Tools for Weight Maintenance
Posted by Niamh Lonergan | 24th Nov 2021
For many of us, prioritising our health and wellbeing has become more important than ever in the last year. By this time of the year our healthy habits have formed and your healthy eating plan should feel like a part of your daily routine. But as winter sets in and the days get colder and darker, maintaining these healthy habits can be difficult. What are some simple tools we can adopt to maintain the weight loss results that we've achieved?
1. Eat breakfast
How many times have we been told that breakfast is the most important meal of the day? Yet many of us still skip breakfast, which can then have negative impacts on our weight and overall health. Research shows a high fibre breakfast containing a source of protein can help people control their weight over a long period of time and can prevent snacking in between meals.
December can be a busy month, so plan ahead for breakfast by preparing some overnight oats the night before or ordering some of our 400kcal breakfasts to have in the fridge for when you've a busy few days ahead.
2. Keep up the exercise
It can be hard to stay motivated to exercise in the winter, but there's no denying exercise is so important for both our physical and mental health as well as maintaining our weight loss results.
Find a form of exercise that you enjoy! Exercise doesn't have to be a sweaty gym session or a 10k run. Why not try a dance class, pilates, a walking group or a swim this month and reap those exercise endorphins while doing something you enjoy! Can you aim to move your body for even 20 minutes every day this week?
3. Focus on what you can add to your diet NOT what to take out!
The end of the year can bring around a lot of food guilt, but restriction is not the answer! Try to maintain a healthy eating pattern that works for you and includes plenty of healthy foods rather than focusing on what you need to take away from your diet.
For example, instead of omitting carbs from your diet, focus on making a swap from white, refined carbohydrate sources to high fibre carbohydrates from wholegrain bread, brown pasta and brown rice. Or if you're wondering if cutting out dairy is the answer, instead find healthy ways to include it in your diet such as having Greek yoghurt with berries, nuts and seeds as a healthy snack!
4. Keep setting goals
You may have reached one goal but continuing with setting milestones to keep up your healthy diet and exercise regime is a great manageable and motivating tool. Set some healthy habits in place that prioritise your happiness and wellbeing over those solely focused just on achieving weight loss. When you follow healthy habits for enjoyment and wellbeing rather than just on weight loss, you're more likely to stick to these lifestyle changes!
5. Talk to someone if you're struggling with weight maintenance
Did you know we offer complimentary nutrition consultations? We're here to listen and support you with maintaining the great results that you've achieved from our meal plans over the past year!