In spite of all the exercising and keeping a watchful eye on the diet, your pants seem a little too tight on the waist, or the ladies’ jumpsuits just do not fit: this is one situation that most of us have faced.
Over ninety percent of the people who hit the gym, or take up some form of exercise, do it with the aim of losing weight.
The first step of getting in shape is mastering the discipline and dedication that it needs.
You definitely need to be vigilant about the diet and be consistent with your exercise routine in order to maximize the calories burnt and decrease the extra fat on the body.
However, exercise and diet are not the only two things that help you be in shape. In terms of getting results, your daily habits can make or break all the effort that you have put into dieting and exercising.
The following is a list of the top seven healthy habits that you need to incorporate to keep yourself in shape.
1. Eat slowly and for a longer time
The first thing that you need to do when you try to change your habits to get a fit body is to alter your food habits. Begin by eating slowly and for a long time.
When you are slowing down eating your meals, you are giving your mind a chance to process that the body is full.
Most people have a really bad habit of sitting in front of their laptops or TVs while eating which leads them to go on eating without understanding that they are already full.
When you avoid such distractions, you become aware of every bite and thus, you tend to eat adequately.
2. Plan the meals ahead
According to Suzanne Girard Eberle, author of Endurance Sports Nutrition, you need to plan all the meals right at the beginning of the day and even the week so that you do not start scrambling for food when you are hungry.
You need to know what you are going to eat so that junk foods do not turn out to be your last resort when your stomach rumbles.
In a busy schedule, people often make up for their hunger by eating pastries and burgers. The result is clearly seen in the increasing waistline.
3. Eat often and eat less
Another problem that is commonly seen is that people stay on an empty stomach for too long and then eat too much at once.
This amount of food after a long gap of six or seven hours slows down your metabolic rate and adds to the fat content of the body.
The ideal way is to aim for three nutritious meals and two small snacks in a day. This means you are keeping your stomach busy and eating something every three hours.
Eating often keeps your metabolism working and you will never be getting super hungry.
4. Get proper sleep every day
Sleep schedule is one thing we all are guilty of not paying attention to more often than we should.
One or two late nights in a month would not affect your body but the problem arises when you make it a habit.
Skip those late-night works and binge on Netflix till the wee hours and get some sleep already.
Besides, sleeping late will also affect your morning workout and you will be too lethargic to invest your energy.
Turn off those mobiles and computers and get a good night’s sleep.
5. Keep water near at hand
It is not like we do not want to drink water but the problem is that we keep forgetting that we need to drink water.
You hardly take a sip of water until and unless you are really thirsty. That is the reason why it is better to keep a glass or bottle of water near at hand. When it is in front of your eyes, it will keep reminding you that you need to drink water.
Keep at a glass of water on your nightstand as well and drink it first thing in the morning. 20 ounces of water on an empty stomach will help to keep your system clean.
6. Do not over exercise
The people who are really into fitness know the importance of rest as well. They will never overexert themselves so much in the gym that they fail to be productive for the rest of the day.
Taking a day off in the week and giving your muscles time to rest is something that is equally important.
Do not be afraid of giving adequate rest to your body between days of exercise but remember not to stretch the rest for days in the end.
Besides, over-exercising for a day can make you so tired that you feel reluctant to go for it the next day.
7. Do not give in to emotional eating
One minute you are craving for something spicy and the next moment you are ordering a pizza loaded with jalapeños. But before ordering, ask yourself, are you really hungry?
There are more ways to ward off the cravings rather than giving in to them. Eat when you are actually hungry rather than ‘feeling hungry’ because you are bored or stressed.
You can engage in numerous activities like getting a massage, sitting outside listening to some music, or talking to a friend. In any possible way, divert your mind to avoid overeating as an emotional response.
Take up these top seven habits and you will surely notice a change in your body within a few weeks. So, go on and start a healthy lifestyle today.
About The Author:
Harsh is the co-founder of Fynd, a first-of-its-kind, e-commerce fashion platform, with a live inventory of 8K plus stores catering to more than 8 million customers. He is an engineer from IIT Bombay and has 7+ years of experience in the field of Fashion Retail, Hospitality, Management Consulting and Human Resources. He is currently working on expanding Fynd’s presence on the global radar.
