Weight: Losing The Last Five to 10 lbs…Naturally.

LOSING THE LAST 5-10 LBS… FOR BUSY MOMS

You may be a mommy but you still want to feel slim, healthy and attractive.   I feel you!

It can be a bit of a catch22.   You notice you’ve put on weight since pregnancy and childbirth, but you’re now so busy running around with your children that it’s tough to make the changes needed to lose weight.   One thing that motivates me towards self care – that is making time for myself and my needs – is that when I do, I end up having more energy, and getting sick less, and being in a better mood, so I can actually care for my children better.

Look after yourself!   Also, when we show our kids how to take care of ourselves and our health, we teach them to do the same for themselves into adulthood.  Plus, you’ve been given one body for this journey on earth, it’s worth making the most of!    And when we feel slim we typically have more energy, more confidence, and it’s always fun to celebrate a healthy body with our partners! 🙂

So here are my simple tips that have worked for me for years now.

GETTING INTO THE RIGHT MINDSET

Throw away your scale.  Yep, you heard me.  We are going to focus on how the body feels and how our clothes fit, not on some numbers that usually end up making us feel worse.  I haven’t had a scale in about 10 years.

Next:  Commit to losing some weight.  And commit to doing it by celebrating and loving your body- not by beating it up.  Stop saying all demeaning things about yourself and your body.  “I got so fat!”  “I feel like a whale,”  “You’re so skinny, I’m not!”  etc.

These statements only keep your self confidence and motivation low, and what we focus on grows.  Yes, if you focus on how much weight you have to lose, or how big you feel…you’ll just keep perpetuating the cycle.  When we feel down about ourselves….it’s much more tempting to eat that doughnut for distraction.

Conversely, when we start feeding ourselves loving, motivating thoughts and words, we are more likely to say:  I don’t need dessert, I feel so great without it!   I’ll have an apple instead and I know I’ll feel better tomorrow for it.    Acknowledge that your body is a miracle:  Look at the life it created and birthed!  There’s nothing it can’t do!  Your body is strong and beautiful and uniquely yours.  Start to love it.

LOSING WEIGHT:

I eat a smoothie instead of breakfast:  It’s quick, easy, I can take it on the go to drop my son off at school.  I fill it up with protein, good fats, greens, and berries.

RECIPE:

1 cup almond milk or coconut milk or coconut water

1 handful frozen berries

1 scoop vegan protein powder

1 tblsp almond butter unsweetened

1 handful spinach or kale

BLEND

For at least 45 minutes a day get your heart rate up.  Take a class, go for a jog, or power walk for one hour.

If you really want to see results fast there is a short cut:  Do early morning cardio.   Wake up, have some water or green tea or coffee and get outside or to the gym.

Or push your child in their stroller to wherever you’re going.  Even 30 minutes of exercise BEFORE you eat breakfast (or have your smoothie) will burn into your fat like you’ve never seen. Make sure you eat within 2 hours of waking up though to get your metabolism going.

 

I suggest some early morning exercise and then a little bit in the evening too.  You can have a dance party with your kids!  Go for a walk with them!  Throw the ball around and chase them at the park!   While they play, do some push ups, sit ups and deep squats.  Keep moving rather than look at your phone or watch TV…you’ll see results and you’ll have more energy.

These are the weight gain culprits.   Don’t eat them!  choose fruits instead of sweets.  I like frozen grapes!   Have a tablespoon of unsweetened almond butter or peanut butter to stop a craving.   Eat whole grain pasta, and try out wraps or ezekiel bread instead of loaf bread.

YES!  Good fats don’t make you fat.   Olive oil, avocados, hummus, virgin raw coconut oil, nuts are all wonderful sources of good fats and will keep you full longer and help you get slim.  Processed fats like those in chips, fast food, and desserts are the bad guys.  Also swap your butter for olive oil or virgin coconut oil.

Eat this as one of your meals – when I’m doing this I always loose weight and feel slim, but not deprived or starving because it has good fats, protein and healthy carbs in it.  Much better than those lackluster ice berg salads with cold chicken.

*Fry an organic egg in virgin coconut oil or olive oil.

Put a piece of ezekiel bread (a hearty, high protein bread you can find at most grocery stores) in the oil to saturate it and make it last yummy.

Cut up some avocado, top the bread with the egg and avocado and some sea salt.  It tastes amazing and will keep you slim and satisfied.

Drink sparkling water instead of juice and pop.   Try green tea throughout the day for energy and a fat burning boost.  It’s important to stay hydrated – a lot of times when we crave treats or snacks we are actually thirsty…so up that fresh water content.

They keep you full and give you more vitamins and fibre than processed foods.  Plus your immune system will get stronger and your skin will glow.

You can still eat what everyone else is having for dinner, or enjoy restaurants.  Just eat 1/3 less than you usually would.  Eat slowly, so you can feel when you’re satiated and don’t eat past that point.  Smaller meals more often is better than a couple of big ones.

That’s it!   Congratulations on wanting to improve your body and your quality of life with healthy choices.  I support you!

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