If you read part one you now my first seven tips of weight loss for me, here are some more. A note about the first post, I did not start all of these changes at once. If you overwhelm yourself you are more likely to revert to bad habits, so pick one or two that might work for you and test those out before you do more.
One thing that has really helped me was to find my peek snack hours. From lunch time until around 4 pm is my danger zone. I want to graze like a prized Hereford. I can't help myself. I've tried to limit myself to breakfast, snack, lunch, snack and dinner. Doesn't work for me. I have found that in the mornings, I'm not as hungry. I do think that having a good breakfast is important, so I do that, but after that I'm good until lunch. I keep a good chunk of my calories for the afternoon. This may not keep my blood sugar level all day, but it keeps me sane, and from beating myself up when I inevitably get the munchies in the afternoon.
Don't allow yourself to go hungry!! When you are hungry you make bad food choices. Mom's are busy people, so plan ahead and throw a banana or some baby carrots in your purse before you run out the door. You don't forget to feed your children (mostly because they a loud, insistent little stinkers) don't forget to feed yourself.
Try new things. Two years ago a friend brought some hummus to a play date. I had never tried it before. I had only vaguely heard of it. That stuff is good! It is now something I keep stocked in my fridge. I'm a big fan of the roasted red pepper hummus. That on a slice of whole wheat bread with some thinly sliced cucumbers is one of my go to meals. It keeps me satisfied for hours and is only 184 calories, full of protein and has very little sugar. I also recently tried grapefruit. I hated it as a kid, and had no interest in trying again, but I forced myself to and I was pleasantly surprised. With a little sugar, and I do mean a little, it was downright yummy. It doesn't hurt to try new things. If you're really lucky, you may find something so revolting you lose your appetite all together for hours! (This was a joke.)
Mommy Tax. I am a big fan of the Mommy Tax. My mom liked the idea so much, she installed the Grandma Tax. I know that weekly pancake breakfasts are not a good choice for me, but my girls love them. So I instilled the Mommy Tax. I get one small bight from one or each of them. These are small little cheats that I allow myself. I get a taste of the good stuff with out wiping out my good intentions for the day. I don't count these little taxes. Just like I don't count every time I burn calories going up the stairs or folding laundry. I figure they balance each other out in the end. And they keep me from pushing over small children in a rush to get the last Snickers at the grocery store.
Stock up on the good stuff, and get it ready! When ever you do your weekly shopping stock up on healthy choices. And even more importantly go home and cut up that cantaloupe, and put those baby carrots into convenient baggies. You are much more likely to make good choices if they are easily available.
Hide the bad! If I have to climb up on the counter move a bunch of canisters just to get to the Oreos, I'm much more likely to go for the peach that's right there, an arm length away. For me it will never be out of sight out of mind, but it is true that I am lazy at heart, and am more likely to make good choices if they are staring me in the face.
Get over it! At some point you will fail. You'll give into temptation and eat one of those amazing 300 calorie cookies from Subway. And for many people, they just say "screw it, I've all ready cheated, I'll start again tomorrow. Pass the pizza." DON'T DO THIS! Enjoy that cookie for all it's worth, but go back to being a good little girl when it's gone. A cookie slip is much better than a cookie, pizza, ice cream, and beer slip.
Race the microwave. You have 1:45 before your soup is heated, how many plea squats can you do? Find little moments in your day to get a little exercise. Take multiple trips up and down the stairs. Do sit ups while your water boils. These things will slowly add up.
There are so many things you can do. Little things. What works for you? Leave a comment to give me some great new ideas!
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