Diet Hacks - Dieting Made Easy

 Diet HACKS (Dieting Made Easier)

Okay, Let's discuss Dieting and how to make it easier to approach and maintain. Because let's be honest with ourselves, are we 100% committed to the goal or journey? Sure, we may be dedicated for what? A week or so? And then people give up and regress. It is hard to maintain a lifestyle that you're not using too, that's simply because it's uncomfortable for you or you simply don't have the discipline to do so.

Dieting requires discipline, sacrifice, willpower, and determination. People give up because there's no willpower nor the drive because it makes them uncomfortable, or they're impatient, or it's too hard for them to transition. In order to manipulate your lifestyle, your diet, etc, you must have the mindset to overcome challenges, and when doing so, you'll experience the whole journey as it should; it comes with gaining knowledge and experience and thus will help you in life, regarding health and much more. 

So for today, I'm going to give you ways to hack your diet. Literally, dieting is easy because it requires discipline. Not to eat junk food, avoid foods that irritate you, eat healthily and stay consistent with it. Over time, you'll see progress and the results you're wanting.

Diet Hacks

1) Drink Loads of Water

Upon wakening up, I'd drink half to a full water bottle to get my body going - this will in the end keep me full and not craving anything sweet or anything really because a majority of the people are dehydrated, and when you are actually hydrated properly, you won't be starving as much...

You also want to drink water throughout the day. Water is a filler, it'll keep you full. I recommend drinking some water before meals to determine whether if you're actually that hungry or not because when you consume lots of water before a meal, it'll keep you full - it's like a mind trick. But you'll notice the difference between hunger and thirst (I hope). 

2) Load Up on Lots of Vegetables

Vegetables are loaded with nutrients and fiber, and they're low in calories, making it an ideal food to eat on the daily basis. When you can eat a lot of low calorie foods, it'll help you remain much fuller due to the volume of foods you may consume.And it's one of the most powerful foods to consume - for our bodies, for us humans. If you eat vegetables throughout the day, not only will it make you full, it'll also detox your body and making you healthier overall.

3) Meal Prep

Meal prep is an amazing diet hack because it saves time, hassles, and you determine how many calories are in each meal - that you prep. Meal prepping is the concept of preparing whole meals or dishes ahead of schedule.

Having pre-prepared meals on hand can also reduce portion size and help you reach your nutrition goals. This way, you’ll avoid unhealthy options like TV dinners or takeout, especially when you’re overwhelmed or exhausted.

And since it requires you to determine what to eat ahead of time, meal prepping can lead to more nutritious meal choices over the long term.

Very popular amongst fitness people, people who want to save time and hassles, people who are smart and want to efficiently track their macros, etc, and much more. This can for sure be one of the best ways to help with weight loss due to how many calories are in each meal - you're in control of it. (Self-willpower).

4) Fast Food Tips

Don't try to always go to a fast food place and order food. Fast foods are unhealthy and contain processed foods which don't benefit us, therefore it makes us fat. If you have no choice and want to go to one, here are some tips.

• -If you know if it fits your macros, you should know how much food to consume, whether if it's fries or a burger, you can consume those foods knowing it's unhealthy but if it fits your macros, you're fine when it comes to weight loss (calorie deficit needs to be in place).
• -If you're new and don't know about macros, don't eat all the fries and drink a whole cup of soda...Okay? Fries + soda + whatever else = too many calories in one sitting...That's too much for the average and that's why people are fat - it's because they're overeating, hence why I said earlier you need to be in a calorie deficit to lose weight. Many people don't know how many calories they're consuming but if you know about tracking macros, then you should know, and it helps when it comes to weight loss because tracking macros put you on a budget, giving you insight into how many calories you're consuming, giving you a choice to eat more or less.
• -Eat healthy foods at fast food places. Loads of people end up getting a burger or two, with a large fry along with a nice big cup of soda. Which is great, tasty, and hmhmm, delicious, but people; Fast foods contain lots of calories and processed stuff. It is no good to consume on a daily, especially if you're eating everything in sight. Limit yourself, eat healthy options such as salads, etc. I know it's hard, but be wise about what you're eating and how much of it.
• -Order water, not soda. Soda is just bad in general people. It does us no good and it contains loads of sugar and calories which is no good for us. You can drink a whole gallon of soda and still want more. The point I'm trying to make is that soda tricks your mind - making you crave more soda. Ever wonder why you drink loads of it? It's addicting. Break the habit, and drink more water. Water is much more important and it benefits us in many ways such as recovery and making our body healthy.

5) Don't overeat

Excessively eating or overeating is an actual 'condition.' Many people face this dilemma on the daily basis. It's hard to notice because simply I think people do not care until it's too late. Anyhow, people do eat a lot, perhaps too much and that's why in America we have an obesity problem here. Too many people are fat. Overeating processed junk foods. Stop overeating people - especially junk food. The best way is to eat till you're satisfied. You don't have to eat till you're in a food coma or when your stomach is bulging. When you overeat like that, it stretches your stomach. So be wise on how much food you consume.

6) Drink Carbonated WATER to curb Hunger and Appetite

Believe it or not, carbonated water or bubbly-water is great for curbing appetite and hunger. The carbon dioxide in sparkling water allows fizzy bubbles to fill your stomach and trick your brain into feeling full, which means you will probably eat less. The fizz increases gastric activity which aids in that “full” feeling.

Try this trick out and see how it works! It works, but not all the time it does help to some degree. Give it a shot, and let us know how it goes for you! Try drinking some of this bubbly water before, during, and after meals. 

7) Keep Healthy Foods Close

It may seem like a no-brainer, but it really helps to keep healthy foods and snacks close by. If you have it near you when you’re hungry, you’re bound to use it.  That’s why unhealthy convenience food is so popular — because people haven’t planned.  The more foods that are nourishing and healthy for you that you can keep around that’s easy to access, the more successful you’ll be.  This is, of course, assuming you’re replacing the unhealthy, pre-packed convenience foods with healthier options.

Prep grab-and-go bags with minimally processed and low-sugar snacks like:

• nuts;
• dried fruits;
• fresh fruits;
• beef jerky (with low sodium)
• dark chocolate;
• high protein foods, like cottage cheese, hard-boiled eggs, or sustainable canned tuna (packed in water);
• full-fat greek yogurt.

8) Track Macros

Tracking macros can be done manually or using a tracking macro app, which I use and recommend since it makes it easier for us. By tracking your macros, you can determine when to stop eating, and the app will give you information regarding foods, beverages, calories, micro, and macro insights. It's important to understand the information about foods and drinks because you can make the choice and decision right then and there due to having the answer in front of you. So let's put in an example. We're at a Fast food place, which we hardly go to because we're starving but yet we're on a diet, or we like to have a proper calorie intake. What I would do is, I would determine how many calories I've consumed already, and determine if it'll work along with my schedule or for the day. If I know I can eat more, I would proceed to eat the fast-food foods, but If I'm on a budget on calories, then I would be more decisive about my selection, therefore, I would order something a bit healthier and lower in calories to fit my goal for the day. This is known as If It Fits Your Marcos. A very popular method to help keep your weight in check or balanced, and to maintain a healthy outcome. 

Macro Tracking APP: Myfitnesspal

9) Find Healthier Replacements

Find healthier alternatives. For example, when going out to a restaurant or if you're craving 'french fries' you know the normal french fry is high in calories, so a healthier alternative would be sweet potato fries. Sweet potato fries are not only tasty, not as salt yet very tasty but they're loaded with vitamins and minerals making them a good healthy alternative to consume.

• all-purpose flour: whole wheat pastry flour, cassava flour, chickpea flour, almond flour, and coconut flour;
• white sugar or brown sugar: coconut sugar, raw honey, and pure maple syrup;
• butter: coconut oil and olive oil;
• mayo: greek yogurt (for salad dressings) or avocado or hummus for spreading on sandwiches;
• white bread: look for whole wheat sprouted grain bread, like Dave’s Killer Bread or Ezekial Bread
• fat-free or reduced-fat foods: choose whole fat foods instead to avoid the processing and increase your fullness
• pasta: there are so many options out there now, including zucchini noodles, veggie noodles, brown rice pasta, quinoa noodles, etc.

10) Shop Smart

Shop smart my brothers and sisters. Many people shop just to shop, without even realizing what they're doing. Most people end up buying junk foods, sweets, and so forth. Here are some tips:

• Make a Grocery List. This will help you avoid purchasing junk food and sticking to the gameplan.
• Don't think twice about junk foods
• Don't go shopping while hungry

11) INDULGE ON OCCASION!

A very important part of enjoying a healthy lifestyle is balance, not just within each meal with the different macros, but also with how you eat healthy.  That’s why “cheat meals” or “treat meals” are a welcome option from time to time. No matter how much we love our healthy food, sometimes we crave something that’s not healthy. Depriving yourself won’t stop your cravings — it might even make them worse.  So allow yourself that yummy dessert or the comfort food you crave.

That being said, cheat meals can quickly turn into cheat days, and then it turns into a downward spiral of falling out of whack with your healthy lifestyle.  So, here are some tips for how to have a cheat meal without sacrificing your healthy eating goals:

Pick a timeframe that works for you to go without a cheat meal.  For some, that might be one day, and others it might even be one month.  Personally, I have a cheat meal each week (every 7 days).

Save your unhealthy option for that meal, which will help you to look forward to indulging and even over-eating, when it’s part of your meal plan.

Choose a meal that will fill you up and satisfy you — almost to the point of not wanting that meal again for a while.  The healthier you eat, the more your healthy body will probably even reject the food you’re eating and you may feel gross after eating — this will help to remind you why you have chosen the healthy lifestyle and will shock you right back into shape.

Stick to just a cheat meal — a cheat day can get out of hand and is too long of a timeframe to go eating unhealthy — it will cause too many bad choices and can easily continue into the next day — the idea is to identify one meal you want, have it, and then move on.

Allow yourself to enjoy this meal – don’t feel bad about it, count the calories, or even think you’re cheating on your diet — this is an opportunity for you to loosen the restraints and, in a controlled way, indulge again, which is something those of us on a healthy lifestyle rarely allow ourselves.

Choose comfort foods, like pizza, pasta, doughnuts, or pancakes and go all out to enjoy the heck out of your meal — you earned it!