Tag: healthy eating

4 Ways to stay motivated while losing weight

4 Ways to stay motivated while losing weight | H is for Home

For many people, losing weight is a huge struggle. The sad truth is 80% of people who lose weight following different diets can gain it all back and more. This could lead to a lot of health problems as we grow older.

Knowing full well that you have to lose weight is not enough. You have to establish a schedule or routine and really commit to it. When you decide to break a bad habit, you’re essentially changing your behaviour. There’ll be times when you feel inconvenienced by preparing healthy meals or tired from exercising and you start to relapse. Motivation comes and goes and it’s easy to fall back into bad habits. Here are four ways to stay motivated whilst losing weight.

Food diary

  1. Create a healthy meal plan

One of the reasons for gaining weight is unhealthy eating habits; consuming fast food every day, drinking fizzy drinks and fruit juices that are high in sugar and eating crisps, cakes, chocolates and the like in the middle of the night. So, it should come as no surprise that eating healthily will help you lose weight. It does not, however, mean that you should give up all of them. If you think that you don’t know enough about nutrition, a great way to start is by using a meal subscription service like Nutrisystem. A great article by Debra Moorhead provides a detailed review of different Nutrisystem plans and how they can benefit your nutrition. The key is having a healthy and balanced diet. Start by writing down all the food that you consume currently. Identify those that are unhealthy and only makes you gain weight then, search for alternatives.

Bathroom scales and measuring tape

  1. Track your weight loss journey

You’ve probably heard this before, but losing weight doesn’t happen overnight. You don’t get 20 pounds lighter from working out for hours a day and neither should you do that. While experts have different recommendations when it comes to the amount of weight you should lose in a week, they all agree that slow and steady weight loss is the most sustainable for the long-term. You can track your weight loss journey by starting to step onto the dreaded scales so you know your starting point. Create milestones and celebrate your successes. The idea is to keep you focused on the goal and see exactly how you’ve progressed over time. Don’t forget that losing weight shouldn’t come at the expense of failing to meet your nutrient needs.

Friends fist pumping

  1. Have a support system

An environment full of pessimistic people is bad news when you want to start losing weight. Losing weight is a personal commitment, therefore, you need to surround yourself with people whom you can talk positively about the journey. One of the reasons for binging and weight gain is depression. To have a positive weight loss experience, you must resolve any underlying psychological stress that you might have. Cut ties with people who bring you down and spend more time with family and friends who’ll support you no matter what, encourage you and even join you in your quest.

Walking a dog in a park

  1. Keep yourself busy

When you’re sitting and fantasising about losing weight, guess what? You’re not actually losing weight. Do you sometimes feel hungry even when if you’re not doing anything and have already eaten? This is because, in a relaxed state, your mind wanders and you’re more in tune with what’s happening to your body. You actually feel more tired, sleepy and hungry when you’re not moving around. So, why not visit an art gallery, walk around the park, go window shopping, take a yoga class, walk a dog, do whatever? You’ll be surprised at how being active can help improve your health and overall well-being.

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Cakes & Bakes: Fruit and nut flapjack

Slice of home-made fruit and nut flapjack | H is for Home

I made one of my regular batches of fruit and nut flapjack this week. Not only is it the perfect accompaniment to a mug of tea, it also has some distinct health benefits.

Justin and I were both born in the 1960s, which means we’re getting on a bit! It’s perhaps time to start considering our health and brain function into old age.

It seems like diet could be a very important factor. Oily fish is often cited as great ‘brain food’, but nuts are also a fantastic source of cerebral nourishment.

Here’s a selection of commonly found (and tasty!) nuts and some of their recognised health benefits.

Chopped mixed nuts | H is for Home

  • Almonds are very high in vitamin E (good for glowing skin). They’re also a good source of omega-6 and 9 (poly)unsaturated fatty acids
  • Un-roasted walnuts contain twice as many antioxidants as other nuts or seeds
  • Brazil nuts are perhaps the richest dietary source of selenium (a mineral important for cognitive function and a maintaining a healthy immune system). Eating just 2 give you 100% of the recommended daily allowance
  • Cashew nuts contain a high concentration of essential minerals including magnesium (thought to counter age-related memory loss), phosphorus and zinc
  • Macadamia nuts are an excellent source of manganese and thiamine (vitamin B1)
  • Flaxseeds have one of the highest concentrations of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (Useful in maintaining healthy brain and visual functions). Especially important if you’re vegetarian or vegan as it is most commonly found in oily fish
  • Whole sesame seeds are a very good source of iron (again, important for vegetarians and vegans)

Home-made fruit and nut flapjack before going into the oven | H is for Home

This flapjack is quick and easy to make – and is so delicious, that the health benefits are an additional bonus… and we didn’t even get started on the goodness of dried fruit!

Home-made fruit and nut flapjack cooling on a wire rack | H is for Home

Click here to pin our recipe for future reference!

Slice of home-made fruit and nut flapjack | H is for Home

Fruit and nut flapjack

Print recipe Pin recipe
Cook Time 20 minutes
Course Snack
Cuisine British
Servings 9

Ingredients
  

  • 200 g butter
  • 125 g honey
  • 350 g rolled oats
  • 50 g dried fruit currants, raisins, sultanas, cranberries, blueberries, dates, figs, apricots etc.
  • 50 g seeds and/or nuts roughly chopped - linseeds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, walnuts, peanuts, cashews, macadamias, pecans, hazelnuts, almonds etc.

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 150°C/300°F/Gas Mark 2
  • Put the butter into a large saucepan on a low heat. When the butter has melted, add the honey and stir to combine
  • Turn off the heat, add the oats, dried fruit and nuts/seeds and mix well
  • Put the mixture into a 23cm/9-inch shallow square cake tin and flatten down firmly with the back of a serving spoon
  • Bake for 20 minutes or until the top is lightly browned
  • Allow to cool in the tin before cutting into squares or finger-shaped portions
Fruit and nut flapjack ingredients
You can store the flapjacks for up to 3 days in an airtight greaseproof paper-lined tin or plastic container
Keyword flapjack, oats

Step up your healthy eating game

Selection of healthy foodcredit

Gone are the days where you can just look at food and know where it’s been. Now, you don’t even know what’s in your food or where it comes from unless you read the packaging. Although there’s an abundance of unhealthy foods around, you’re by no means limited in your selection of healthy and tasty foods. Before you throw all caution to the wind with your eating habits, take some time to adjust them so you can enjoy better health.

Japanese mealcredit

You can’t judge food by its appearance

Often times, you may use the appearance of your foods to determine whether or not they’re suitable for you to purchase and eat. However, many foods, especially processed ones don’t spoil or show signs of being poor in quality right away. Sometimes the best way you can judge your food is to sniff and taste it. If it smells or tastes like something that turns your stomach, then you may want to avoid eating it.

Of course, there are some foods and dishes in other cultures that may not look like many of the foods you’re accustomed to eating. However, that doesn’t mean that you should avoid them.

Full chest freezercredit

Storage appliances

Depending on where you live, your local climate and other environmental factors, you need to be careful about how you store your food. Some items cannot be left out at room temperature for too long or they’ll begin to spoil. You don’t want to waste any food that you spent time and money to get. Invest into some good food storage appliances like a refrigerator. If you plan to keep certain food items for several months in the freezer, you should use a deep freezer instead of the one on your refrigerator.

Deep freezers are designed differently and are made for freezing and storing foods for long periods of time. Also, your frozen food is better protected because you won’t open and close the door to the appliance as much which helps to keep prevent the viscous cycle of thawing and re-thawing your foods.

Reading food packaging in a supermarketcredit

Read the package

Sometimes food, no matter how good it looks, isn’t healthy for you. Some foods have a lot of unhealthy things in them that can ultimately affect the way you feel and look and your health. It can be the case that foods are made using questionable practices and equipment that may pose a risk to your health. Play it safe by paying close attention to the information that is on the packaging of the foods you buy.

Compact kitchencredit

Kitchen design matters

The way you prepare and cook your food matters. Many people who have small kitchens try to minimize the time they spend in them because the lack of space affects their moods. A great way to make the tasks of food preparation and cooking more enjoyable is to design or decorate your kitchen so that it uplifts your mood and makes you want to be in it. Certain colours and accents can improve lighting and create visual effects that give the illusion of more space. Strategic storage cabinets and utensil placement can add more space and comfort into your kitchen as well.

Hamptoncreek food products

Buy better foods

You may need to spend a little more money just so you can eat foods that are of good quality. Certain manufacturers like Hamptoncreek Foods have an impressive line of plant-based food products that you can use to transform your health and taste buds in a healthy way. There’s nothing wrong with spending a little more money for quality.

Food preparation in a kitchencredit

Make cooking a priority

If you struggle to find time to cook and spend more of your time eating fast food and processed meals, then you may need to make some adjustment to your schedule so you can adapt healthier eating habits. Pick one day out of the week to prepare your meals. Use that day to plan out your dinner menu for the entire week and complete any preparation work so all you have to do is to select a meal and put it into the oven. You should also consider doing all of your grocery shopping for the week on a designated day.

Maintaining a healthy lifestyle requires you to be committed. Start making better food choices now so you can enjoy the benefits for the rest of your life.

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