It’s no news that gaining weight is very easy while to lose weight is quite hard. Shedding excess mass can be tedious and frustrating, especially when you have to go to the gym every day, but what if I told you shedding a few pounds doesn’t necessarily require breaking a sweat? It’s not always about running on that treadmill or lifting dumbbells; see some simple lifestyle habits that can help you lose weight without the conventional diet or exercise plan.

1. Never skip breakfast

It may seem like skipping a meal helps weight loss but that is not entirely true. Eating breakfast controls hunger long into the day. Have you ever wondered why when you eat breakfast you eat less over the rest of the day? When you skip breakfast, your blood sugar level drops and you become hungry making you impulsively snack on high calorie foods.

Eat to lose weight. 

2. Eat without electronic distraction

Pay attention to what you eat. Eating while watching TV or using your mobile phone makes you lose track of how much you’ve eaten, causing over-eating.

Eat, chew slowly and thoroughly, savor the flavor of the food, drink water, flourish.

3. Use the small plate magic

Small plates give the illusion of having more food on your plate making you eat less. Magic. Reducing plate size leads to 30% reduction in amount of food consumed on average. You can use this to your advantage by serving healthy food on bigger plates and less healthy food on smaller plates.

4. Keep a food diary

It might seem hard but it only takes a few minutes and it’s totally worth it! Writing down what you eat every day makes you aware of how much you’re eating, what you’re eating and why you are eating. Studies have shown that people who keep a food diary lose twice as much weight as those who don’t.

5. Hungry or Bored? Take the Apple Test

My favorite tip to stop binge eating. Before eating a snack, ask yourself; “Would I want to eat an apple now?” If the answer is no, you are not hungry but trying to eat out of boredom. If you love apples and this would probably not work for you, try it with any other boring food/fruit. 

6. Always remember to drink water

You’ve probably heard the “Water makes you feel full” line countless times. Yes, that’s very correct. Water makes you eat less especially when it’s before a meal. Apart from its filling ability, water helps pin point your hunger level. Most times we think we are hungry when we are just thirsty.

7. Laugh Hard

15 minutes of laughter a day will burn 10 to 40 calories. It also helps tone your abs muscle. Laughing makes your stomach muscle contract and expand just like when you’re exercising your abs at the gym. You know that ache in your stomach when you laugh extremely hard? Yep, that’s it.

Laugh your fat off

8. Stress less, sleep well

Believe you me, sleep has a great effect on your weight. Lack of sleep disrupts the level of appetite-regulating hormones causing you to increase your cravings for unhealthy food. A tired brain is less likely to control its impulses. Other than that, the body burns calories while sleeping.

Do you ever notice you tend to eat more when you are sleepy?

9. Eliminate Sugary drinks.

This is probably the most popular on the list but have you ever wondered why you should eliminate sugary drinks? No? Okay. The brain doesn’t record liquid calories like solid making you eat more. This simply means drinks do not fill you up like food therefore you are more likely to over-consume calories.

A 12 oz. (35cl) can of a soft drink contains approximately 10 cubes sugar.

Wow, definitely an eye opener!

10. Eat fiber-rich food

Fiber rich food increases satiety and lowers cholesterol levels. However, a special kind of fiber known as viscous fiber is particularly good for weight loss. It forms a gel that slows down digestion which results in loss of appetite. Rich sources of viscous fiber are: Oranges, Sweet potatoes, Beans, Oats.

You might want to think twice when discarding an orange fiber after squeezing out the juice!

11. Keep junk food out of sight

Out of sight, Out of mind. As simple as it is.

BONUS

• Cheat Day

Forget prohibitions, have a cheat day. A cheat day or a treat day would help you stick to your weight loss plan by reminding yourself that you have a cheat day coming up. If you want to eat a cookie or chocolate, just do it. But try to do it in the morning. Don’t forget, moderation is key.

Enjoy, be happy.

A simple change can have a massive impact over time. Try one or two of these. If it works for you, try another.

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Curated by @its_onye