How to REALLY lose weight - Part 1

How to REALLY lose weight - Part 1

It seems that the key to successful weight loss is an inner drive.. an inner motivation to really take charge and make permanent changes. Losing weight is not easy, however it is achievable with a little nutrition education, support, planning, motivation and determination. You must be ready to lose weight though.. and no amount of nagging from friends or family or buying slimming books will help.. trust me. The only person who knows when the time is right is you.

I wanted to share with you in my next few blog posts how one successful slimmer in particular lost their weight.. for good. Have you every heard the quote..

 'facts tell, stories sell'?

.. well, I think I've been telling facts for long enough (this blog is 6 months old now!), and it's time to tell a story.

I was inspired to write this series of blog posts after a piece that was published in the Daily Mirror Online.. 'Our secrets to shedding 50st: Five super slimmers on how they REALLY dropped the pounds' [click here for great before & after shots]. The article shares these successful slimmers top tips, which include:

• Having a breakfast - and basing it around protein and carbs to keep hunger at bay e.g. scrambled egg (no butter), beans and mushrooms on wholemeal toast
• Using 1-cal spray oils in cooking
• Making simple-swaps e.g. sugar for calorie-free sweetener
• Keeping active - walking to the shops instead of driving
• Setting small, realistic targets
• Never food shopping on an empty stomach - to resist sweet treats and smells!
• Living by the 80:20 rule - relaxing the healthy eating routine every now and again
• Ordering lower calorie alcoholic drinks instead of creamy cocktails e.g. vodka & diet coke
• Banning junk food from the house and instead stocking up on healthy snacks such as fruit (and keeping healthy snacks in your bag for when hunger hits!)
• Freezing fat-free yoghurts (or you could try the light chocolate mousses) instead of having ice-cream (for my personal fat-free banana 'ice-cream' CLICK HERE)
• Planning ahead - cooking large batches of healthy meals so all you have to do is defrost them
• Have non-food rewards as 'treats'
• Choose healthy choices when eating out (CLICK HERE for mine)
• Making your own lunch to take to work - YOU control what's in it

So, it's all well and good hearing about all these fantastic top tips, but what I'm REALLY interested in is a successful slimmer's weight loss journey.. as in what they did when.. did they do a dramatic over-haul of their diet in a day, a week? Or was it over a longer time? What life-style changes did they actually make?

I was lucky enough to speak in depth to a successful slimmer and will be writing about their amazing journey in my next few blog posts.. So where did they start? .. Their weight loss journey began with an inner drive... an inner motivation to finally want to take charge and lose weight for good. Are you ready?

Nic x