Is it possible to lose weight without dieting?

For weight loss, are there any secrets to long-term maintenance?

Before we see if there are any secrets, you should know that the first and necessary condition for the success of such an important change is a commitment to yourself. This is because adopting a healthy diet and losing weight is not an easy task at all and should become a personal bet in your life, a priority and not an effort with an expiration date.

Many have lost some extra pounds but few have been able to maintain this loss. The reason is simple and it's not that they don't have the will. It is that they treated their effort as something temporary and for this reason they did not go into the process of developing strategies to use to deal with difficult situations. So the key word is commitment. We place the achievement of this goal as a matter of high priority and to achieve this we will have to prepare properly.

How do we prepare?

Planning for a meal plan starts long before we sit down at the table and there are some guidelines that can make your effort easier. They're not about calories, but if you stick to them, you might never need to learn about calories again.

Guidelines for food shopping:

• Make a list in advance and don't go to the supermarket hungry.
• Avoid buying standardized foods. If this is unavoidable, check the labels for calories, fat, sugars and sodium. Prefer foods with the smallest contents. Caution! Some packaging may state that the product in question contains 0% fat but at the same time be very high in sugar.
• Make sure they are always in the cart fruit and vegetables.

The aim is to have healthy food available in your home for every hour of the day, snacks or main meals.

Guidelines for mealtimes:

• Turn off the TV and enjoy your meal as slowly as you can. It is now known that the satiety signal is delayed in reaching the brain, so you have to catch up. So put down your fork just before you feel full. It is not necessary to empty your plate.
• Use smaller plates and glasses. In larger utensils we tend to consume a larger amount of food.
• Review your portion size, as due to familiarity with restaurant portions, your recommended portion size may be much smaller than you think.
• Instead of eating out, make a healthy meal from home. Eating out is high in fat and salt. Don't forget that the portions are almost double as well.

Instructions for your daily life:

• Have reasonable and achievable weight loss goals.
• Be sure to weigh yourself at regular intervals so that you can act more promptly.
• Maintain consistent eating habits. What does this mean; Always breakfast, at least 3 main meals, good hydration and a fruit in between to "cut" the appetite.
• Try not to operate in a "black or white" way. If you get sidetracked by a meal, don't level out your efforts. Regroup and watch out for the next ones.

Don't forget that the human body is made to be in constant motion and not for office work. Most health problems start with a sedentary lifestyle, so find ways to get moving. Until you manage to do all this you have to be patient with yourself. Habits take time to develop.