Men who lose weight successfully and keep it off share these eight characteristics according to Suzanne Phelan, PhD, assistant professor of psychiatry and human behavior at Brown University. You should be striving to live by these rules!
- They eat 1,850 calories a day – 27% of which come from fat
- They burn 3,300 calories a week through exercising
- They watch less than 10 hours of TV per week
- They weigh themselves every day
- They eat the same way on weekends and holidays as they do during the week
- They eat breakfast every day
- They limit the variety in their diet – i.e. they eat the same foods pretty consistently
- They rarely eat fast food
Want a plan that incorporates all of these suggestions? Try this one
Getting rid of your gut does more than just improve the way you look – you’ll also have a healthier heart to show for your efforts! Cutting your carbohydrate intake by a third will help you lose fat while significantly lowering your triglycerides, a key predictor of heart disease. Scientists at the University of California at Davis found that cutting carbs to less than 40 percent of your total daily calories deactivated a triglyceride-producing gene called stearoyl-coenzyme A desaturase (SCD). The greater the reduction in carbohydrates the less active the gene became. Start today by switching to an open-faced sandwich or skipping bread altogether in favor of a high-fiber, high-protein tortilla like I recommend in The Burrito Diet.
Here is a list of just a few of the craziest things I’ve done before stepping on a scale as I tried desperately to lose weight…until I figured out that scale weight is not as important as body fat and measurements. Tell me some of the things that you’ve done in an all-out attempt to keep the needle moving and keep yourself motivated!
- Cut my fingernails and toenails
- Blew my nose and/or use a neti pot
- Cleaned the wax out of my ears
- Got a haircut
- Shaved off all or parts of my body hair
- Took an enema (yes, unfortunately!)
- Drank magnesium citrate – an entire 10oz bottle
- Blew all of the air out of my lungs
- Spit saliva in the sink for a half-hour
- Sat fully clothed in a sauna until I got dizzy
- Drank a colon cleanser – double or triple the recommended dosage!
