and beaming, you realize that it’s you smiling and beaming as you have reached your goals. Congratulations!

You also begin to realize that the hard work isn’t over. Now that you have achieved your goal, you have to maintain it or it’s back to square one again. Well, the more good news is that it’s not that hard, you have already done most of the hard work, hence the smile. Below are a few tips to help you maintain your newfound weight loss such as change It Up

Change It Up

balanced-diet

The basis of a healthy, balanced diet is variety. Food variety means eating a wide variety of foods from each of the five food groups, in recommended amounts. Eating many different foods helps maintain a healthy and interesting diet which provides a range of different nutrients to the body. Eating a variety of foods promotes good health and can help reduce the risk of disease.

The more fruits and vegetables you incorporate into your diet, the more benefits you’ll reap. Any base meal, such as a salad, or a dish with an entree can be varied infinitely. All you have to do is change the vegetable of choice, seasonings, and sauces if you need them. A fruit salad for a meal will also add an interesting variety to your dining options

Include Good Carbs

Include-Good-Carbs

Cutting carbs might help you lose weight quickly, but you’ll also lose out on important nutrients. Whole-grain products, not only bread but foods like quinoa and Lentils, for example, are excellent sources of essential vitamins and minerals. When consumed in the right quantities, they won’t make you gain weight! Their rich fiber content also makes them especially satiating, which helps fight snack cravings between meals. Dietary fiber — found mainly in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes — is probably best known for its ability to prevent or relieve constipation. But foods containing fiber can provide other health benefits as well, such as helping to maintain a healthy weight and lowering your risk of diabetes, heart disease, and some types of cancer

Prioritize Fresh Produce

Prioritize-Fresh-Produce

Fruits and vegetables are low in fat, salt, and sugar. They are a good source of dietary fiber. As part of a well-balanced, regular diet and a healthy, active lifestyle, a high intake of fruit and vegetables can help you to: Reduce obesity and maintain a healthy weight. Fresh produce is ideal, and it’s usually best eaten raw, as cooking sometimes strips away vital nutrients. Also, always try to eat in season!

 

Slow down Salt and Refined Sugars

Sal- and-Refined-Sugars

Excessive sodium consumption is a common culprit in poor diets. It’s what gives us that puffy look from retaining too much water. When you consume too much salt, the extra water stored in your body raises your blood pressure. The more salt you eat, the higher your blood pressure.

This will increase the strain on your heart, your arteries, kidneys, and brain. This in turn can lead to heart attacks, strokes, dementia, and kidney disease. A good alternative to excessive salt usage is to switch to fresh herbs and spices for added flavor instead.

Refined Sugars

Refined sugar comes from sugar cane or sugar beets, which are processed to extract the sugar.  It is typically found as sucrose, which is the combination of glucose and fructose. A diet high in refined carbs, including sugary foods and drinks, has been associated with a higher risk of developing acne. Foods with a high glycemic index, such as processed sweets, raise your blood sugar more rapidly than foods with a lower glycemic index

Refined sugars can be found in

Granola cereals or bars, Ketchup-based salad dressings, Yogurt, Frozen meals, Dried cranberries, Fruit juice, BBQ and other sauces, White wine.

High Fructose Corn Syrup: is made from processed corn starch. HFCS is produced by breaking down the starch into a syrup made of the sugar glucose. Manufacturers then add enzymes to the substance to convert some of the glucose into fructose, which tastes much sweeter.

Many serious diseases have been linked to the overconsumption of fructose. HFCS and sugar have been shown to drive inflammation, which is associated with an increased risk of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and cancer. The high insulin levels caused by sugar could also fuel tumor growth Many products are made using HFCS According to Healthline.com here are a few

Products with High Fructose Corn Syrup.

Soda Salad Dressing Canned fruit
Candy and candy bars Frozen Junk Foods.. (Pizza, etc..) Juice
Sweetened Yogurt Bread Boxed Dinner… (Mac&Cheese)
Breakfast Cereals Coffee Creamer Nutrition Bars
Energy Drinks Icecream Store-bought baked goods

We will discuss this more in another blog post

Drink more Water

Drink-more-Water

Keeping hydrated is crucial for health and well-being, but many people do not consume enough fluids each day. Around 60 percent of the body is made up of water, and around 71 percent of the planet’s surface is covered by water. Perhaps it is time for drinking more water to move to the top of people’s lists of priorities.

Although there is no universally agreed quantity of water that must be consumed daily, according to Medical News Today, Water is essential for the kidneys and other bodily functions. When dehydrated, the skin can become more vulnerable to skin disorders and wrinkling. Drinking water instead of soda can help with weight loss.

. Here are but a few benefits of drinking water every day.

It lubricates the joints It regulates body temperature The airways need 
It forms saliva It cushions the brain and spinal cord It prevents kidney damage
It boosts skin health It helps maintain blood pressure It boosts exercise performance
It cushions the brain It delivers oxygen through the body Helps boost weight loss
It flushes body waste The digestive system depends on it  Delivery minerals nutrients

We will discuss drinking water more in another blog post.

Make your mealtime Special

Make-your-mealtime-Special

Whether it be breakfast before work, lunch at your desk, or dinner out, meals are meant to be enjoyed. It might not always be feasible, but people who eat slowly and consciously end up feeling more satiated than those who scarf down their food. It’s also an optimum moment to take a break from everyday stress. Try to make mealtimes a priority so you can enjoy what you’re eating and stop when you’re full.

Work it Out

Work-it-Out
Woman and man walking on a treadmill and people walking in the park

An essential part of maintaining the progress you have made and maintaining the goal you have achieved is through regular exercise. Regular physical activity is essential for maintaining a healthy body. Exercise is defined as any movement that makes your muscles work and requires your body to burn calories.

There are many types of physical activity, including swimming, running, jogging, walking and dancing, and weight training and resistance exercise to name a few. Being active has been shown to have many health benefits, both physically and mentally. It may even help you live longer.

Here are a few reasons to incorporate exercise into your routine.

It helps with weight loss It reduces the risk of chronic disease It helps relaxation and sleep 
It helps skin health It’s good for your muscles and bones It increases energy
It can make you feel happier It helps brain health and memory It can give you a better sex Life
     

We will discuss exercising more in other blog posts…

30 to 60 minutes of moderate physical activity will help you to maintain the weight you have lost. Your sleeping habits should improve as well, but still! Various studies conducted it has shown that physical activity promotes well-being, creates a more positive body image, and burns additional calories. If you want to prevent weight gain, it’s definitely a must!

Leave a Reply