Please give me your weight loss hacks

[GrossToe]

I’ve got a stone (ish) to lose. Doing My Fitness Pal, tracking calories in/out and trying to limit carbs and be more activity.

But, PLEASE, what are the little hacks that make this easier or more pleasant?

e.g. does drinking a load of water really do anything? What foods fill you up without being too calorific? How do I avoid getting stuck into the kids’ treats when I’m working from home?

Please help me not fail this time…

try and avoid sweet things even if they are in your calories count, it just makes me want more sweet things.

protein - hard boiled eggs are v filling.

keep hydrated.

make sure you track everything and don't kid yourself.

I also am trying to lose about 1 stone. its slow progress, but i'll feel better for it. I've been having soup for lunch (without bread) followed by a piece of fruit. Low calorie and keeps me going until dinner.

good luck.

Protein.

It's the only thing that's shifted my last stone. Protein for breakfast and lunch, small amount of carbs for tea.

No cravings, no hunger pangs.

Agree with the protein. As a veggie I like to eat lots of beans / lentils as they are filling and "slow' carb and high protein meaning they will fill you up a long time and not rush into the blood stream. When I eat them I don't want to eat for hours after.

And look into different fasting regimens. So much easier not to eat at all than to keep eating. E.g OMAD for beginners. Jason Fung (The Obesity Code) is great info on this.

There are no 'hacks' weight loss is essentially simple in theory but most people will try and overcomplicate it often to get money out of you.

Eat when you are hungry and stop when you are not.

Base your nutrition plan on
Lean meats, fish, vegetables, nuts, fruit and limited potatoes/rice/pasta. Cut out processed foods/drinks as much as you can but do allow yourself some treats from time to time.

If you are physically able do some reasonably intense exercise either jogging, weights, cycling, swimming, classes or whatever. You should find the exercise challenging but not exhausting.

This is all you need to do.

Additional point.

You mention drinking loads of water. Please do not do this. Read up on water intoxication and understand that is does nothing whatsoever to factilitate weight loss.

@Soapyspuds I disagree. I understand the concept of too much water. But often times when we think we are hungry we are just thirsty (especially as we age we lose our thirstiness impulse! it's a thing). So a glass of water can be super helpful, and often sate what is actually a thirst reflex wrongly interpreted as hunger. Obviously people shouldn't go overboard. I do find a nice glass of sparkling water especially can help me through a food-less period. OP obviously don't go overboard, don't drink too much, but drinking water is healthy and can help in terms of dieting. And look up the mistaken thirst / hunger thing.

Not sure if it's easier or more pleasant, but these can work:

Watch portion sizes. Portions are often massive, even if people think they are reasonable. Use a side plate as a dinner as it makes your portion look bigger and tricks you into thinking you've had more to eat.

Only ever make enough for one serving (no second helpings). Weigh pasta/rice etc. 50g is loads per person.

Don't buy any treats that you like. If you absolutely have to snack on something, apples are useful as they keep your mouth busy. So does chewing gum.

Brush your teeth immediately after eating.

Be honest about how many calories you're actually consuming. It's easy to tell yourself that the children's snacks or other people's chips don't have any calories in them.

Up your exercise. Walk/cycle wherever you can, for at least an hour a day.

Accept that you don't have to eat just because you feel hungry at 11AM. You can wait until lunchtime.

Don't do faddy diets with fancy names. You need to expend more calories than you consume. That is how you lose weight.

i lost 2 stone 7 lbs in 6 months, so a steady weight loss rate and i've kept it off.

I still haven't found the magic solution but working on the mental side and looking at changing habitual behaviour has been useful.

I try to distract myself when i feel a binge coming on - find something to break the cycle of mindless eating.

It's very hard but eating food is very habitual and addictive.

Chemo. Makes chocolate and wine taste absolutely grim.

Less carbs

@fluffylampbear
Since when was a glass of water too much water?

Reduce alcohol. Lots of empty calories there.

@Soapyspuds who said a glass of water was too much? You told the OP not to drink lots of water. Unless she's drinking a dangerous amount of water (which it's not clear either way if this is the case) then there's no reason for it to be unhealthy. I wasn't being specific in volume when I mentioned "a glass" I was simply advising the OP not to take your advice not to drink water seriously unless she has ascertained that she is indeed taking too much.

It could be, as I explained in my post, helpful, if she is drinking it because of reduced thirst due to age, or like many people mistake thirst for hunger. Drinking water is not necessarily bad, even lots of. The NHS recommends 6 - 8 cups. Some people might term this "a lot" but in reality it isn't.

*Edit: the OP not to take your advice not to drink "loads of" water seriously unless she has ascertained that she is indeed taking too much.

My best tip is to eat your favourite part of the meal first, it means you won't keep eating to make sure you get to the best bit!

Thanks so much all, I hugely appreciate the response. Some great suggestions I shall definitely take forward.

For those suggesting intermittent fasting, am I able to have tea or coffee with milk during the fast? I could definitely skip breakfast but really don’t think I could manage without proper tea in the morning.

My downfalls are, in no particular order, cheese, toast and marmite and mini cheddars. I know protein is the way forward but… it’s just not glorious stodge. And I know I’ll get in the zone when I start seeing results, but these days it seems to take much longer to see any benefits!

And very sorry @WorryMcGee, that puts my whinging in perspective! I hope your appetite and tastes come back soon.

Definitely eating within a set window, I eat between 12-8pm.

This means I don't have breakfast or tea & biscuits in the evening so probably miss 500 calories in total. This definitely helps as I try and stick to 1500 calories per day which is hard enough as it is!

True, but at the weekend I'd rather drink my calories than eat them! 🍸

Find out your body weight in lbs and times it by 0.8. Eat that much in protein for a start, protein fills you more plus your body burns more when digesting protein.

2L water a day

10K steps a day minimum

Go to bed earlier instead of eating lol

Don't restrict yourself and make sure your eating enough, not eating enough holds onto fat.