Frugal Weight Loss For a New You in this New Year

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2012!!  Many have resolved to lose weight in 2012, that's awesome!!  You don't have to spend a lot of money to achieve your goals.  I am not a doctor, dietitian, or weight loss professional.  I am, however, a stay at home mom, and a former weight loss counselor.  I used to feel HORRIBLE about the amount my former company charged their clients to put them on a weight loss program.  I will tell you how to reach a HEALTHY goal weight without going to classes, meetings, weigh in's, etc.

1.  Cut your portion size in HALF.  This is easy to do by applying a few tricks:

• Instead of eating on a big plate, switch to a salad plate.
• If you order in the drive through, throw out HALF of your meal BEFORE you start to eat.

2.  Eat protein for breakfast.  If you don't normally eat breakfast, Adkins shakes are a great breakfast meal because they are full of protein and are low carb...and they taste great too!

3.  Cut your carbohydrate intake.  Here are a few tricks:

• Switch from white bread to 100% whole wheat bread.
• Switch from regular pasta to wheat pasta.
• Switch from Sugar to Splenda.

4.  Drink 64oz of water per day.  Don't over do the water, you will get bloated.  If you don't like to drink plain water, MIO water enhancer is wonderful, and has zero anything (sugar, calories, etc).  You can find MIO at Wal-Mart, Target, and most grocery stores.

5.  Don't eat a heavy starch with a heavy protein.  Here's a good rule of thumb:  Red with green, white with white.

• If you want potatoes, eat it with a light protein such as chicken or fish.
• If you want a steak, eat it with vegetables.

6.  If you have a craving, don't deny yourself, just watch your portion size.  I, personally, am addicted to french fries.  If I'm craving fries, I allow myself a "kid meal" portion in the drive through and eat it mid-day.  Not to say you should do this every day, but every now and then is perfectly fine.

7.  STAY AWAY from bananas and pears until you get the weight off.  These two fruits have a lot of natural sugars.  Once you get to your goal weight, resume eating these.

8.  Switch your milk to skim cow milk or low fat soy or almond milk.

9.  No carbonated drinks or juice.

10.  If you crave sweets for an afternoon pick me up, etc....have two sugar free hard candies.  Make them last.

11.  Don't eat within 1 hour of bed time and try to cook at home.  If you're a mom of small kids, try not to eat their leftovers (come on, we all do it).

12.  Get outside and do some exercise, go for a walk, ride a bike, play with your kids, etc.  Have fun with it, you're more likely to stick to it.

You should expect to lose between 1/2 pound and 1 1/2 pounds per week.  Some weeks will be more, some will be less.  You will hit plateaus, don't get discouraged.  Get plenty of sleep (6-8 hours) per night if you can.

I hope this helps you attain your goals!!  Have a great new year!!