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One of the quickest ways to increase your fitness and feel great is to drop some weight.
Lose a mere five pounds and you’ll be stronger and quicker and have more endurance.
Why? Think of how you feel after carrying a loaded backpack for a while. You remove it and
feel energized, as light as a feather. That’s your power plant, your muscles, heart and
lungs that are as strong as always, becoming more efficient because they’re not carrying
as much. Now think of vehicles: If you put a powerful V-8 engine in a lightweight sports
car, you’ll get reckless speed and power. But put that same engine in a truck and you’ll
get sluggish performance. These reasons are exactly why top athletes strive to cut all
excess weight.
Of course, most of us are not sports stars trying to get on the cover of a Wheaties box.
We’re average people interested in fitness, health, fun, and doing well in those sports we
enjoy. Still, we have a huge advantage over the professional athlete. He or she is already
super trim, so performance gains come only through strenuous training. Meanwhile, most of
us can improve simply through discipline and shedding a few pounds. Here are a few eating
tips that have helped me drop a few pounds and feel fitter. Maybe they’ll work for you,
too:
- Brain Food. Use this idea whenever necessary: You’ve probably tasted every goodie,
every calorie-loaded sweet out there at one time or another. The next time you’re faced
with the opportunity to gobble some luscious dessert, instead of giving in, recall the
last time you ate that treat, and remember how it tasted. Try to convince yourself that
you’ve had enough chocolate cake in your life; you’ve been there, done that; you can pass
this time around.
- Stop the Soda. If you consume a lot of soda pop, you’re loading yourself with
calories to satisfy your thirst. It’s probably because it’s easier and cheaper to buy
soda than just about anything, which is why I drink so much, too. But try this trick: Buy
flavored sparkling mineral water (zero calories) when grocery shopping. Then always carry
a supply and drink it instead of the soda. It’s not as sweet as soda pop, but the
carbonation is there, and in time you may learn to love it (I have).
- Reward Yourself. Having a treat to look forward to can work wonders. Say you crave
Ben & Jerry’s ice cream. Promise yourself that you can have some after reaching a certain
goal, maybe working out for three days or finishing an event. Knowing it’s yours if you
can reach the goal will help motivate, and having it in mind will take your mind off
bingeing. In the end, you may even decide you don’t need the ice cream.
- Snuff Suppertime Snacks. Do you dive into the cupboards as soon as you get home from
work? Bad move. You’ll load up on fat, sugar, and calories and then continue the stuffing
when dinner’s ready. Instead, plan dinner for an early hour and resist the urge to snack
beforehand by drinking that tasty bottled water I mentioned.
- Set a Dining Deadline. You burn more calories when you’re up and about. Yet it’s very
easy to keep munching until minutes before your head hits the pillow. Something that can
help is setting a nighttime eating deadline, say 8 p.m. After this hour, you’ll eat no
more until breakfast. As a bonus, you’ll probably find that you feel more energetic in
the evenings and sleep better, too.
- Walk this Way. To take your mind off food in the evenings after dinner, try a walk
around the block. It gets you away from the kitchen and relaxes the body helping you get
to bed.
- Breakfast is Best. Focusing on breakfast is a great trick in the evening when you’re
craving a snack but know you don’t really need it. Imagine a king’s breakfast and look
forward to treating yourself in the morning when you get up. Oddly enough, this will help
you get past the craving before bed, yet when you wake, you’ll probably only have the
appetite for a normal breakfast, not that feast you
envisioned.
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