Weight Loss Tips and Weekly Weigh-In

Time for my first weekly weigh-in after starting my weight loss journey!  Last Tuesday, Day One, I weighed in at 185.0 pounds.  My goal weight is 145 pounds.  After one week on Nutrisystem……  drum roll, please!  Brrrrrruuuupppppp!

Woo-hoo!  I lost 5.2 pounds!!!  I feel great!!  I could tell I had lost some weight, but I wasn’t sure how much.  I was nervous!  There were more than a few times in the past week, I said to myself, “What were you thinking?!”

I’ve been reading a lot of weight loss suggestions and tips this past week.  These are my five favorite weight loss tips!  Everyone has a different relationship with food (mine is usually dysfunctional *sigh*), and different things that work for them.  These are my favorites, but please share in the comments what works for you.

1. Use liquids to help you feel full before, during, and after a meal.

Drink a zero-calorie beverage (preferably water) before your meal. Fifteen minutes or so, before lunch or dinner, drink a glass of water or your favorite beverage. It will help to fill you up and take the edge off your hunger without adding any calories.

Take a sip of beverage between every bite, or every two bites. This will help you slow down your eating and give your stomach time to figure out it’s full and send that message to your brain.  I try to remind myself that a fork is a fork and not a shovel.  I’m going to sneak in another tip here, talk to your eating partner. If you are eating with your husband, wife, children, whoever, talk to them.  Listen to them.  Put conversation into your meal.   It will slow you down and be fun, too!

If you’re used to having a dessert after a meal, substitute a zero-calorie beverage like coffee with artificial sweetener or a calorie-free instant hot chocolate. It helps you to maintain that “routine” of having dessert, gives you a bit of sweetness but without adding any calories.

2.  Presentation, presentation, did I mention presentation?

You don’t just eat with your mouth, you also enjoy a meal with your eyes.  If possible, “plate” your food.  Even though my Nutrisystem food comes in microwaveable cardboard cups or dishes, I always take the food out and place it on a pretty plate or in a pretty bowl.  Set the table before you eat.  Put a napkin, fork, knife and spoon.  Have a pretty place mat – maybe even a fresh flower as a centerpiece.  Treat yourself – make it something special.

Have you ever had a beverage, other than wine, in a wine glass?  I do it all the time!  Diet cola, water, lemonade.  If you put it in a wine glass, it just feels more special.

Never eat standing up or walking around.  Sit down at a table and eat slowly.  Have you ever grabbed a cookie, started eating it, and by the time you reach the couch find that you’ve already finished it and don’t really even remember eating it? Savor your food.  Make sure your brain knows that you’ve eaten something.

3.  Eat lots of vegetables.

There are many “free” items on the Nutrisystem plan – you can eat as much as you would like of those items.  Most of them are vegetables.  I’m lucky, in that, I love vegetables.  I’m unlucky, in that, I don’t love to chop or cook vegetables.  Yup, I admit it, I’m lazy. But there are some great steam-in bag vegetables, both fresh and frozen.  They’re not your most frugal choice, and yes, it is better to cut and cook your own.  If you don’t have time and you do have the money, the cut-and-already-clean veggies are the way to go.  Buy a bag of salad.  A steam-in bag of fresh green beans.  It will help fill you up, give you nutrients you need, keep your fork and mouth busy and add relatively few calories.

4.  Remember your goal.

Visualize yourself at your goal weight.  Write down the reasons that you want to lose wait and when you are tempted to eat more, read them and ask yourself, “Do I want this?  What is more important, my reasons for wanting to lose weight or this piece of food?”

Find pictures of yourself at your goal weight, or if it’s been too long, pictures of someone else in the shape you would like to be.  I like to use the pictures in a catalog, like REI, or Columbia.  I can’t wait until I’m a size and fitness level of an active person!

5.  Post your weight on the internet.  Well, maybe not that far, but go public.

Honestly, I’m not sure what I was thinking when I hit “publish” on last week’s post that included a picture of my scale. I know it will help me to be accountable, if I’m going to put that picture up every week.  Maybe you don’t need to go that far, but it will help to tell your family, friends, even co-workers about your plan.  We all dread public failure *shudder* and if it will help keep us on track, it’s worth it.

Disclosure: If you are interested in joining or learning more about Nutrisystem you can do so here or call 888-853-4689. All products have been provided to me free of charge as a selected blogger of the Nutrisystem Nation Blogger Program. All opinions are 100% mine and no monetary compensation was given for my opinion.