First off, welcome back UCF! I hope all of you had a fun safe spring break. Now, on the topic of spring break, I know many of you probably did some sort of crash diet to look good on the beach or by the pool. The question is: Do you want to keep the weight off? It’s basically spring break weather all year round in Florida, so it never hurts to always look good.
Now, I know it’s easier to quickly grab a bite to eat on the way home from work or class, but your body would be much happier if it got a home cooked, healthy meal. You’ll thank yourself later.
Here are some tips to keep that spring break diet weight off:
1. Drink a lot of water. Water plays a vital role in flushing toxins from the body, so it is important to drink as much as possible throughout the day. Also, drinking water can leave you feeling less tired as it keeps your blood volume at a maximum. The next tip is to eat a lot of fiber, but without water, fibrous foods can lead to constipation, which definitely does not lead to weight loss.
2. Eat high fiber foods. The American Cancer Society says that we should eat at least 25 to 30 grams of fiber per day. Eating a lot of fiber can normalize your bowel movements, which can lead to weight loss and weight maintenance. Also, fiber can make you fuller faster and requires more chewing, which signals to your brain that you’re full. If you eat less, you weigh less. It’s a simple equation. High fiber foods include broccoli, green peas, sweet corn, pistachios, almonds, strawberries and raspberries.
3. Stay away from white foods. White foods such as white bread, regular pasta, flour and white sugar are not your friends. They are extremely processed, so they have less vitamins and minerals and turn into fat and sugar very quickly. This quick transformation into fat and sugar leads to weight gain. Yes, white foods taste delicious, but they don’t treat your body very well. Stick with brown wheat bread, brown rice, brown sugar, etc.
4. Go the gym on a regular basis. I think this goes without saying but I felt it was necessary to reiterate. Going to the gym helps you to burn calories and lose weight. Cardiovascular exercises definitely benefit the body because it gets the blood flowing and calories burning. When losing weight, fat loss is the main goal. If you go to the gym and do a lot of weight lifting, you will begin to build muscle and the scale will say you are getting heavier. Do not be discouraged by the number on the scale; you’ll know when you’re forming muscle, so be sure to take that into consideration.
5. Get a good night’s sleep. It is extremely important to get a good night’s sleep. It helps your brain to rest and you won’t be tired throughout the day. Be sure to keep your energy up so that you want to go to the gym and want to continue to make positive changes.
It’s easy to get lazy, but if you want to see results, be sure to follow these guidelines. Good luck!