So you’ve decided that you want to lose weight? Want to start a new diet or exercise plan? Well here are my 5 top tips that you MUST do before and whilst you try to lose weight. If you start doing these tips, I assure you, it will help you to lose weight! Start off with these tips first and it will make losing weight much easier!

1. When you wake up, drink a glass of water.

Please explain..? My suggestion is to drink at least one glass of room temperature water first thing in the morning – before your breakfast or coffee.

Why? Dehydration is responsible for many people feeling tired and fatigue. Some people mistake dehydration for hunger, and can therefore, overeat. Drinking a glass of water in the morning kick starts your body to feel hydrated. Water is great for clearing our system, flushing out the toxins and increasing your metabolism.

2. Eat Breakfast – A big one.  

Please explain..? My suggestion is to eat a good hearty breakfast. Examples would include slow releasing carbohydrates such as oatmeal or whole grains. My favourite breakfast is a bowl of oatmeal, and I put a whole banana cut into pieces with ½ a cup of skim milk, and I put it into the microwave and the banana is mixed all together making the oatmeal sweet. Other breakfast ideas would be anything with eggs on whole wheat bread, low fat yoghurt, muesli and low sugar granola. If you must eat bacon, limit it to a few slices.

Why? This is essential to start off your day on the right foot. You need to fuel your body with the right nutrients. If you skip breakfast, you tend to be starving by the time it comes to lunch time and you will overeat or eat the wrong type of foods (such as fast food) because you are so hungry and just want something to eat straight away. Why should it be a big breakfast? You have all day to burn this off and it gives you more energy to start your day. Eating breakfast really helps you lose weight – set yourself up to succeed!

3. Small Meals – Regularly 

Please explain..? My suggestion is to eat five to six small meals per day. I would structure it as breakfast, then snack two or three hours after, then lunch, another snack about 2 hours after lunch, then dinner. If you’re still hungry after dinner, have a small snack.

Why? When you eat regularly throughout the day, your body knows that more food is on the way and it will not go into starvation mode to save and store the calories. It is more likely to burn the calories you consume than store them as fat. By eating regularly, you are giving yourself less opportunity to overeat, as you will be full from the previous meal you just ate. This really helps in losing weight as it lessens the chances that you’re going to eat binge eat.

4. Eat like a King for Breakfast, a Queen for Lunch and a Pauper for Dinner

Please explain..? My suggestion is to eat your largest meals for breakfast – for example, a bowl of oatmeal with skim milk and a banana; and a boiled egg. Ensure that you are full. Then for lunch, I would eat something that combines carbohydrates, protein and some vegetables – a fistful of each.  E.g. Mash potato, broccoli and salmon. Then for dinner I would make my meal much smaller – protein and vegetables / salad. E.g. Chicken breast with a salad.

Why? Eating your largest meals in the morning gives you all day to burn the calories off. Breakfast should be your largest meal, followed with lunch and then a small dinner. Trust me, this works in helping you lose weight. If you can get use to eat a very small dinner, you will lose weight for sure.

5. Eating healthy, fresh, whole foods 

Please explain..? As you can see, losing weight is all about eating healthy and at the right times. Healthy eating means staying away from fast foods, chips, lollies, soft drink, anything fried. You can still have these in moderation. You should aim to eat a mixture of vegetables, carbohydrates such as rice, potato, sweet potato, and protein such as fish, chicken, beef or any type of meat. Eating foods that have not been processed is key to losing weight.

Why? Eating healthy will help you lose weight. By taking care of what food you put into your body, you will essentially feel great, and your body will thank you for it. You can still have sweets and lollies, but in moderation. Eating healthy includes eating fresh food. If your food is coming out of a tin or a box – you are not eating healthy. Stick to fresh fruit and vegetables, whole cuts of meat and vegetables, and make your own mash potato using whole potatoes, not the instant kind.

In conclusion, you can see that the essential key to losing weight is WHAT YOU EAT. Losing weight starts in the kitchen, and from my top 5 tips to lose weight, you can really tell that this is true. You can really maintain or lose weight by watching what you eat. I know this is true for a fact, as I am living proof that my tips work. Try it out yourself and let me know how you go!

All the best.

Angeli