That 3 word phrase...WEIGHT. LOSS. TIPS.

 Nutrition Tips for Weight-loss and My Secret Weight-loss foods

I've gotten a lot of requests from young ladies who want to read about diet and exercise tips for weight loss. Weight loss is probably the BIGGEST issue women face...we never like our bodies, and always want to lose weight. Before I list some of my helpful tips, I want to clarify something so that you truly understand. When women say that they need to "lose weight" they are usually incorrectly referring to losing any extra fat they have. When you hear the term "weight loss" you immediately assume that the term defines becoming toner, smaller, muscular, and lean. Right? But, pretend there is an average, healthy woman standing in front of you. She can go away for awhile, have a great diet and exercise well, and come back and look muscular, a lot leaner, and tinier, but weigh even more than she did before! Muscle can weigh a lot too...just because someone looks slim and fit doesn't mean that the actual number that represents their weight is low.
So my first tip for weight loss: It isn't so much about the number, but the composition of our bodies. The goal isn't to lose a number, but to change the composition of your body. For most women, that is going to be getting body fat levels to 15-25%.

Weight-loss Nutrition Tips:

1. Drink! ....but cut the alcohol and soda. Drink water and stay hydrated. This keeps you healthy but also changes your weight, because being dehydrated leads to water retention...that means you'll feel heavy and look more bloated.

2. Cut salt...salt/sodium on your food. Salt causes you to retain water. Drinking water helps flush sodium out...but if you're constantly eating salty french fries...you can retain up to 3 lbs. of weight from all that fluid!

3. Chill out when you eat...when you eat fast, you keep eating because your body still feels hungry...you haven't digested all your food! Slow things down...chill out when you eat. Enjoy your food...it takes 20 minutes for your body to feel full. Take a bite, and put your food or fork down. Take. A. Pause. This little action will save you about 2 pounds a month.

4. XXL say what?! All of a sudden something happened in our country, and we have giant plates and
cup sizes everywhere! If you use a smaller plate, you won't pack on triple what you would normally eat. A small plate means a smaller portion. You can always go back for seconds.

5. Splurge a little...Don't deprive yourself! If you go forever without ever having a dessert or a cheat meal, you'll end up going mentally and physically crazy and eating everythinggg in your path that you crave...it's called binging. It's healthy to eat some chocolate once in awhile.

6. Mama was right, breakfast is good for you...throw some protein and fiber into a meal at the beginning of the morning, and start your day of right! This will help your energy and your metabolism. Don't skip breakfast people.

7. Put the TV on pause...Don't eat in front of the TV or your computer. What happens is, you get distracted, and not only do you vacuum up your food without realizing it...you don't even taste it. You end up shoveling endless amounts of food into your mouth without noticing.

8. Snack time...It's ok to snack on heathy foods. What I tell people, is to eat like you're in kindergarten when it comes to snack time. When you were 5, you were fed veggie sticks and yogurt. I make substitutions that are healthy, but remind me of junk food I like. Like for example, chips are absolutely delicious...but instead, I have 2 caramel rice cakes spread with almond butter for my pre-workout snack. It's crunchy and tasty, but isn't full of salt and grease.

9. Fiber...for real. Eating more fiber can help prevent weight gain, and stimulate weight loss. Foods high in fiber are fruits, vegetables, beans, and whole grains. You'll feel fuller from eating these, too!

10. SWEET DREAMS...I know..you think that sleeping for a good amount of time will make you gain weight because you're...well, sleeping. When you don't get enough sleep, you gain weight. It alters hunger hormones that you have...remember when you stayed out late in high school and got really hungry at 3 am. and stopped at McDonalds? When you lose sleep, the part of your brain that controls your self-control is thrown off.

My Top Weight Loss Foods

1. Almonds...in moderation
2. Mushrooms...yepp, that's a weird one
3. Eggs
4. Apples
5. Oatmeal
6. Hot chili peppers
7. Kale
8. Olive oil
9. Beans
10. Peppermint
11. Green tea
12. Kelp
13. Garlic...that DOES NOT mean GARLIC BREAD
14. Cucumber 

15. Berries
16. Fennel
17. Ginger                   
18. Brown rice
19. Avocado
20. Quinoa
21. Natural yogurt
22. Salmon
23. Papaya
24. Celery
25. Lentils