It’s that time of year again: the papers are full of articles ‘how to get fit’ to look like a kawaii doll, your Instagram and Facebook feed is full of pictures of chicken and broccoli dinners, and the streets are full of runners pounding the pavements.
We’re all frantically trying to balance out the festive indulgence which shouldn’t have occurred in the first place. It’s great that everyone is encouraging everyone else to be the healthiest versions of themselves possible. Just a shame it doesn’t last all year, eh? Many people are joining the large majority of the world on their January health-kick.
Women all over the world struggle with their weight and get really stressed out and upset about it. But it’s silly. Why do we let it become such an issue when we ourselves are the only ones who can do anything about it? The power is 100% in our hands. And yours. So, instead of wallowing in a fat state of despair, eating every last chocolate in the house, it’s better to do something about it and get a little slimmer.
Let’s slim down, get fitter and feel healthier starting now
We’re all capable of this. Once you set your mind to something, you can do anything. It might be useful for anyone else trying to shift the Christmas bulge. This is how to do it.
1. Let yourself spend more on healthier food choices. As a student or generally someone on a low-budget, it can be hard to justify spending more money on expensive but healthy foods. Do it. It’s worth it for your health.
2. Remember willpower is like a muscle – the more you use it, the stronger it gets. At first, it’ll be ridiculously hard to say no to treats when they’re thrust into your face, but the more you do it the easier it’ll become to resist temptation. Soon you won’t even think about it.
3. Allow yourself one treat a day. It’s not a must to go on a weird hardcore diet or eliminating everything ‘bad’ from your diet – it’s a healthy lifestyle change which needs to be maintainable.
4. Have one carb-free meal a day. And switch to complex carbs wherever possible (ie. Brown bread instead of white, sweet potatoes instead of normal.)
5. Stop finishing other people’s food.
6. Remember how bad the ‘food guilt’ will feel after you over-indulge, and think about how GREAT you’ll feel after resisting or going for the lighter option.
7. Try the 5:2 diet. Or even the 6:1 diet (not an actual thing but it worked for me.) This is the diet that took the world by storm in 2018 and seems to work for everyone.
8. Remember food is only food. It’ll taste good for a few seconds, but the taste will vanish and – let’s be real here – you’re only going to poop it out a few hours later.
9. Find an exercise you like. InstructorLive may be a good choice. It’s cheap, convenient and fun. Hate running? Think outside the box! Dance around your room, hula hoop, skip, get a workout video.
10. Weigh yourself once a week and once a week only, at the same time each week – ideally, just after waking up and going to the loo. Once you start to see progress it is the most inspiring and encouraging thing ever. Of course, the number on the scales isn’t everything – you may be gaining muscle, and some people prefer to measure their inches, but I think weight is the easiest.
11. Eat with smaller cutlery and slower. Studies show these both help you eat less, so why not, eh? You can’t argue with studies!
12. Have a goal in mind. You put weight on over a long period of time, so don’t expect to drop it like that *clicks fingers*. A lot of people find it helpful to have a target, perhaps to lose a stone over 10 weeks or something like that. Experts say 1-2lbs a week is a healthy rate.
13. Find exciting healthy recipes. I’m a big fan of my BBC Good Food Low Fat recipe book, which was a present from my sister (I took the hint), as well as a couple of great bloggers, Deliciously Ella and Nic’s Nutrition. Oh, and I’ve got a few skinny treats in amongst all the calorie-fests on my own recipe section too (sorry for the shameless self-promotion.) If you have delicious-looking recipes that you can’t wait to try, you won’t get bored of bland, healthy food.
14. Make healthier food and drink swaps. Try not to drink your calories, whether that’s in alcohol, smoothies or fizzy drinks. Such a waste.
15. Tell some people (but not too many) what you’re doing. A little encouragement and understanding can go a long way when you’re struggling, but some people go a bit weird when they discover their friends are trying to slim down. Find what works for you.
DON’T STRESS! It’s not the end of the world if you don’t lose any weight one week. And if you don’t want to lose weight and are healthy and happy.